International

Capriles believes that calling Venezuelan migrants criminals is Dantesque

Former Venezuelan governor Henrique Capriles said on Friday that calling Venezuelan migrants criminals is Dantesic, after the United States Government sent more than 100 migrants from the Caribbean country to the Guantánamo naval base in Cuba, according to US media.

“Continuing to affirm that all Venezuelan migrants are criminals of the Aragua Train, is one of the most Dantesque and unfair things that our Venezuelan brothers have to suffer abroad,” said the two-time presidential candidate in X.

Likewise, Capriles said that not all migrants are criminals, “more when most went looking for a better future, because of the crisis generated by the ruling party in more than 25 years.”

“Organizations and family members continue to denounce arbitrariness and abuses. What have been the crimes? What has been the verification criterion? It’s a very delicate situation,” he added.

Capriles indicated that Guantánamo is a high-security military prison, “denounced many times for inhumane treatment,” so he demanded respect for the human rights of Venezuelans.

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“It is unacceptable to qualify all migrants as criminals,” he reiterated.

The United States Government has sent more than 100 migrants, all of them of Venezuelan nationality, to the naval base of Guantánamo, in Cuba, US media reported.

Donald Trump’s Administration has highlighted the sending of these migrants to the island – which began on February 4 – as an example of the US president’s tough-handed policy against irregular migration, and the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), Kristi Noem, has described them as “the worst of the worst.”

The White House has not given details about the detainees, beyond calling them “criminals” and linking them to the transnational gang of Venezuelan origin Tren de Aragua.

Half of these people, 53 men, are detained in a prison inside the military base, according to The New York Times, which published a list with the names of the migrants.

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EFE contacted the families of four of the migrants who are on the list published by the newspaper, who defend the innocence of their loved ones and denounce that they have not been able to communicate with them for several days now.

Three of them were arrested after presenting to an appointment with the immigration authorities at the southern border, which they got in the CBP ONE application. The fourth went into detention after crossing into the United States irregularly and surrendering to Border Patrol agents.

International

Florida judge sets 2027 trial in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against BBC

A federal judge in Florida has scheduled February 2027 for the trial in the lawsuit filed by U.S. President Donald Trump against the BBC, in which he is seeking $10 billion in damages for defamation.

Trump accuses the British broadcaster of airing a misleading edit of a speech he delivered on January 6, 2021, which, he says, made it appear that he explicitly urged his supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol in Washington.

The president filed the suit in December in federal court in Florida, alleging defamation and violations of a law governing business practices when the program was broadcast ahead of the 2024 election.

Trump is seeking $5 billion in damages for each of the two claims.

Lawyers for the BBC unsuccessfully asked the court to dismiss the case, arguing that Trump had not suffered a “legally recognizable harm,” since the investigative program Panorama, which included the edited footage, aired outside the United States.

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International

Head-of-state diplomacy key to guiding China–U.S. ties, Beijing says

Head-of-state diplomacy plays an irreplaceable strategic guiding role in China–United States relations, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Thursday during a regular press briefing, when asked about high-level exchanges between the two sides.

Lin added that in a recent phone call, U.S. President Donald Trump once again expressed his intention to visit China in April, while Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated his invitation.

Both sides remain in communication regarding the matter, the spokesperson said.

Lin noted that the essence of China–U.S. economic and trade ties lies in mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

“Both parties should work together to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, injecting greater certainty and stability into China–U.S. economic and trade cooperation, as well as into the global economy,” he said.

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International

Trump administration to end special immigration operation in Minnesota

The administration of Donald Trump is bringing to a close its special operation targeting illegal immigration in the northern state of Minnesota, border czar Tom Homan announced Thursday, following weeks of unrest and the fatal shootings of two activists by federal agents.

Thousands of federal officers had been deployed to Minnesota in December to carry out large-scale raids against undocumented immigrants.

The operations triggered strong reactions from residents and advocacy groups, leading to daily confrontations and the deaths of two people who were shot by federal agents.

“I proposed, and President Trump agreed, that this special operation should end in Minnesota,” Homan said during a press conference in the state capital, Minneapolis.

“A significant drawdown began this week and will continue into next week,” he added.

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Homan indicated that similar enforcement efforts could be launched in other cities.

“Next week we will redeploy the agents currently here back to their home stations or to other parts of the country where they are needed. But we will continue to enforce immigration laws,” he said.