International
109 migrants deported from the US are referred from a hotel in Panama to the Darién
A group of 109 migrants, of the 299 deported by the United States who were in a central hotel in Panama, were transferred last night to a shelter in the province of Darién, where the homonymous forest that forms the natural border with Colombia is located, after not accepting for the moment to voluntarily return to their countries of origin.
Of the rest of the almost 300 migrants deported since last week on three flights from the US to Panama, after an agreement between both nations, at least 13 have already returned by air to their countries and another 177 remain waiting in the hotel in the Panamanian capital after having accepted the voluntary return, a source familiar with the process informed EFE on Wednesday.
The National Migration Service of Panama later announced in a statement of “the evasion of a foreign citizen of Chinese nationality”, which “presumably received external collaboration from individuals who were prowling around the hotel”, so now 176 migrants would remain in the building, which was guarded by Panamanian security forces.
On Tuesday, EFE was outside that hotel where migrants are staying, where some wrote messages on the windows like “help” or “we are not safe in our countries.”
Panama’s Security Minister, Frank Ábrego, explained on Tuesday that those almost 300 deported migrants were in the temporary “custody” or “protection” of the Panamanian government at the Decapolis hotel, near the maritime avenue of Panama City.
And he noted that the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) manage “repatriation”.
The IOM pointed out that its work is limited to working “with local officials to help those affected, supporting the voluntary returns of those who request them and identifying safe alternatives for others,” so they provide “humanitarian support, facilitating returns when it is safe to do so.”
Ábrego had advanced that some 171 migrants of those 299 “agreed to return voluntarily.”
The almost 300 deported migrants arrived in the Central American country on three flights from the United States, which deported them after the tightening of immigration policies with the arrival of President Donald Trump at the White House.
Although the Panamanian Government has not given details of the nationality of the total number of migrants, people from Asia such as China, Afghanistan and India, among others, arrived on the first flight with more than a hundred of those deportees.
Panama agreed to be a “poundge” for the mass deportations of the United States after the visit of US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, to the Central American country amid tensions over Trump’s threats to “recover” the Channel.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
International
Caracas shuts embassy in Oslo without explanation following Machado’s Nobel win
Venezuela has announced the closure of its embassy in Norway, just days after opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Venezuelan diplomatic mission provided no explanation for its decision on Monday.
“It is regrettable,” a ministry spokesperson said. “Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue with Venezuela open and will continue to work in that direction.” The ministry also emphasized that the Nobel Committee operates entirely independently from the Norwegian government.
In its announcement, the Nobel Committee stated that Machado met the criteria established by Alfred Nobel, “embodying the hope for a different future, where the fundamental rights of Venezuelans are heard.”
International
Sheinbaum: Urgent to restore access to towns cut off by heavy rains
Thousands of military personnel and civilians in Mexico worked tirelessly on Tuesday to clear roads blocked by the torrential rains of recent days, which have left more than 300 communities cut off across central and eastern regions of the country. Authorities also launched mass fumigation efforts in several affected areas to prevent the spread of dengue fever.
The official death toll remains at 64, though dozens of people are still missing. President Claudia Sheinbaumacknowledged that the government does not yet know the full situation in many of the isolated villages, which range in population from 500 to 1,000 inhabitants.
“The reopening of roads is one of the greatest urgencies,” Sheinbaum said. “It’s essential to guarantee air bridges, food supplies, clean water, and a proper census of the isolated communities so we can determine the condition of every person living there.”
Private construction companies are also assisting the effort with heavy machinery and technical support to help reopen highways and reconnect rural areas.
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Caracas shuts embassy in Oslo without explanation following Machado’s Nobel win
Sheinbaum: Urgent to restore access to towns cut off by heavy rains
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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