International
Russia jails former mayor over Navalny protest tweets

AFP/Editor
A Russian court on Wednesday sentenced opposition politician Yevgeny Roizman to nine days in jail for calling on people to join demonstrations in support of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
The sentence follows a wave of recent court rulings that have sidelined or sent into exile allies of Navalny, who was jailed by authorities in February for more than two years on old embezzlement charges he claimed were politically motivated.
Roizman, 58, was mayor of Russia’s fourth-largest city Yekaterinburg between 2013 and 2018 and frequently participates in rallies organised by the opposition, including Navalny.
He was additionally accused of “organising an unsanctioned event” on January 31 and April 21 through posts on his Twitter account that has close to 500,000 followers.
A court in Yekaterinburg found him guilty and sentenced Roizman to nine days in jail on both charges, the state-run TASS news agency reported.
The jail terms will be served simultaneously, so the politician will spend a total of nine days behind bars.
Roizman pleaded not guilty to both offences.
He was also sentenced to 30 days of community service for taking part in the April rally, local news website Znak.ru reported.
Earlier in March, Roizman was fined 20,000 rubles (around $270) for taking part in rallies on January 23 and 31.
The winter marches were held in cities across Russia just after Navalny, 44, returned to Moscow from Germany, where he was recovering from nerve agent poisoning.
Navalny was taken into custody for allegedly breaching parole terms and in February was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in a penal colony.
Navalny announced a hunger strike in late March, demanding proper medical treatment for pain in his back and numbness in his legs, sparking fresh nationwide rallies on April 21.
He ended his hunger strike after 24 days.
The rallies were met with a harsh responses from authorities, with participants receiving fines and short jail terms and some facing several years in prison.
Last month, authorities moved to abolish Navalny’s movement in Russia, seeking to designate two of his key organisations as “extremist”, entailing an effective ban.
International
Erin brings strong winds and storm surge despite weakening offshore

Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 2 storm on Tuesday but continues to pose a threat to parts of the U.S. East Coast with potentially dangerous flooding, according to meteorologists.
Although the hurricane’s eye is expected to remain offshore, experts are concerned about Erin’s size, as strong winds extend hundreds of kilometers beyond the storm’s center.
In its 18:00 GMT bulletin, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) lifted tropical storm warnings for the Bahamasand Turks and Caicos Islands, but kept them in effect for parts of North Carolina.
Erin was located several hundred kilometers southeast of North Carolina and was moving northwestward.
“This means there is a risk of potentially life-threatening flooding of 60 to 120 centimeters above ground level,” said NHC Director Michael Brennan.
He also warned of the possibility of destructive waves, combined with storm surge, that could cause severe damage to beaches and coastal areas, making roads impassable.
International
Three U.S. Warships deploy near Venezuela to combat drug trafficking

Three U.S. naval vessels are moving toward the coasts of Venezuela, according to international media reports on Tuesday, after White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt confirmed that President Donald Trump is ready to combat and curb international drug trafficking.
Reports indicate that the ships will reach Venezuelan waters within the next 36 hours as part of a recent U.S. deployment aimed at countering international narcotics operations.
The announcement coincides with Leavitt’s statement that Trump is prepared to “use the full extent of his power” to halt drug flows into the United States. The naval deployment involves approximately 4,000 military personnel.
“The President has been clear and consistent. He is ready to use every element of U.S. power to prevent drugs from flooding our country and to bring those responsible to justice. The Maduro regime is not the legitimate government of Venezuela—it is a narco-terror cartel,” the spokesperson said during a press conference.
International
Cuban authorities free salvadoran convicted in 1997 hotel bombing

Salvadoran national Otto René Rodríguez Llerena was released after serving a 30-year prison sentence for his involvement in a terrorist attack at a hotel in Cuba in 1997, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported.
During his trial, Rodríguez Llerena admitted to placing an explosive device at the Meliá Cohiba Hotel under the orders of anti-Castro exile leaders. He was arrested the following year when he returned to Havana with another load of explosives that failed to detonate.
“The Cuban government reiterates its commitment to combating terrorism, respecting human rights, and the need for the international community to hold accountable those who promote such acts,” the statement read.
He was released on August 15 and is the second Salvadoran to complete his sentence. In December of last year, another Salvadoran, Ernesto Cruz León, was released after planting bombs at tourist centers, one of which killed an Italian tourist identified as Fabio Di Celmo.
A third Salvadoran, Francisco Chávez Abarca, also received a 30-year sentence from Cuban courts in 2010 after being extradited from Venezuela through Interpol for actions against Cuba.
Rodríguez Llerena had requested conditional release in 2016, arguing that his actions had not caused any direct fatalities, but no further information was released about his situation until now.
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