International
Colombia militant jailed for 28 years for Ecuador press murders
AFP
A member of a splinter group from Colombia’s FARC ex-guerrilla organization was sentenced Friday to 28 years in prison for the kidnap and murder of an Ecuadoran press team in 2018, prosecutors said.
Gustavo Angulo Arboleda, also known as “Cherry”, confessed to participating in the abduction and killing of two journalists from the daily El Comercio, as well as their driver, on the border between Ecuador and Colombia. He was also fined the equivalent of $1.2 million.
“The victims were kidnapped by members of the Oliver Sinisterra group, a breakaway group of the FARC, in the province of Esmeraldas (Ecuador) on March 26, 2018,” then “transferred to Colombian territory and delivered to Cherry,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
Prosecutors said Angulo Arboleda was part of the group in charge of guarding the hostages, until the Ecuadoran head of the splinter group, known as “Guacho,” ordered the murder of reporter Javier Ortega, 32, photographer Paul Rivas, 45, and driver Efrain Segarra, 60.
Their bodies were found three months after the kidnapping in a pit dug on the Colombian side of the border, in the southern region of Narino, one of the largest areas under drug cultivation in the world.
Guacho, whose real name was Walther Arizala, was killed by Colombian soldiers in December 2018.
Angulo Arboleda asked for forgiveness from the families of the victims, the prosecution said.
In March, another member of the same group, Jesus Vargas, also known as Reinel, was sentenced to 28 years and eight months in prison.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said in a report that the measures taken by Ecuador to protect the El Comercio press team had “been insufficient.”
The various armed groups that broke away from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, after it signed a historic peace deal in 2016, lack a unified command structure but number around 2,500 combatants.
They are financed mainly by drug trafficking as well as clandestine gold mines, according to the military intelligence service.
International
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.
All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.
The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.
The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.
“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
International
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.
“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.
Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.
According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.
International
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.
The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.
Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.
Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.
The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.
Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.
Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.
In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.
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