International

Ex-health ministry director in Brazil accused of perjury by Covid panel

AFP

A former director of Brazil’s health ministry was arrested Wednesday while testifying before a Senate commission investigating how the government of President Jair Bolsonaro has handled the Covid-19 pandemic.

Senator Omar Aziz, who chairs the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (ICC), ordered the arrest of the ministry’s former logistics director Roberto Dias on charges of perjury.

“He’s been lying since this morning, I gave him the opportunity (to tell the truth), I asked him several times,” Aziz said.

“I do not accept that the ICC is becoming a farce. We have more than 527,000 dead from this pandemic and the guys are doing deals with vaccines,” he said, visibly annoyed.

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It was the first time that a senator on the ICC commission has ordered an arrest since the investigation two months ago.

Dias was dismissed from his post at the end of June following allegations that he demanded a one dollar per dose bribe from the representative of a company negotiating the sale of 400 million AstraZeneca vaccines to Brazil.

Suspicions had arisen after statements by the company representative, Luiz Dominguetti, who testified last week before the ICC.

Dias denied having asked for any bribe and claimed the meeting with Dominguetti had gone well, despite information the senators had contradicting his version of events, according to parliamentary sources.

Dias also denied pressuring a subordinate to sign a contract to purchase the Indian vaccine Covaxin, a scandal that could implicate Bolsonaro.

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The president is the subject of a preliminary investigation in this case, suspected of turning a blind eye to corruption allegations reported by a health ministry official.

Testifying before the commission of inquiry, the official said he had been subjected to “atypical pressure” to approve the importation of Covaxin doses that he considered to be overpriced.

The far-right president has long downplayed the severity of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

International

Police investigate deaths of Rob Reiner and wife as apparent homicide

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is investigating the deaths of Hollywood actor and filmmaker Rob Reinerand his wife as an “apparent homicide,” amid a wave of tributes to the director of classics such as When Harry Met Sally.

According to U.S. media reports on Sunday, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner were found dead at their Los Angeles mansion with what appeared to be stab wounds.

Several political figures shared messages of condolence following the reported deaths of the director of A Few Good Menand his wife.

While the LAPD did not officially confirm the identities of the victims, it stated that homicide detectives were dispatched to the Reiner residence.

“At this time, no additional details are available and the investigation into an apparent homicide is ongoing,” the Los Angeles Police Department said in a statement posted on social media.

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LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton told reporters that no arrests have been made and that no individuals are currently being questioned as suspects.

“I’m not going to confirm whether anyone is being questioned at this moment or not. We are going to try to speak with as many family members as we can,” Hamilton said.

CNN reported that a family spokesperson confirmed the deaths of Reiner and his wife.

California Governor Gavin Newsom, former U.S. President Barack Obama, and former Vice President Kamala Harrisissued statements expressing their condolences.

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International

U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty

The United States and Mexico have reached an agreement to comply with current water obligations affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers and for Mexico to cover its water deficit to Texas under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.

The department уточified that the agreement applies to both the current cycle and the water deficit from the previous cycle.

On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Mexico of failing to comply with the water-sharing treaty between the two countries, which requires the United States to deliver 1.85 billion cubic meters of water from the Colorado River, while Mexico must supply 432 million cubic meters from the Rio Grande.

Mexico is behind on its commitments. According to Washington, the country has accumulated a deficit of more than one billion cubic meters of water over the past five years.

“This violation is severely harming our beautiful crops and our livestock in Texas,” Trump wrote on Monday.

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The Department of Agriculture said on Friday that Mexico had agreed to supply 250 million cubic meters of water starting next week and to work toward closing the shortfall.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, quoted in the statement, said Mexico delivered more water in a single year than it had over the previous four years combined.

Trump has said that if Mexico continues to fall short of its obligations, the United States reserves the right to impose 5% tariffs on imported Mexican products.

Mexico’s Deputy Foreign Minister for North America, Roberto Velasco, said that a severe drought in 2022 and 2023prevented the country from meeting its commitments.

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International

Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus

Several people were shot on Saturday in an attack on the campus of Brown University, in the northeastern United States, local police reported.

“Shelter in place and avoid the area until further notice,” the Providence Police Department urged in a post on X. Brown University is located in Providence, the capital of the state of Rhode Island.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he had been briefed on the situation and that the FBI was on the scene.

At 5:52 p.m. local time (11:52 p.m. GMT), Brown University said the situation was still “ongoing” and instructed students to remain sheltered until further notice.

After initially stating that the suspect had been taken into custody, Trump later posted a second message clarifying that local police had walked back that information. “The suspect has NOT been apprehended,” the U.S. president said.