International
New Peru president to be announced July 20: electoral body
AFP
Peru’s electoral tribunal announced on Tuesday that it will proclaim on July 20 a winner from last month’s presidential election.
“We hope that by Tuesday of next week we will have the general act of proclamation already agreed,” said Alexandra Marallano, advisor to the presidency of the National Elections Jury (JNE).
Presumably Peruvians will finally know the results of the June 6 runoff between leftist Pedro Castillo and right-wing populist Keiko Fujimori.
That announcement will come just eight days before the new leader is due to be sworn in to replace interim President Francisco Sagasti.
“There will be a resolution to close the electoral process that determines who the winners are and the composition of the new government,” added Marallano, cited by the Andina state news agency.
Castillo received 50.12 percent of the ballots cast — some 44,000 more than Fujimori — but the daughter of disgraced and jailed former president Alberto Fujimori challenged the results and cried fraud.
Election jury officials have been examining disputed ballots.
She has a lot to lose if she is not elected as she faces a corruption trial if unsuccessful and fails to gain the legal protection election would afford her.
She has already intimated that she “will not accept” any JNE decision that goes against her.
Fujimori’s backers have called for new elections to be held, while she has urged Sagasti to seek an international audit of the vote.
Hundreds of supporters of both candidates in the polarizing election have set up camp in the Peruvian capital to “defend” their votes.
The JNE originally said it would announce the new government on July 15 but that was delayed by the resignation of one of the tribunal’s four judges.
The United States, European Union and Organization of American States have said the election was free and fair.
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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