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Argentines celebrate ‘new stage’ in Messi’s career ahead of PSG move

AFP

Argentines reacted with joy and pride as their national idol Lionel Messi arrived in France on Tuesday ahead of his expected move to Paris Saint-Germain following two decades at Barcelona.

The South American country may be 11,000 kilometres from Paris but Argentines were glued to their screens following the latest developments of the world’s most famous No.10.

“Messi and the day of the 10: he’s arrived and revolutionised Paris!” said sports newspaper Ole, referring to the day of the month and Messi’s shirt number.

While Barcelona fans may be crying at the loss of their star and PSG diehards rejoicing, Argentines viewed the six-time Ballon d’Or winner’s move positively.

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“He’s come to the end of the cycle at Barcelona and it’s good to broaden your horizons,” Jose Iturria, a 60-year-old health worker in Buenos Aires, told AFP.

“The truth is he deserves the best because he’s the best player in the world.”

Messi is joining other stars in Paris such as France forward Kylian Mbappe, Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, Spain center-back Sergio Ramos and Brazil’s Neymar.

Dario Luque, 38, said his new club will give Messi “a change of air and as he’ll be surrounded by more stars… it will be good for him and the team.”

– ‘It won’t be the same’ –

Speaking to Argentine channel C5N, Argentina’s ambassador to France, Leonardo Constatino said amongst Argentines in France “there is great pride. Everyone is delighted and it’s very exciting.

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“We’re lucky to have the best player in the world in Paris.”

Constatino said he had received “many calls” from people wanting to meet Messi.

Argentina’s football association produced an emotional video that was circulating on social media called “Chin up champion” that began with Messi’s tears at his farewell press conference in Barcelona.

“The most incredible thing is that no Argentine will ever desert you, go where you go,” said the video that featured scenes from Messi’s career and family life.

Last month, Messi inspired Argentina to victory in the Copa America to end the country’s 27-year wait for a major trophy.

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“PSG is a team full of (major) figures and Leo keeps saying he wants to carry on achieving things, it’s the ideal team for him,” Elvio Paolorosso, a former physio with Argentina and Barcelona, told AM 550 radio station.

He said PSG’s Argentine coach Mauricio Pochettino would help Messi settle.

“The city, the language will be a problem for the family but for him it’s one of the best teams of the moment, as well as having an Argentine coach who will make things easier.”

“It won’t be the same seeing Barcelona without you,” Javier Mascherano, the former Argentina international midfielder who spent eight years at Barcelona alongside Messi, wrote on Instagram.

“It’s the start of a new stage and there’s no doubt you will leave your indelible mark wherever you want to go. Always the best.”

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Convicted gang member challenges Guatemala’s anti-gang law, citing Human Rights Violations

A member of a criminal gang currently facing sentencing for the crime of extortion has filed a constitutional appeal before Guatemala’s Constitutional Court against the recently approved and enacted Anti-Gang Law.

The appeal, submitted by Dylan Smaily Archila García, argues that the new legislation violates his fundamental human rights and claims there were procedural irregularities during its approval process, according to local Guatemalan media.

Archila García filed the motion just hours after the law took effect. The new legislation, passed by Guatemala’s Congress, increases penalties for crimes linked to gang activity and authorizes the construction of a mega-prison, modeled after El Salvador’s Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT).

Local outlets reported that in his petition, Archila García contends that the approval of the law did not comply with constitutional requirements and requests that the Court issue a ruling to annul the legislation, effectively halting its enforcement.

The appeal further claims that the Anti-Gang Law infringes on due process rights, as it allegedly fails to guarantee a fair criminal trial in which defendants can prove their innocence, undermining legal certainty and judicial security.

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Through this legal action, the petitioner seeks to have the law suspended and ultimately struck down by the Constitutional Court, preventing it from being debated again in Congress.

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International

Trump warns Hamas that they will be “eradicated” if they break the ceasefire with Israel in Gaza

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, urged Hamas again this Monday to stop the violence and take the terms of the peace plan it promotes with Israel in Gaza, warning that otherwise they could be “eradicated,” although in turn he ruled out the possible presence of soldiers from his country in the Strip.

“We have peace in the Middle East for the first time in history; we reached an agreement with Hamas for which they will be very good, they will behave well and they will be kind. And if not, we will go and we will eradicate them,” the president told the press during a meeting at the White House with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Trump clarified, however, that if that happened “there would be no American soldiers on the ground at all” because it would only be enough to ask several of the countries that supported the peace proposal to take charge of the Palestinian militant group: “Israel would intervene in two minutes,” he added.

“I could tell them to intervene (to the countries) and take care of it. But for now, we haven’t said it. We are going to give (Hamas) a small chance and, hopefully, there will be a little less violence,” said the president, whose plan received the support of Arab and European nations during a peace summit in Egypt.

The American insisted that the militant group “has been very violent, but no longer has the support of Iran. He no longer has the support of anyone. They have to behave well, and if they don’t, they will be eradicated,” he repeated.

Israel bombed several points in Gaza on Sunday and killed dozens of people, in response to what it interpreted as a “violation” of the agreement by Hamas, a week after the entry into force of the ceasefire promoted by the Trump Administration.

The bombings took place after clashes in the Rafah area, located in southern Gaza and controlled by the Israeli Army, which left two Israeli soldiers dead.

After these clashes, Israel claimed to have “resumed the application of the ceasefire”. Shortly after, Trump assured for his part that the truce “is still in force.”

The Republican president had already threatened last week to “kill” Hamas members if they did not comply with the ceasefire agreement with Israel and “continue to kill in Gaza.”

The militant group has mobilized in Gaza to regain control after the start of the ceasefire in the Strip, which has meant the withdrawal of Israeli troops from half of the territory. In the midst of this tense situation, there have also been clashes between Hamas and other local militias.

Several videos show summary executions of people whom Palestinian militants accuse of collaborating with Israel, which according to local sources, have occurred in Gaza City.

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Trump files $15 billion defamation suit against The New York Times

U.S. President Donald Trump has filed a $15 billion defamation and libel lawsuit against The New York Times, which denounced the legal move on Tuesday as an attempt to silence the press.

In this new stage of his presidency, the 79-year-old Republican leader has escalated his long-standing hostility toward traditional media, repeatedly attacking critical journalists, limiting their access, or taking them to court.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in Florida, seeks $15 billion in damages, along with additional punitive compensation “in an amount to be determined at trial.”

The New York Times had reported last week that Trump threatened legal action over articles concerning a birthday letter allegedly sent by him to financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The letter featured a typed message inside the outline of a nude woman. Trump denies that the accompanying signature is his.

“For too long, The New York Times has been allowed to lie, defame, and slander me freely — and that ends NOW!” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social.

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