International

Tropical storm Pamela weakens as moves inland over Mexico

AFP

Pamela made landfall on the western coast of Mexico on Wednesday as a Category One hurricane but weakened to a tropical storm as it moved inland while bringing torrential rain, strong winds and taking down trees and poles.

At 1200 GMT, Pamela crossed on to land about 65 kilometers (40 miles) north of the Pacific port of Mazatlan, in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, with sustained winds of 120 kph (75 mph) and was moving at 22 kph (14 mph), according to data from the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC).

But as it moved over land, Pamela lost strength and was downgraded to a tropical storm with sustained winds of 100 kph, the NHC said.

At 1500 GMT the center of the storm was 140 kilometers from Mazatlan and heading northeast at 37 kph, the NHC added.

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Sinaloa was the Mexican state worst affected by the hurricane, which also brought heavy rainfall to neighboring Nayarit and Durango, Mexico’s national water commission said.

In Mazatlan, home to 500,000 people, Pamela brought down trees and poles, and left some streets submerged with water, an AFP reporter noted.

Sinaloa’s civil protection force published images of rescuers helping residents of affected areas before taking them to shelters.

On Tuesday, 16 US citizens were taken to shelters after being stranded at the local airport when their flights were cancelled due to bad weather.

They are due to remain there until conditions improve, said Eloy Ruiz, the local civil protection coordinator.

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Authorities called on residents of rural areas to move to shelters due to the risk of flooding.

In Villa Union, a town of 13,000 people, 25 families living in a high-risk area were taken to shelters, local authorities said.

Sinaloa’s government declared a red alert on Tuesday night in 10 municipalities. Many of those residents rushed to supermarkets to stock up on food and water.

School classes and other activities have been temporarily suspended.

The NHC said heavy rainfall may trigger flash flooding and mudslides as Pamela tracks inland.

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Storm surges are expected to produce “significant” coastal flooding and “large and destructive waves,” the center added.

The remnants of Pamela could drench portions of Texas and Oklahoma by late Wednesday and Thursday with the potential for “considerable flash and urban flooding impacts.”

Because of its location, Mexico is often hit by tropical storms and hurricanes on both its Pacific and Atlantic coasts.

In August, Hurricane Nora made landfall in the Pacific state of Jalisco, killing a child and leaving one person missing.

Hurricane Grace left at least 11 dead on the eastern coast of Mexico’s mainland in the same month.

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In September, Hurricane Olaf made landfall on the Baja California peninsula, causing minor damage.

International

Football Fan Killed in Clashes After Colombian League Match

Fans of Cúcuta Deportivo and their traditional rivals Atlético Bucaramanga clashed outside the stadium following their local league match on Tuesday, leaving one supporter dead and several others injured.

The deceased fan was stabbed, according to a senior police official in Cúcuta who confirmed the cause of death in a video statement. Local media reported that the victim was a supporter of the visiting team, Atlético Bucaramanga.

The match ended in a 2-2 draw. Authorities had banned the entry of Atlético Bucaramanga’s organized supporters into the stadium in an effort to prevent disturbances.

Despite the restrictions, violence broke out in the surrounding areas after the game. Among the injured were three police officers, an institutional source told AFP.

The incident adds to a series of recent violent episodes linked to Colombian football. The most recent occurred in December, when supporters of Atlético Nacional and Independiente Medellín clashed in the stands and on the pitch, leaving 59 people injured.

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International

Missing Spanish Sailor Rescued After 11 Days Adrift in Mediterranean

The man had departed from the port of Gandía, on Spain’s eastern coast, with the intention of reaching the southern Spanish town of Guardamar del Segura, a journey of about 150 kilometers, a spokesperson for Spain’s maritime rescue service told AFP.

Search boats and aircraft were deployed on January 17, but the operation was called off on January 22 after efforts proved unsuccessful. Alerts were then issued to vessels navigating the area in case they spotted any signs of the missing sailor.

As hopes were fading, a surveillance aircraft from the European Union’s border agency Frontex spotted the sailboat on Tuesday, along with a person signaling for help, approximately 53 nautical miles northeast of Bejaia, Algeria.

A nearby vessel, the Singapore-flagged bulk carrier Thor Confidence, carried out the rescue and is expected to bring the man to an end to his ordeal when it arrives on Thursday in the southern Spanish port city of Algeciras.

Maritime rescue services shared images on social media showing a small white sailboat drifting at sea and secured alongside the much larger ship.

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It remains unclear how the sailboat ended up hundreds of kilometers off its intended route or how the man managed to survive for so long alone in open waters.

International

Rubio Says U.S. Could Participate in Follow-Up Russia-Ukraine Talks

The United States could join a new round of talks this week aimed at ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday.

Teams from Kyiv and Moscow met last Friday and Saturday in Abu Dhabi in their first publicly acknowledged direct negotiations to discuss the peace initiative promoted by former U.S. President Donald Trump.

“They are going to hold follow-up talks again this week,” Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “There could be U.S. participation.”

However, Rubio suggested that Washington’s role may be more limited than during last week’s discussions, which included Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

The secretary of state indicated that progress may have already been made on security guarantees for Ukraine, one of Kyiv’s key demands in any agreement with Moscow after nearly four years of Russian invasion.

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“There is one remaining issue that everyone is familiar with, and that is the territorial claim over Donetsk,” Rubio said, referring to the eastern Ukrainian region that Russia wants Ukraine to cede.

“I know that active efforts are underway to see whether the positions of both sides on this issue can be reconciled. It remains a bridge we have not yet crossed,” he added during the hearing.

Rubio acknowledged that the territorial question would be particularly difficult for Ukraine to resolve.