International
Body of Venezuelan migrant murdered in Colombia repatriated
AFP
The body of one of the young Venezuelan migrants murdered in Colombia was repatriated Sunday following international outrage over their deaths.
Colombian authorities said the two youths, one of whom was a minor, were murdered by an “illegal armed group.”
The remains of Jackson Enrique Arriaga, 23, were given to his aunt Auricia Moreno in Cucuta, Colombia, she told AFP. Arriaga, the father of a three-year-old daughter, had migrated to Colombia almost two years ago due to the economic crisis in Venezuela.
His body will be transported to the northeastern city of Tibu, where he and the other youth were killed, and from there will be taken to Zulia state in Venezuela.
“I make a call to the Venezuelan youth: go back to your country,” Moreno said in tears. “Today it was Jackson, tomorrow it could be one of you. Return to Venezuela.”
Videos and photos shared on social media appeared to show the two migrants trying to steal clothing from a shop in Tibu, on the border with Venezuela — an area rife with criminal gangs.
Images seemingly from after the two were allegedly caught stealing show the young men with their wrists bound with tape, surrounded by people giving them a warning: “We don’t want to see you lying by the side of a road tomorrow. We’re handing you over to authorities.”
The younger of the two was pictured carrying a red school backpack.
Other images show their bodies covered in blood by the side of a rural path after they were apparently shot in the stomach.
A piece of cardboard with the words “thieves” had been placed on the younger Venezuelan.
“Our family has not even had time to really think about what happened,” Moreno said. “We found out through social media because those videos went viral.”
She said she did not know who the minor was, and that she did not believe her nephew had been robbing a store
Local media reported the minor’s body had already been repatriated.
Tibu is the site of Colombia’s largest plantation of coca leaves, the main ingredient used in the manufacture of cocaine.
Various armed groups in the country are battling for control of the lucrative drug trafficking market.
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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