International
Mexican court allows subsidiary of Canadian company to grow cannabis
AFP
Mexico’s Supreme Court on Wednesday issued the country’s first-ever authorization for planting, cultivating and harvesting cannabis for industrial purposes.
It granted the right to a wholly owned subsidiary of the Canadian firm Xebra Brands, which cultivates hemp and produces products such as cannabis-infused drinks.
Cannabis use became legal in Canada in 2018.
While industrial cannabis production is still illegal in Mexico, a country wracked by decades of drugs wars, the court responded positively to an injunction against the prohibition filed by the firm Desart MX, a Mexican subsidiary of Vancouver-based firm.
The ruling obliges the firm to “guarantee that the plant produces concentrations equal to or less than one percent” of THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, the active substance of the plant.
It added that production must meet “the monitoring, control and security conditions that the competent authority (…) deems appropriate to protect health and public order.”
A judicial source explained to AFP that the ruling will apply only to Desart MX, and that it is a first step toward granting the company full permits.
The ruling is the latest issued by the Supreme Court in recent years to loosen prohibitions on the use of hemp.
The court this year decriminalized the recreational use of marijuana and instructed Congress to legislate on the matter, although the bill is still under debate in the Senate after the lower house approved it.
Uruguay and Colombia have the most advanced regulations on the production, marketing and export of cannabis in Latin America.
In December 2013, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legalize the production, distribution and consumption of cannabis. For its part, Colombia authorized the industrial use of cannabis and its export for medicinal purposes in July.
International
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
The United States has announced new limits on the legal length of stay for foreign students and journalists, marking the latest tightening of immigration policies under President Donald Trump.
The changes, outlined in an administrative rule published on Thursday, are expected to take effect in September, unless Congress blocks the measure.
Under the new policy, holders of student visas will be allowed to remain in the United States for no more than four years.
Foreign journalists will be limited to 240-day stays—approximately eight months—with the possibility of applying for extensions of the same duration.
The policy imposes even stricter rules on Chinese journalists, whose visas will be capped at 90 days.
More than 100 international news organizations and press freedom groups, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), criticized the measure in an open letter, arguing that it would reduce both the quantity and quality of international coverage of events in the United States.
The Republican Party, led by President Trump, currently holds a majority in Congress and has pledged to curb both illegal immigration and certain forms of legal immigration.
Previously, the United States generally issued student visas for the full duration of an academic program, while foreign journalists could receive visas valid for up to five years.
Central America
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
The Nicaraguan government announced on Thursday that it is severing diplomatic relations with Italy following criticism from the Italian government over Nicaragua’s long-standing decision to shelter Alessio Casimirri, a former member of the Red Brigades convicted in Italy for the 1978 kidnapping and murder of former Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani criticized the administration of co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo on Wednesday for continuing to provide refuge to Casimirri, who was sentenced in Italy to six life terms for his role in Moro’s abduction and killing.
In a statement issued Thursday, Nicaragua’s Foreign Ministry said it was ending all diplomatic relations with Italy, describing Tajani’s remarks as “unjustified, aggressive, and irresponsible.”
Tajani made the comments during a gathering of conservative leaders from Europe and Latin America held in Madrid.
“We have absolutely nothing in common with the positions of extremist governments such as Nicaragua, a country that continues to harbor dangerous Red Brigades terrorists like Alessio Casimirri,” Tajani said, according to Italian media.
The diplomatic break marks a new escalation in tensions between the two countries over the decades-old case involving Casimirri, who has lived in Nicaragua for many years despite repeated calls from Italy for his extradition.
International
U.S. Strikes Hit Areas Near Strait of Hormuz as Tensions With Iran Escalate
Several U.S. strikes targeted areas near the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, according to Iranian state media citing local authorities, as hostilities between the United States and Iran intensified.
Officials in Iran’s Hormozgan Province said the island of Qeshm was struck multiple times by what they described as U.S. missiles during the evening. The reports were carried by the Iranian news agencies Fars and Tasnim.
Iranian state television also reported that the Bandar Abbas region, located on the Iranian coast overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, was the target of what authorities described as an “enemy U.S. air attack.”
According to local officials quoted by state television, no casualties have been reported following the strikes.
The reported attacks come amid renewed military tensions between Washington and Tehran, although U.S. authorities had not immediately commented on the reported operations.
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
U.S. Strikes Hit Areas Near Strait of Hormuz as Tensions With Iran Escalate
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