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Colombia’s Duque blasts ‘heinous’ pro-abortion ruling

AFP

Colombia’s president on Tuesday described as “heinous” a Constitutional Court ruling decriminalizing abortion up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, a move he said bypassed Congress and a deeply Catholic population.

Colombia on Monday became the fifth Latin American country to decriminalize elective abortion after Argentina, Uruguay, Cuba and Guyana and some states of Mexico.

President Ivan Duque said the decision of five judges against four was one that “concerns the entire Colombian society.”

“Five people (judges) cannot impose on the nation something as heinous as allowing life to be interrupted up to six months” of pregnancy, he told reporters.

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“We are not talking about a life in gestation, but a life that is already viable,” said the president.

Monday’s court ruling established the latest cutoff date for abortion in Latin America.

Previously, it was up to 14 weeks in Argentina.

Until now, abortion was only possible in Colombia in cases of rape, if the health or the woman was in danger, or the fetus had a life-threatening abnormality.

Outside of these limits, anyone who opted for an abortion or performed one risked 16 to 54 months in jail.

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Duque said the matter should be left to Congress to deliberate. 

The legislature can theoretically overturn the court decision, though it will need a majority to do so, and has avoided debating the matter for years.

Hundreds of people celebrated Monday’s court ruling, while others gathered to protest in prayer.

According to information gathered by lobby group Causa Justa, about 5,500 investigations into illegal abortions since 1998 have resulted in about 250 women being arrested.

There are 24 women in prison in Colombia today for having had an abortion, according to the prison authority.

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The Catholic church and other religious groups have repeatedly pushed back against decriminalizing abortion.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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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