Central America
El Salvador’s Bukele seeks emergency powers over spike in gang killings
AFP
El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on Saturday urged lawmakers to declare a state of emergency after authorities arrested dozens of gang members over a recent wave of bloodshed.
Gang violence has soared in El Salvador in recent days, with police reporting that 62 people were killed on Saturday alone.
Hours earlier, police and the military arrested several leaders of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang over the spate of killings.
“We will not back down in this war against gangs, we will not rest until the criminals responsible for these acts are captured and brought to justice,” the country’s National Civil Police posted on Twitter.
In response to killings, Bukele asked the legislature — controlled by his ruling party — to meet to declare a state of emergency, under which certain freedoms are curtailed.
The Salvadoran constitution says that a state of emergency can be put into place “in cases of war, invasion of territory, rebellion, sedition, catastrophe, epidemic or other general calamity, or serious disturbances of public order.”
“Since yesterday, we have had a new spike in homicides, something that we had worked so hard to reduce,” Bukele said in a statement posted on Twitter by Congress president Ernesto Castro.
“While we fight criminals in the streets, we must try to figure out what is happening and who is financing this.”
Castro said the country “must let the agents and soldiers do their job and must defend them from the accusations of those who protect the gang members.”
Bukele asked the prosecutor’s office “to be effective with all the cases” of gang members that it processes, warning he would keep an eye on “judges who favor criminals.”
Last November, El Salvador suffered another spike in homicides that claimed the lives of some 45 people in three days.
The Mara Salvatrucha and Barrio-18 gangs, among others, have about 70,000 members in El Salvador, according to authorities, and operate through homicides, extortion and drug trafficking.
The country registered 1,140 murders in 2021 — an average of 18 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants — less than the 1,341 registered the previous year and the lowest figure since the end of the civil war in 1992, according to official data.
Central America
Guatemala Declares Highest Alert in Areas Affected by Fuego Volcano Eruption
Guatemalan authorities declared a red alert, the highest level of danger, on Tuesday in areas affected by the eruption of the Fuego Volcano, located about 35 kilometers from the country’s capital.
The most active volcano in Central America entered an eruptive phase on Monday morning, and its activity intensified overnight with lava emissions and large columns of gas and ash.
No fatalities have been reported, but the volcanic activity forced the evacuation of around 500 people as a precautionary measure.
The National Coordination for Disaster Reduction (Conred) declared a state of emergency in the departments of Sacatepéquez, Chimaltenango and Escuintla, the agency announced through its official X account.
The affected regions are home to approximately 1.6 million people. However, ashfall has so far impacted only about five municipalities.
Despite the increase in the alert level, authorities reopened a road leading to the city of Antigua, the country’s main tourist destination, after evaluating safety conditions in the area.
The Fuego Volcano is one of Guatemala’s most active geological formations and has a history of frequent eruptions, requiring continuous monitoring by national emergency agencies.
Central America
U.S. Defense Secretary to Close Multinational Military Exercises in Panama to Protect Canal
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth will travel to Panama next week to close multinational military exercises involving more than 20 countries aimed at strengthening security measures for the Panama Canal against potential threats, a Panamanian government official announced Monday.
This will mark Hegseth’s second visit to Panama. The U.S. defense chief is expected to arrive on August 13 for the closing ceremony of the military drills, which began this week and have been conducted in the Central American country for more than two decades to support the protection of the interoceanic waterway, according to Panama’s Security Minister Frank Ábrego.
The exercises include participation from the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Peru and the United Kingdom, among other nations.
“The canal is a strategic infrastructure that connects markets and supports global supply chains. Its security and uninterrupted operation are of fundamental importance for Panama, the United States and the international community,” said U.S. Ambassador to Panama Kevin Marino Cabrera.
The drills include maritime training operations, exercises in jungle areas surrounding the canal, as well as virtual simulations focused on cybersecurity and strategic planning.
The Panama Canal, one of the world’s most important trade routes, handles approximately 5% of global maritime commerce, making its security a priority for international trade and logistics networks.
Ábrego emphasized that preparedness and international coordination are essential to maintaining stability.
“The best way to preserve peace and guarantee the continuity of global trade is to be prepared to respond in a coordinated and effective manner to any threat,” the Panamanian official said.
Central America
Prosecutors Accuse Ex-Defense Minister of Undermining Press Freedom in Honduras
Honduras’ Public Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday filed criminal charges against retired General Roosevelt Hernández, the country’s former defense minister and former chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, over his alleged role in actions that prosecutors say undermined press freedom and freedom of expression.
Prosecutors said the case was brought by the Special Prosecutor’s Office for the Protection of Journalists, Social Communicators, Human Rights Defenders and Justice Officials following an investigation into content published between 2025 and 2026 on a digital media platform operated by the Honduran Armed Forces.
According to the investigation, the publications were reported by journalists and the Honduran Journalists Association (CPH), which described them as part of an alleged campaign to discredit members of the press and media organizations.
The case dates back to May 2025, when the CPH filed complaints with national and international organizations after the Armed Forces referred to three journalists as “hitmen” in an article published by FF.AA. Digital. The association argued that the publication endangered the journalists’ safety and constituted an attack on press freedom.
The journalists identified in the publication as “hitmen of the truth” were Rodrigo Wong Arévalo, director of the television news program Abriendo Brecha; Dagoberto Rodríguez, director of Radio Cadena Voces; and Juan Carlos Sierra, president of the Honduran Journalists Association. The article also included photographs of the three journalists and the CPH’s logo.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office said the case file includes formal complaints, pretrial investigative proceedings, a specialized forensic analysis of audiovisual and digital material, and witness testimony gathered during the investigation to determine whether the publications violated freedom of expression and the exercise of journalism.
Authorities emphasized that freedom of the press and freedom of expression are protected under the Honduran Constitution as well as international treaties ratified by the country.
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