International
Putin attends funeral service for nationalist Zhirinovsky
AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday paid his respects at the memorial service of ultra-nationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky, whose death at age 75 was announced this week.
Hundreds of ordinary Russians — including many young people — came to pay their last respects to the politician who had urged authorities to bomb Ukraine.
An eccentric political showman, Zhirinovsky co-founded and led the Liberal-Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), one of the main forces in the country’s parliament, since 1990.
After mass in Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, an open casket ceremony was held with Putin laying a bouquet of red roses near the coffin and bowing his head for a moment of silence.
The ceremony took place in the Moscow Hall of Columns, where Joseph Stalin lay in state in 1953.
Late last year Zhirinovsky appeared to predict Russia’s military action in Ukraine and urged Russian forces to strike the pro-Western country.
“I very much respected this man,” said Svetlana Gorodnyatskaya, a 55-year-old member of the LDPR party, crying. “This is simply an irreparable loss both for politics and for our entire country.”
Kseniya Vygovskaya, a 22-year-old graduate student, praised Zhirinovsky for standing up for Russia’s interests.
“Vladimir Volfovich is one of those people who sincerely loved his homeland, who sincerely wished it prosperity,” she said, referring to him by his name and patronymic.
Zhirinovsky was later buried at Moscow’s prestigious Novodevichy Cemetery.
His critics despised him for being the Kremlin’s token opponent who helped channel discontent. Since Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and its subsequent stand-off with the West, Zhirinovsky had shifted into making anti-Kyiv public speeches.
Anti-Kremlin political observer Sergei Medvedev said the politician was not worth a “single kind word.”
“His talented, carefully calculated and generously paid buffoonery gave rise to modern Russian fascism,” Medvedev said this week.
Known for his brash, confrontational style and eyebrow-raising antics, Zhirinovsky had been a permanent fixture on the Russian political scene for the past three decades and thrived on controversy.
Zhirinovsky took part in all of post-Soviet Russia’s presidential elections and had been a member of parliament since 1993, when his party scored a major success with nearly 23 percent of the vote.
Often described as a clown in Russian political circles, he was known for his fiery anti-American, anti-liberal and anti-communist speeches.
International
Petro expresses concern over fatal shooting during mass protests in Lima
Colombian President Gustavo Petro voiced his “concern” on Thursday over recent events in Peru, following the death of a protester reportedly shot during a massive demonstration in Lima against the government and Congress.
“I must express my concern over the events in Peru. A young artist has been killed in citizens’ protests,” Petro wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
The Colombian leader also noted that in Peru, “a popularly elected president remains imprisoned without conviction,” referring to Pedro Castillo, who led the country from July 2021 to December 2022 until he was removed by Congress following a failed attempted coup.
“This is a blatant violation of the American Convention on Human Rights,” Petro stated, adding, “I hope Peru seeks social and political dialogue to legitimize its public institutions.”
On Wednesday, Peru experienced widespread protests in several cities, with the largest demonstration in Lima in recent years, driven by citizens’ concerns over corruption and public insecurity.
During the capital’s mobilization, the Ombudsman’s Office confirmed the death of Eduardo Ruiz, 32, and reported clashes that left over 100 injured, including 78 police officers and 24 protesters, as well as ten arrests.
The Attorney General’s Office, investigating Ruiz’s death “in the context of serious human rights violations,” confirmed that the protester was shot.
International
Peru’s interim president José Jerí refuses to resign after protester’s death in Lima
Peru’s interim president, José Jerí, stated Thursday that he has no intention of resigning from the post he assumed last Friday, following the removal of former president Dina Boluarte, despite growing unrest over the death of a protester during massive demonstrations in Lima on Wednesday.
“I will not resign,” Jerí declared outside the Government Palace in Lima, where he returned on foot after making a surprise visit to Congress headquarters alongside Prime Minister Ernesto Álvarez.
Earlier, after leaving the Legislative Palace, the president acknowledged that the country is going through “difficult times” and condemned what he described as “a small group attempting to impose an agenda different from the citizens’ expression of discontent.”
Jerí expressed condolences for the death of Eduardo Ruiz, a 32-year-old man who died during Wednesday’s protest against the government and Congress, amid growing anger over corruption and insecurity.
“We stand in solidarity with his family,” he said, without offering further details about the incident, which has sparked outrage among Peruvians.
The president also described the demonstrations as “a legitimate civic expression” that later turned violent due to “certain groups seeking to provoke chaos by exploiting a peaceful citizen movement.”
“In a state governed by the rule of law, the rights of both demonstrators and security forces must be protected,” Jerí emphasized, adding that “as a result of that situation, this unfortunate death occurred outside the main area where the protest was taking place.”
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
Petro expresses concern over fatal shooting during mass protests in Lima
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Peru’s interim president José Jerí refuses to resign after protester’s death in Lima
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