Central America
Nicaraguan opposition leader Suazo sentenced to 10 years in jail: group
AFP
Nicaraguan opposition leader Yubrank Suazo, who took part in protests against President Daniel Ortega’s government in 2018, was sentenced on Wednesday to 10 years in prison, his group said.
A court in the capital Managua sentenced Suazo to five years in jail for “conspiring to undermine national integrity” and another five years for spreading fake news, according to the Civic Alliance for Justice and Democracy, where he served as a director.
Suazo was “prosecuted and sentenced without having committed any crime, nor having any link with criminal structures,” the group said in a statement.
The 31-year-old hails from the southern city of Masaya, which was shaken by large anti-government protests in 2018.
The city had declared itself in rebellion against ex-guerrilla Ortega’s government as part of massive nationwide street protests.
The government’s crackdown on the demonstrations left 355 dead.
Suazo was detained in 2018 but released in 2019 as part of an agreement with the government mediated by the Catholic Church, which also saw several hundred other opposition figures freed.
But in May Suazo was arrested again and put on trial.
A Nicaraguan NGO campaigning for political prisoners says about 190 opposition figures have been detained.
About 45 opposition figures, including seven presidential hopefuls, were arrested last year ahead of elections in which Ortega benefitted from the lack of credible opposition to win a fourth successive term.
They were sentenced to up to 13 years in prison for allegedly undermining national security.
Ortega accuses his opponents of trying to oust him with help from the United States, which has hit him and his inner circle with sanctions.
Central America
Panama confirms drug contamination of El Salvador coffee shipment occurred on its territory
A container originating from El Salvador and carrying coffee for export was contaminated with more than 1,152 packages of drugs while in transit through Panama, according to official information confirmed by the Panamanian government this Tuesday.
The case, which had previously generated political controversy in April 2025 after opposition sectors attempted to link the Salvadoran government to drug trafficking, has now been clarified through renewed investigations.
Authorities confirmed that the container departed from the port of Acajutla after being properly inspected, with no illicit substances detected at the time of export.
According to statements previously provided by El Salvador’s Minister of Defense, René Merino Monroy, the shipment traveled first to the port of Balboa in Panama, where it remained stored for several days before being transferred to another vessel bound for Manzanillo in Colón.
It was at that terminal that Panamanian authorities discovered the drugs and identified tampering with the container seals, indicating that the illicit alteration occurred during its transit in Panama rather than in Salvadoran territory.
The findings align with earlier explanations provided by Salvadoran officials and confirm that the contamination of the cargo took place outside of El Salvador’s jurisdiction.
Central America
Uber Eats adds Puntarenas and Turrialba to growing Costa Rica network
Uber Eats announced that it is continuing to expand its presence in Costa Rica with the launch of operations in the cities of Puntarenas and Turrialba, further strengthening the company’s growth in the country.
With this expansion, the delivery platform is now available across all seven Costa Rican provinces and works with more than 6,000 partner businesses. Its offerings include prepared food, supermarkets, pharmacies, pet stores, and other specialty retailers.
As part of the announcement, Uber Eats also introduced Marco Nannipieri as its new Regional General Manager for the Andean Region, Central America, and the Caribbean.
Nannipieri will oversee the company’s operations in Costa Rica along with seven other countries in the region.
“Costa Rica is a key market for Uber Eats in the region, with growing adoption of technology among users and businesses. Over the past five years, more than 1,000 restaurants and merchants have joined the app, and today we are entering a new stage of expansion that will allow us to reach more cities outside the Greater Metropolitan Area, creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs across the country,” Nannipieri said.
Central America
Report questions direction of Nasry Asfura after 100 days in office
The Center for the Study of Democracy warned Tuesday that the government of Nasry Asfura, which marks its first 100 days in office on Wednesday, has failed to show a “significant change in direction” and continues to follow a model characterized by exclusion, inequality, and external dependence.
In its report titled “100 Days of the Nasry Asfura Government: Concerns and Demands,” Cespad stated that the administration has maintained an economic and political model that prioritizes debt payments, the promotion of extractive projects, and the strengthening of the security apparatus over social investment.
The organization argued that the current policies have not addressed structural problems affecting large sectors of the Honduran population and warned that inequality and economic dependence remain key challenges for the country.
Nasry Asfura won the general elections held on November 30, 2025, in a process marked by allegations of fraud and delays in the vote count that lasted nearly a month due to a series of technological failures.
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