International
Three jailed for 30 years for drone attack on Venezuelan leader
| By AFP |
Three people accused in a failed drone attack targeting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in 2018 were sentenced to 30-year jail terms, relatives said on Friday.
Maria Delgado Tabosky, retired army major Juan Carlos Marrufo and retired colonel Juan Francisco Rodriguez were convicted on charges of “terrorism, treason and criminal conspiracy,” according to a family member of one of the accused, who asked to remain anonymous.
The criminal hearing began Thursday night and lasted into the early hours of Friday, the family member said.
Delgado Tabosky, 48, holds dual Venezuelan and Spanish citizenship and is sister of Osman Delgado Tabosky, who resides in the United States,
He is accused by the Maduro government of financing the attack, in which two drones carrying explosives blew up near where Maduro was addressing an assembly of members of the National Guard on August 4, 2018, in Caracas.
One drone exploded in the air over guardsmen standing in formation, injuring a few of them, and the second drone crashed into an apartment building two blocks away. Neither Maduro nor his wife, who was nearby, were hurt.
Marrufo, 52, who has both Venezuelan and Italian citizenship, is married to Maria Delgado Tabosky.
The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, a UN human rights body, has said that the arrests of Delgado Tabosky and Marrufo in 2019 were “arbitrary.” The couple have been jailed for three years and eight months at the General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence.
Relatives have appealed for their transfer to a prison and requested without avail for Spain and Italy to intercede in their cases.
Another 17 people accused in the attack, among them former opposition legislator Juan Requesens, were condemned in August to prison terms of between five and 30 years.
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
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