International
Ecuadorian eyes on Constitutional Court after cross death
May 18 |
All eyes in Ecuador are focused today on the Constitutional Court (CC) awaiting a pronouncement from that judicial body on the cross death decree.
After the declaration of this measure by the Ecuadorian president, Guillermo Lasso, on Wednesday morning, several social organizations and political parties described it as illegal for not being justified in one of the grounds provided by law.
According to the Constitution, the cross death can be applied if the National Assembly arrogates functions to itself, if the legislative body obstructs the National Development Plan, or due to a serious political crisis and internal commotion.
In this sense, former Assemblymen Esteban Torres, from the Social Christian Party, and Yeseña Guamaní, from Izquierda Democrática, filed a claim of unconstitutionality before the CC.
If the decree lacks legality, the Assembly will remain standing with the expectations of the Ecuadorians these two years, but if on the contrary the document has the validity of the CC, we will go to elections, reiterated Torres when formally delivering the document at the headquarters of the public institution.
On his part, the former president of the Parliament Virgilio Saquicela assured that the pronouncement of the CC is a matter of national urgency because the Legislative power was dissolved without the existence of the social commotion of which the Chief Executive spoke.
Likewise, the head of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), Leonidas Iza, reiterated that despite the fact that the decree of cross death is a mechanism established in the Constitution, in this context its application is not justified because it does not prove the existence of the cause of social commotion and political crisis, denounced the indigenous leader.
By the way, Conaie declared itself in permanent vigil in view of the recent political events in the Andean country and although it did not call for mobilizations, its members announced that they will be attentive to the decisions of the Lasso government and in permanent defense of the interests of the Ecuadorian people.
Meanwhile, the National Electoral Council has already announced that it will call for early general elections before May 24, that is to say, in seven days, as determined by the regulations for these cases.
International
Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction
Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe on Monday requested that the Supreme Court restore his freedom while he appeals the historic 12-year house arrest sentence he received for bribery and procedural fraud.
Uribe, the most prominent figure of Colombia’s right wing, was convicted last week by a lower court for attempting to bribe paramilitary members into denying his ties to the violent anti-guerrilla squads.
Since Friday, the 73-year-old has been under house arrest at his residence in Rionegro, about 30 km from Medellín. The judge justified the measure by citing a risk of flight.
However, Uribe’s defense team rejected that argument and formally petitioned the court to immediately lift the detention order, claiming it lacks legal basis.
Uribe, a dominant force in Colombian politics for decades, is now the first former president in the country’s history to be convicted and placed under arrest, found guilty of witness tampering and obstruction of justice to prevent links to paramilitary groups.
He has repeatedly denounced the trial as politically motivated, blaming pressure from the leftist government currently in power.
His political party, Centro Democrático, has called for nationwide protests on August 7 in support of Uribe, who remains popular for his hardline stance against guerrilla groups.
Uribe has until August 13 to submit his written appeal. The case will then move to the Bogotá High Court, which has until October 16 to uphold, overturn, or dismiss the sentence. If the deadline passes without a decision, the case will be archived.
International
U.S. Embassy staff restricted as gunfire erupts near compound in Port-au-Prince
The poorest country in Latin America and the Caribbean is currently engulfed in a deep political crisis and a wave of violence driven by armed groups — a situation that an international security mission led by Kenya is attempting to stabilize.
Due to the worsening security conditions, the U.S. government has suspended all official movements of embassy personnel outside the compound in Port-au-Prince, the U.S. State Department announced Monday in a security alert posted on social media platform X.
“There are intense gunfights in the Tabarre neighborhood, near the U.S. Embassy,” the alert reads, urging the public to avoid the area.
Tabarre is a municipality located near Port-au-Prince International Airport, northeast of the Haitian capital.
According to a July report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 3,141 people were killed in Haitibetween January 1 and June 30 of this year.
International
Israel says 136 food aid boxes airdropped into Gaza by six nations
The Israeli military announced on Sunday that 136 boxes of food aid were airdropped into Gaza by the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Germany, and Belgium.
“In recent hours, six countries conducted air drops of 136 aid packages containing food for residents in the southern and northern Gaza Strip,” read the statement, which added that the operation was coordinated by COGAT, the Israeli defense body overseeing civil affairs in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Israeli military emphasized that they will “continue working to improve the humanitarian response alongside the international community” and reiterated their stance to “refute false allegations of deliberate famine in Gaza.”
The announcement comes as UN agencies warn Gaza faces an imminent risk of famine. More than one in three residents go days without eating, and other nutrition indicators have dropped to their worst levels since the conflict began.
The agencies also noted the difficulty of “collecting reliable data in current conditions, as Gaza’s health systems —already devastated by nearly three years of conflict— are collapsing.”
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry reported on Sunday that hospitals in the enclave recorded six deaths from hunger and malnutrition on Saturday, all of them adults.
Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction
U.S. Embassy staff restricted as gunfire erupts near compound in Port-au-Prince
Israel says 136 food aid boxes airdropped into Gaza by six nations
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Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction