International

Maximum security prison riot leaves three injured in Brazil

Photo: EFE

July 27 |

Two prisoners and a security agent injured is the preliminary balance of a riot that broke out on Wednesday in the Antonio Amaro prison, located in the city of Rio Branco, capital of the Brazilian state of Acre, and it is not yet known if the police have the situation under control.

According to authorities, the riot began in the morning hours when a group of approximately 13 inmates took two policemen hostage in the isolation ward of the prison, one of them injured by a bullet grazing his face, detailed the Ministry of Justice and Public Security.

The Secretariat of Justice and Public Security of Acre (Sejusp) reported that “two prisoners were injured during an internal confrontation between members of rival criminal organizations and were taken to a nearby medical center”. One of them was later released.

After being notified of the state of rebellion in the prison, the National Secretariat of Criminal Policies (Senappen) created a contingency team to manage the situation in the prison, in whose outskirts were grouped family members who came to the visiting day that was suspended by the situation.

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Senappen summoned intelligence operators who are closely following the events in order to reinforce actions to control the situation and guarantee the safety of those involved, according to an official statement. The crisis cabinet is also formed by representatives of the military and criminal police, the Gefron and the Bope.

Although the authorities have not informed about the state of the injured, the Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino, put his team “at disposal to help in any way possible”. For his part, Rafael Velasco, Secretary of Penal Policies, emphasized that “all necessary measures are being taken to reestablish order”.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office of Acre assured in a statement that it will investigate “the circumstances that led to this episode of violence”, especially after the accused requested the presence of the human rights prosecutor of the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Acre, Tales Tranin, who was acting as negotiator.

According to data released by Senappen, violent prison riots are very frequent in overcrowded prisons, such as those in Brazil, whose penitentiary system has a considerable shortage of places. As of December 2022, the South American giant had a prison population of 643,137 convicts.

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International

U.S. allows Venezuela to fund Maduro and Cilia Flores’ legal defense

Until now, the U.S. administration had blocked the Venezuelan government from covering the legal fees of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who is also jailed and facing drug trafficking charges, due to international sanctions imposed on Venezuela.

The couple’s legal team had relied on that argument in an attempt to have the indictment dismissed, claiming that preventing a defendant from accessing counsel of their choice violates rights guaranteed under the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

However, the U.S. Treasury Department will now allow “defense attorneys to receive payments from the Government of Venezuela under certain conditions,” New York prosecutor Jay Clayton wrote in a letter dated Friday to Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who is overseeing the case.

According to the letter, the funds must have become available after March 5, 2026, and cannot come from Venezuelan oil sales regulated in the United States.

Since Maduro’s removal from power in early January, former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has served as Venezuela’s interim leader.

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The United States effectively controls Venezuelan crude exports, with revenues deposited into special accounts supervised by Washington.

Court documents filed on Friday show that the defense acknowledged the sanctions exemption and, for now, withdrew its motion seeking dismissal of the charges.

International

U.S. Sanctions Network Linked to Fentanyl Trafficking Across India, Guatemala and Mexico

The United States Department of State announced sanctions on Thursday against 23 individuals and companies allegedly linked to an international fentanyl production and smuggling network operating in India, Guatemala and Mexico.

According to the State Department, the network supplied precursor chemicals to the Sinaloa Cartel, which the United States has designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

Washington declared fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, a weapon of mass destruction last year due to its role in the ongoing overdose crisis in the United States.

“By targeting the entire supply chain — from chemical suppliers in Asia to logistical intermediaries in Central America and cartel-linked networks in Mexico — the Trump Administration is dismantling networks that destabilize governance across our hemisphere and threaten U.S. security,” the State Department said.

In a separate statement, the Office of Foreign Assets Control detailed sanctions against three Indian chemical and pharmaceutical companies: Sutaria, Agrat and SR Chemicals, along with a sales executive accused of supplying precursor chemicals to contacts in Guatemala and Mexico.

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In Guatemala, authorities sanctioned J and C Import and Central Logística de Servicios, as well as intermediary Jaime Augusto Barrientos.

The OFAC also designated several intermediaries and import companies operating in the Mexican state of Sinaloa.

As part of the investigation, U.S. authorities identified Ramiro Baltazar Félix as a member of Los Mayos, a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel, and Alejandro Reynoso, accused of operating clandestine drug laboratories in Guadalajara.

International

Pope Leo XIV Says Countries Have Border Rights but Migrants Deserve Respect

Pope Leo XIV said Thursday that migrants must be treated with dignity as he addressed the global migration crisis during a press conference aboard the plane returning from his tour of Africa.

The pontiff answered questions from journalists regarding his upcoming trip to Spain, which will include a visit to the Canary Islands, a region heavily affected by migration flows and growing political polarization surrounding the issue.

“Obviously, migration is a very complex issue and affects many countries — not only Spain, not only Europe, but also the United States. It is a global phenomenon,” the pope said.

Pope Leo XIV also questioned the role of developed nations in addressing the crisis.

“My response begins with a question: What is the Global North doing to help the Global South and those countries where young people no longer see a future and dream of going north, even when the North sometimes has no answers to offer?” he asked.

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While acknowledging that “a state has the right to establish rules for its borders,” the pope insisted that the debate must go beyond border control and address the structural causes that force people to leave their home countries.