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Operation executed after Villavicencio’s murder in Ecuador

Operation executed after Villavicencio's murder in Ecuador
Photo: Fiscalía General de Ecuador

September 8 |

The Attorney General’s Office of Ecuador carried out Thursday an operation in the provinces of Pichincha, Cotopaxi and Chimborazo as part of the investigations into the murder of former presidential candidate, Fernando Villavicencio.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement the execution of raids together with the National Directorate of Investigation of Crimes against Life, Violent Deaths, Disappearances, Kidnapping and Extortion (Dinased) and the National Anti-Crime Investigation Unit (UIAD), belonging to the Police.

“As a result of the operation, four arrest warrants were executed in the Social Rehabilitation Centers of El Inca (Quito) and Cotopaxi (Latacunga)”, the note points out.

In this sense, the Public Prosecutor’s Office indicated that the arrest warrants issued against several people who will be linked to the prosecutorial investigation of this case were made effective, for which two other arrests were made in the south of Quito.

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At the same time, the public entity informed that the proceedings and the investigation into this case continue while it recommended political actors and citizens to be cautious with the handling of information, “because drawing conclusions without due support causes confusion and misinformation”.

Last August 9, Villavicencio was murdered when he finished a campaign rally in the Ecuadorian capital. Following the crime, six Colombian citizens were arrested as suspects in the murder.

The victim was running in the presidential elections held last August 20 as candidate of the Construye movement, which designated Christian Zurita as his successor.

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International

White House says Cuba policy unchanged despite sanctioned fuel shipment

The White House said Monday that it has not changed its policy toward Cuba, despite allowing a sanctioned Russian oil tanker to deliver fuel to the island on humanitarian grounds.

U.S. officials emphasized that the decision was made as an exception and does not signal a broader shift in policy.

The administration added that similar decisions would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, depending on humanitarian considerations.

The clarification comes amid ongoing restrictions related to U.S. sanctions policy, which continue to limit trade and financial flows involving Cuba.

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International

Spain to grant citizenship to Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López

The Spanish government is expected to grant citizenship this Tuesday to Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lópezthrough an extraordinary procedure known as “carta de naturaleza.”

The decision will be approved by royal decree, an exceptional legal mechanism used in special cases that require expedited resolution due to specific circumstances.

López has been living in Madrid since 2020, after leaving Venezuela following a prolonged political and legal conflict with the government of Nicolás Maduro.

According to government sources, López currently does not have a valid Venezuelan passport and faces difficulties in having his nationality fully recognized in his home country.

As a result, he applied for Spanish citizenship via a fast-track process at the end of 2025, after previously attempting to obtain it through regular procedures.

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The Spanish government justified the move based on López’s international relevance and foreign policy considerations.

López is the leader of the Voluntad Popular party and co-founder of the World Liberty Congress, an initiative launched in 2022 alongside figures such as Garry Kasparov and Masih Alinejad.

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International

ICE to remain at airports amid DHS shutdown, Homan says

The U.S. “border czar,” Tom Homan, said Sunday that agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will remain deployed at airports until operations return to “100% normal,” as the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues.

“We will maintain ICE presence until airports feel they are fully back to normal operations,” Homan said during an interview on Face the Nation on CBS.

Homan justified the deployment on security grounds, noting that the measure was ordered by President Donald Trumpamid widespread absenteeism among agents of the Transportation Security Administration, who have gone without pay for over six weeks due to the DHS shutdown.

According to acting TSA administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill, at least 460 TSA agents have resigned during the shutdown, while daily absenteeism has averaged 11%, exceeding 50% at some airports.

Homan warned that if TSA staffing levels do not recover after the shutdown, ICE agents will continue filling the gap. “ICE is there to support our TSA brothers and sisters. We will remain as long as needed to ensure airport security,” he said.

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The DHS shutdown reached 44 days on Sunday, making it the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. The impasse stems from disagreements between Democrats and Republicans over ICE funding.

A recent bipartisan Senate proposal to fund DHS without including ICE failed after being blocked by House Republicans, who insist on full funding for the agency.

Amid the deadlock, Trump signed an executive order directing Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to immediately pay TSA agents to address what he called an “emergency situation” and restore order at airports, with payments expected to begin Monday.

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