International

The debate is growing about whether student protests in the US are anti-Semitic or anti-war

Protests over the war in Gaza in dozens of universities in the United States continue this Tuesday to show their rejection of US policy towards Israel, while the rhetorical controversy grows over whether such demonstrations promote anti-Semitism or are simply anti-war and include Jewish students.

The president of the House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson, called on Tuesday “anti-American” that the current US president, Joe Biden, “is incapable or does not want to” condemn what is happening in some American universities and pointed to a lack of leadership at a “critical moment.”

“It’s not about freedom of expression,” the Republican added at a press conference about the pro-Palestinian protests, and opined that the country “desperately” needs a clear moral authority in the face of what it considers an increase in anti-Semitism.

Conservative Senator Tom Cotton has gone so far as to call the protesters “pro-terrorist tword” and has asked for more tough hand against the students from the police.

The governor of Texas, Republican Greg Abbot, considered last week that students participating in the pro-Palestinian peaceful protests in that southern state should go to jail for promoting hatred and anti-Semitism.

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The White House has also stressed on several occasions that President Biden supports the right to “peaceful protest,” but that he is against “any violent rhetoric, threats of hatred (…) and anti-Semitism,” something that some students have denounced, but it is not being widespread and from the beginning it has allowed the participation of Jewish students opposed to the war.

Apart from criticizing US support for Israel during the Gaza War, another common denominator among these demonstrations is the demand of students to their educational centers to cease their investments in the Israeli private sector and promote greater transparency about those relations and their possible involvement with the military industry.

Progressive Jewish senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders rejected the parallel drawn by the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, between the protests of these days and those that occurred during Nazi Germany against the Jews.

“Anti-Semitism is a vile and despicable form of intolerance, but please do not insult the intelligence of Americans, trying to distract us from the immoral and illegal war policies of their extremist and racist government,” Sanders said in an interview.

“The vast majority of people who protest (…) are tired and disgusted by this war,” said the senator.

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Omer Bartov, a Jewish professor and expert on the Holocaust and Genocide at Brown University, has warned that the accusations of anti-Semitism against university protests in the United States, in which he has participated by leading assemblies and debates at the University of Pennsylvania, are dangerous because they are used as a weapon.

“There is politics and there are prejudices. And if we do not make a distinction between the two, then what we are really doing is imposing a silence on the policies of the Israeli government that have now culminated in the total destruction of Gaza,” Bartov said in a radio interview on Tuesday.

The College Democrats of America, the student organization of the Democratic Party, supported in a statement the protests on U.S. campuses for “seeing this war as what it is: destructive, genocidal and unjust,” while condemning police actions to evict the camps.

International

IEA warns Middle East conflict could spark worst energy crisis in decades

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East could trigger the worst energy crisis in decades, warned Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), who described the situation as “very serious.”

Speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra, Birol compared the current scenario to the oil crises of the 1970s, noting that during those events the world lost around five million barrels of oil per day in each crisis.

“Today, we have lost 11 million barrels per day—more than the two major oil shocks combined,” he said.

The Turkish economist referred to the conflict that began on February 28, following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran, which have significantly disrupted global energy markets and driven oil prices higher.

Birol warned that the global economy is facing a “very, very serious threat” and expressed hope that the crisis will be resolved soon.

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“No country will be immune to the effects of this crisis if it continues in this direction. Global efforts are urgently needed,” he emphasized.

International

Colombian Air Force Hercules plane crashes during takeoff with troops onboard

A Lockheed C-130 Hercules operated by the Colombian Air Force was involved in a “tragic accident” while taking off from Puerto Leguízamo, in the Putumayo department of southern Colombia, as it was transporting troops, Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez reported on Monday.

The minister stated on social media that the exact number of victims and the causes of the crash have not yet been determined. He also extended his condolences to the families affected and urged the public to avoid speculation until official information is confirmed.

“This is a deeply painful event for the country. Our prayers are with the victims and their families,” Sánchez said, adding that emergency protocols have been activated and an investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, President Gustavo Petro expressed hope that there would be no fatalities in what he described as a “horrific accident that should not have happened.”

Petro also highlighted ongoing efforts to modernize the country’s air fleet and reiterated the need to acquire new helicopters and transport aircraft to strengthen military mobility, particularly in remote regions.

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According to local media reports, approximately 110 soldiers were on board the aircraft. So far, at least 20 injured military personnel have been rescued.

International

Paris prosecutors alert U.S. over alleged deepfake strategy linked to Elon Musk

The Paris Prosecutor’s Office said on Saturday that it had alerted authorities in the United States over suspicions that tech entrepreneur Elon Musk may have encouraged the spread of sexualized deepfake content on the social platform X to artificially boost the company’s valuation.

According to prosecutors, the controversy surrounding explicit AI-generated videos—reportedly linked to Grok, the platform’s artificial intelligence system—may have been deliberately triggered to increase the market value of X and X AI.

The office added that the alleged strategy could be tied to the planned June 2026 public listing of a new entity formed through the merger of SpaceX and X AI.

French authorities said they contacted the U.S. Department of Justice as well as legal representatives at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this week to share their concerns.

Responding on X in French to a report about the case, Musk referred to French prosecutors using an offensive term.

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When contacted, X’s legal representative in France did not immediately comment.

Grok, the platform’s AI system, has its own account on X, allowing users to interact with it or request content generation. For a period, users were able to tag the bot in posts to generate or edit images, a feature that may have facilitated the spread of such material.