International

Petro launches ‘Mission Cauca’ strategy to guarantee security in southwestern Colombia

The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, and the Minister of Defense, Iván Velázquez, presented this Friday ‘Mission Cauca’, a strategy that seeks to transform the region and guarantee security in this convulsive area of the southwest of the country.

The operation will focus on “strengthening military and police operations in the department in order to neutralize organized armed groups and organized criminal groups, as well as their illicit economies mainly associated with drug trafficking, illicit mineral extraction and extortion,” the Presidency said in a statement.

This initiative, which is part of the National Development Plan and will be carried out by the State, the communities, local authorities and the private sector, aims at a territorial transformation including economic, productive, cultural and social aspects to “guarantee full security and integral development in the region.”

The head of state ordered that the Military Forces be responsible for building roads, hospitals, schools, university headquarters and drinking water aqueducts in the conflict zones of the department (province).

He pointed out that the resources for these works will be provided by the General Budget of the Nation, while stressing that “the military take better care of the money than the politicians.”

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The director of the National Planning Department (DNP), Alexander López, pointed out during the presentation that the initiative “has a strictly social component, which is linked to guaranteeing the security and rights of the population,” and added that this mission is the articulation for the transformation of the department of Cauca.

For his part, Minister Velásquez stressed that the objective is to have an “effective” control of the territory in which citizen security can be promoted, in addition to fighting against illicit economies (narcotrafficking) by cutting their financing, not only with military confrontation.

The departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca have been the scene for two months of terrorist actions of the Central General Staff (EMC) – dissidents of the extinct FARC guerrillas – against military and police facilities, which have left them dead and injured.

Just last week, the EMC, which is currently spart into two groups previously commanded by ‘Iván Mordisco’, intensified the number of violent actions in Cauca that began with four coordinated attacks that left a civilian and two policemen injured.

Likewise, Sigifredo Márquez, father of the Colombian vice president, Francia Márquez, was the subject of an attack on Sunday when he was traveling with a six-year-old nephew of the high official, between the towns of Timba, in Cauca, and the Robles hamlet, a rural area of Jamundí, in the interior of Colombia.

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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.

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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.

International

Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition

he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.

Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”

International

Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may

The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.

The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”

The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”

Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.

The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.