International
“We have to generate more fissures in commands that support Ortega,” says Nicaraguan opponent
Former Nicaraguan presidential candidate Juan Sebastián Chamorro said in an interview with EFE that Daniel Ortega’s regime is increasingly similar to that of North Korea, for its cruelty and histrionism, and asked the opposition not to give up in its attempt to “generate more fissures” in the commands that hold the Sandinista leader.
Chamorro, 53, was one of the 222 political prisoners who in February 2023 were banished to the United States and stripped of their nationality by “traitors” and “vendepatrias”.
Considered one of the main opponents of the regime and a member of one of the best-known families in Nicaragua – his aunt Violeta Barrios de Chamorro was president between 1990 and 1997 -, the economist is in Paraguay to denounce within the framework of the 54th General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) that Nicaragua “has become a huge prison.”
“We were in prison for 611 days as political prisoners, but there are more than 6 million Nicaraguans who currently live in prison: all civil and political freedoms are violated,” he said.
Although Nicaragua formally left the OAS last November on the initiative of Ortega himself, the organization’s plenary will analyze until this Friday the crisis unleashed in the country after the massive protests of April 2018, which left at least 355 dead, according to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
“Even the Nicaraguan Academy of Language, the Boy Scouts and the Red Cross have been eliminated. They have even canceled NGOs that gave shelter to stray dogs and cats! That is the level of repression we are experiencing,” Chamorro added.
Ortega, who returned to power in 2007 and since 2017 has governed with his wife, Rosario Murillo, has established a “family dynasty,” which reminds Chamorro of both the absolutist monarchies of centuries ago and the current regime that governs from Pyongyang: “We are Latin American North Korea.”
“We are not talking about a Cuban-style dictatorship, where the Communist Party chooses within its undemocratic mechanisms, where there is a certain institutionality. Ortega has destroyed his own party, the Sandinist National Liberation Front,” he explained.
This dynastic logic is, in his opinion, one of the great “weaknesses” of the regime, since it generates claims among its acolytes and truncates the aspirations of the highest commanders close to Ortega, but at the same time it is an opportunity for the opposition.
“We have to try to generate more fissures like the one we saw with his own brother,” he said in reference to Humberto Ortega Saavedra, former head of the Nicaraguan Army and one of the historical leaders of the Sandinista revolution.
In an interview with the Infobae media last May, the retired general launched unusual criticisms against the Government headed by his brother and sister-in-law and questioned the plans attributed to the presidential couple to designate their son, Laureano Ortega Murillo, as a successor.
Hours after the publication, National Police officers broke into Ortega Saavedra’s home and he was in total isolation.
“We must continue to send messages to the cadres and tell them that if they have not committed a crime, if they are not complicit in the commission of crimes against humanity or corruption, they have a space in the democratic Nicaragua of the future,” Chamorro added.
Despite certain voices that advocate an armed popular rebellion to remove Ortega from power, the former presidential candidate declared that the only way out is to continue diplomatically and economically close to the regime, although the peaceful struggle “is slower than the navy.”
“The statistics show that democratic and peaceful transitions are more effective,” he concluded.
International
Five Bodies Found in Ecuador as Police Probe Suspected Gang Turf War
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating the deaths of five people whose bodies were found inside a rural home, in what police believe may be linked to a territorial dispute between organized criminal groups.
The victims, aged between 21 and 30, were discovered Tuesday in the town of La Troncal, in the Andean province of Cañar. Police reported that two of the bodies were bound with wire, while a burned-out vehicle was found outside the residence.
Investigators said graffiti on the walls of the house included messages such as “Lobos territory” and “Lobos active,” suggesting a possible connection to the criminal organization known as Los Lobos.
Police believe the killings were likely the result of a conflict over territorial control between rival gangs.
The discovery came on the same day authorities arrested a former mayor in the neighboring province of Azuay. Officials identified him as the alleged main financial backer of Los Lobos, one of Ecuador’s most powerful criminal organizations.
Ecuador has experienced an unprecedented surge in violence in recent years, driven by criminal groups involved in drug trafficking, illegal mining, kidnapping, and extortion.
According to Insight Crime, the country recorded 51 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2025—equivalent to roughly one killing every hour—making it one of the most violent countries in Latin America.
International
Georgia Teen Sentenced to Life Without Parole for Deadly School Shooting
A Georgia teenager who killed four people in a 2024 school shooting was sentenced Tuesday to life in prison without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to the attack.
Colt Gray, now 16, admitted to opening fire at Apalachee High School in Winder, about 70 kilometers (45 miles) northeast of Atlanta. He was 14 years old at the time of the shooting.
The attack claimed the lives of two students and two teachers, while nine other people were injured. Despite being a minor when the shooting occurred, Gray was prosecuted as an adult.
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Nicholas Trimm acknowledged the failures of the teenager’s family but said they did not excuse his actions.
“Your parents failed you. Your family failed you. But that does not absolve you,” the judge said.
Trimm also rejected any suggestion that the shooting was motivated by bullying or personal grievances.
“You were not bullied at Apalachee. This was not driven by hate. You didn’t know anyone at that school. It was simply the desire to commit a notorious act,” he told Gray.
The case also led to the prosecution of the shooter’s father, Colin Gray, who was convicted in March of voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter. The case marked one of the first instances in which a parent was held criminally responsible for a mass shooting carried out by their child.
Prosecutors said Colin Gray had given his son an AR-15-style rifle as a Christmas gift in 2023, despite being aware that the teenager had previously threatened to carry out a school shooting.
Authorities said the same rifle was used in the attack less than a year later. Months before the shooting, FBI investigators had alerted local law enforcement after receiving reports of online messages linked to the Gray family’s internet address that referenced plans for a school massacre.
The case reflects growing legal scrutiny in the United States over the responsibility of parents whose children commit acts of gun violence.
In a similar case, the parents of a Michigan teenager who killed four people at his high school in 2021 were convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2024 and sentenced to prison terms ranging from 10 to 15 years.
According to U.S. health authorities, firearms have been the leading cause of death among children and teenagers in the United States for several years.
International
Portuguese Authorities Seize 2.6 Tons of Cocaine Worth More Than $550 Million in Drug Bust
Italian financial police reported Monday that Portuguese authorities intercepted a speedboat carrying more than 2.6 tons of cocaine, with an estimated street value exceeding $550 million.
Four people — two Spanish nationals, one Albanian citizen, and a man from Gibraltar — were arrested in connection with the operation, according to Italian authorities.
The vessel was intercepted off the coast of Lisbon by Portugal’s maritime police following an investigation led by Italian authorities.
Italian financial police estimated that the seized shipment had a street value of approximately 500 million euros ($570 million), making it one of the largest drug seizures reported in the region in recent years.
Portuguese authorities said the interception took place on Thursday, about 90 kilometers (50 nautical miles) southwest of Cape Espichel, during an operation targeting international drug trafficking routes.
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