International

López Obrador asks in a letter to Joe Biden to stop the “interference attitude” of the United States.

The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, revealed on Monday the content of the letter he sent on Friday to his American counterpart, Joe Biden, in which he asked to stop the “clearly intervening attitude” of the United States Government when financing Mexican civil organizations.

“I hope I can do something to stop this grievance that violates our constitutional principle of non-intervention and self-determination of peoples,” the president revealed when reading the letter during his press conference.

In the text, the ruler reminded Biden that he has long denounced “publicly” those from Washington who have had an “interrencist” attitude when financing organizations such as Mexicans Against Corruption and Impunity (MCCI), whose main purpose, he argued, has been to attack his Administration.

López Obrador assured that between 2018 and 2023, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) allocated 111 million pesos (5.91 million dollars) to MCCI.

Although he recognized that the amount is “relatively lower,” López Obrador described the procedure as “completely offensive.”

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“Even when it is a relatively smaller amount, this procedure is completely offensive and contrary to the relations of respect for our sovereignties that both you and I have been cultivating for the good of our nations,” he stressed.

López Obrador ended the writing by emphasizing his hope that Biden will take measures to stop this “aggravation” and pointed out that, although he values the personal relationship between the two, the issues of freedom and independence of the peoples are paramount.

“I hope you can do something to stop this grievance that violates our constitutional principle of non-intervention and self-determination of the peoples,” he said.

“Excuse me for dealing with this issue directly, believe me, I ear you and I don’t want to bother you at all, but as you will understand, the issues linked to the freedom and independence of peoples go beyond personal feelings,” he concluded.

Last week, Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) revealed that the civilian organization MCCI, which has denounced corruption scandals of the current Government, which include officials and children of López Obrador, allegedly receives money from the United States.

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According to the agency, revenues for MCCI began to be recorded from 2016, and until 2023 they totaled an amount of just over 502.58 million pesos (26.7 million dollars), while from 2017 to 2023 it received just over 13 million pesos (690,000 dollars) of accounts from the United States.

In 2023, the Usaid of the US Government admitted the financing of more than six million dollars to MCCI, an organization founded by businessman Claudio X. González, an open opponent of the Government of López Obrador.

International

Iran Reports 201 Dead, 747 Injured After U.S. and Israeli Strikes

The Iranian Red Crescent Society reported Sunday night (local time) that at least 201 people were killed and 747 injured following attacks carried out by Israel and the United States against the Islamic Republic.

A spokesperson for the humanitarian organization said more than 220 rescue teams have been deployed across affected areas and that relief operations are continuing without interruption. The official highlighted the difficulty of treating the large number of wounded and the urgent need for additional resources in impacted provinces.

Out of Iran’s 31 provinces, 24 have reported damage, according to a statement carried by the Isna news agency. This marks the first overall casualty toll released by Iranian state-affiliated media since the launch of the offensive.

Among the dead are 85 schoolgirls from a school in the southern city of Minab, according to the country’s judiciary. “The number of martyrs at the Minab girls’ school has risen to 85,” the local prosecutor’s office said, as quoted by the judiciary’s website, Mizan Online.

Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian described the attack as a “savagery” that “constitutes a new black page in the record of countless crimes committed by the aggressors.”

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Meanwhile, the international community continues to monitor the situation closely amid concerns about possible further reprisals and the broader impact on Middle East stability, energy markets, and global security.

AFP noted that it was unable to independently verify the casualty figures or the circumstances surrounding the events.

International

Pope Leo XIV Urges End to ‘Spiral of Violence’ in Middle East

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday called for an end to the “spiral of violence” in the Middle East, following military strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran and subsequent retaliatory bombardments in the region.

“Faced with the possibility of a tragedy of enormous proportions, I urge the parties involved to assume their moral responsibility and stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss,” the pontiff told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

Speaking during the Angelus prayer, the U.S.-born pope said stability and peace cannot be achieved through threats or weapons. “Stability and peace are not built with reciprocal threats or with arms that sow destruction, suffering and death, but only through reasonable, sincere and responsible dialogue,” he declared.

The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics also called for diplomacy to “regain its role” amid escalating tensions.

In addition, the pope urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to urgently resume dialogue after several days of clashes between the two countries.

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International

Security Council to Hold Emergency Meeting on Middle East Crisis

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday condemned the “military escalation in the Middle East” following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes, just hours before an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.

“I call for the immediate cessation of hostilities and de-escalation,” Guterres said in a statement.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet on Saturday at 21:00 GMT (4:00 p.m. in New York) to address “the situation in the Middle East,” the United Nations announced.

The meeting, during which Guterres will deliver remarks, was convened at the request of France, Bahrain, Colombia, Russia and China, according to a diplomatic source.