International

Edmundo González Urrutia warns that the Prosecutor’s Office’s summons lacks “guarantees”

The standard-bearer of the majority opposition of Venezuela, Edmundo González Urrutia, said that the summons of the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP, Prosecutor’s Office) to appear, as part of an investigation for alleged “conspiracy” and other crimes, lacks “guarantees of independence and due process.”

In a video published on social networks, the leader of the main opposition coalition – the Democratic United Platform (PUD) – said that the MP “intends to submit to an interview without specifying in what condition he is expected to appear and pre-qualifying crimes not committed,” although he did not confirm his attendance.

According to the summons, he must appear on Monday at 10:00 local time (14:00 GMT), as part of an investigation for the “alleged commission of the crimes of usurpation of functions, forging of a public document, instigation to disobedience of the laws, computer crimes, association for crime and conspiracy.”

González Urrutia, who claims to have won the presidential elections of July 28, despite the fact that the National Electoral Council (CNE) declared President Nicolás Maduro the winner, said in the video that the Attorney General, Tarek William Saab, “has behaved, repeatedly, like a political accuser,” since he said, “condemns in advance and now promotes a summons without guarantees of independence and due process.”

In his message, the former ambassador urged Maduro to “understand, for a good time, that the solution is not in repression, but in the international, independent and reliable verification of the minutes, which cannot be replaced by a sentence issued outside the Constitution,” referring to the ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) that validates the re-election of the Chavista.

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The opponent demanded from the authorities, for “peace and well-being of the country,” the publication of the minutes and respect for “the popular will expressed in the elections of July 28 that largely favored the political change that represented” his candidacy.

In addition, he reiterated that the opposition he leads favors “the search for formulas that, with strict submission to popular sovereignty, allow channeling an orderly, peaceful transition with guarantees for all.”

“Venezuela lives hours of uncertainty and unrest, the product of your commitment to violate the will to change,” he added in the video.

The Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the website where the opposition coalition claims to have published “83.5% of the minutes” of the presidential elections, which evidence, according to this anti-chavista sector, the triumph of González Urrutia.

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International

Football Fan Killed in Clashes After Colombian League Match

Fans of Cúcuta Deportivo and their traditional rivals Atlético Bucaramanga clashed outside the stadium following their local league match on Tuesday, leaving one supporter dead and several others injured.

The deceased fan was stabbed, according to a senior police official in Cúcuta who confirmed the cause of death in a video statement. Local media reported that the victim was a supporter of the visiting team, Atlético Bucaramanga.

The match ended in a 2-2 draw. Authorities had banned the entry of Atlético Bucaramanga’s organized supporters into the stadium in an effort to prevent disturbances.

Despite the restrictions, violence broke out in the surrounding areas after the game. Among the injured were three police officers, an institutional source told AFP.

The incident adds to a series of recent violent episodes linked to Colombian football. The most recent occurred in December, when supporters of Atlético Nacional and Independiente Medellín clashed in the stands and on the pitch, leaving 59 people injured.

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International

Missing Spanish Sailor Rescued After 11 Days Adrift in Mediterranean

The man had departed from the port of Gandía, on Spain’s eastern coast, with the intention of reaching the southern Spanish town of Guardamar del Segura, a journey of about 150 kilometers, a spokesperson for Spain’s maritime rescue service told AFP.

Search boats and aircraft were deployed on January 17, but the operation was called off on January 22 after efforts proved unsuccessful. Alerts were then issued to vessels navigating the area in case they spotted any signs of the missing sailor.

As hopes were fading, a surveillance aircraft from the European Union’s border agency Frontex spotted the sailboat on Tuesday, along with a person signaling for help, approximately 53 nautical miles northeast of Bejaia, Algeria.

A nearby vessel, the Singapore-flagged bulk carrier Thor Confidence, carried out the rescue and is expected to bring the man to an end to his ordeal when it arrives on Thursday in the southern Spanish port city of Algeciras.

Maritime rescue services shared images on social media showing a small white sailboat drifting at sea and secured alongside the much larger ship.

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It remains unclear how the sailboat ended up hundreds of kilometers off its intended route or how the man managed to survive for so long alone in open waters.

International

Rubio Says U.S. Could Participate in Follow-Up Russia-Ukraine Talks

The United States could join a new round of talks this week aimed at ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday.

Teams from Kyiv and Moscow met last Friday and Saturday in Abu Dhabi in their first publicly acknowledged direct negotiations to discuss the peace initiative promoted by former U.S. President Donald Trump.

“They are going to hold follow-up talks again this week,” Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “There could be U.S. participation.”

However, Rubio suggested that Washington’s role may be more limited than during last week’s discussions, which included Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

The secretary of state indicated that progress may have already been made on security guarantees for Ukraine, one of Kyiv’s key demands in any agreement with Moscow after nearly four years of Russian invasion.

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“There is one remaining issue that everyone is familiar with, and that is the territorial claim over Donetsk,” Rubio said, referring to the eastern Ukrainian region that Russia wants Ukraine to cede.

“I know that active efforts are underway to see whether the positions of both sides on this issue can be reconciled. It remains a bridge we have not yet crossed,” he added during the hearing.

Rubio acknowledged that the territorial question would be particularly difficult for Ukraine to resolve.