International
Fires in Brazil so far this year already exceed all those of 2023
September is not over yet and the fires that Brazil has experienced so far this year exceed those that occurred throughout 2023, according to official data released this Monday.
Between January 1 and September 22, the South American country registered 200,013 fire outbreaks, a number 5.3% higher than all those that occurred last year, according to the fire alarm system of the National Institute of Space Research, INPE.
These are the largest fires recorded in the country since 2010, a problem that has especially affected the Brazilian Amazon, the most impacted biome with 100,543 fire outbreaks so far in 2024.
Only between August and September, 80% of the flames in the country were unleashed during the year.
For about two months, 60% of the Brazilian territory has suffered the worst drought in 50 years.
In that period, the lack of humidity, the heat and the increase in the winds helped to generate about 141,500 fires, largely caused by the lack of control of the fire used by landowners to prepare the land for sowing.
In addition, the drought has reduced to a minimum the flow of several important rivers in the Amazon, leaving isolated rural communities and causing difficulties in the transit of people and goods, which in the region depend on river transport.
The Government has taken several measures to deal with the situation, such as prohibiting the use and management of fire during the drought period, while the Supreme Court authorized the Government to modify its budgets so that the resources to fight fires are not counted in the tax calculation.
However, Environment Minister Marina Silva admitted on Monday in New York, within the framework of the UN General Assembly, that the measures have been insufficient.
“What we are discovering now is that (what was planned) was not enough,” he said in statements to the newspaper Folha de São Paulo.
International
Meta Says Russia Seeks to Ban WhatsApp for Defending Secure Communication
U.S. tech giant Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, said that Russia is seeking to ban the messaging app because it “challenges government attempts to violate people’s right to secure communication.”
Russian authorities have encouraged citizens to switch to state-backed applications, and in August they already blocked WhatsApp’s calling feature.
On Friday, the communications regulator Roskomnadzor claimed that the platform was being used to “organize and carry out terrorist acts in the country, recruit perpetrators, and facilitate fraud and other crimes.”
“If the messaging service does not comply with Russian law, it will be completely blocked,” the regulator warned.
WhatsApp remains one of Russia’s most widely used messaging services, alongside Telegram.
Moscow is pressuring both platforms to grant authorities access to user data upon request for investigations into fraud and activities the government labels as “terrorist.”
Human rights advocates fear the demand could be used to target critics of the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin, or the war in Ukraine.
International
Archbishop Wenski criticizes Trump’s deportation policies, calls for stronger push for reform
The Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, has called for increased pressure on the U.S. Congress to advance comprehensive immigration reform and criticized President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policies, arguing that they “do nothing to help.”
“We need to apply more pressure on Congress so lawmakers can make the necessary changes. It is also important for the Administration to listen to our voice. We do not want to be anyone’s enemy—we are Americans,” Wenski said in an interview with EFE.
The religious leader, who heads one of the dioceses with the largest Latino and Haitian populations in the United States, issued a call to defend the rights of migrants. He also emphasized that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has maintained a strong and public stance in favor of migrants for decades.
International
Trump relaunches diplomatic push to finalize U.S.-Backed peace plan for Ukraine War
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that his diplomatic team will resume meetings with delegations from Russia and Ukraine in an effort to pressure both sides to accept the peace plan proposed by Washington to end the war in Ukraine.
As part of this new round of talks, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll will hold discussions with Ukrainian representatives to narrow differences on the remaining points of the agreement.
Trump also confirmed his intention to meet personally with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and with Putin, though he emphasized that such meetings will only take place “when the agreement is fully finalized or in its final stage.”
The president claimed that his administration has made “tremendous progress” toward resolving the conflict and reiterated that the war “never would have started” if he had been in the White House at the onset of the crisis.
The U.S.-backed peace plan consists of 28 points and has been revised following feedback from both sides. According to Trump, only “a few points of disagreement” remain under active discussion.
One of the most controversial aspects of the proposal is the suggestion that Ukraine cede parts of the Donbas region to Russia and limit the size of its armed forces. Kyiv is working closely with Washington to soften these clauses in search of an arrangement that does not compromise its sovereignty or security.
With this diplomatic push, Trump aims to solidify his role as the main mediator in the conflict and steer the war toward a political resolution after years of devastation, humanitarian crisis, and rising global geopolitical tensions.
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