International
Boulos, the housing activist who wants to reconquer São Paulo for the left
Guilherme Boulos, an activist in favor of the right to housing who has advocated occupying abandoned land, will seek this Sunday to become mayor of São Paulo and reconquer the largest city in South America for a left harassed by Bolsonaro.
It is the final stretch of the campaign for the most important municipal election in Brazil and the 42-year-old candidate has just climbed on a podium in front of the imposing City Hall building, in the center.
He wears a neat beard, which gives Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva an air as a young man, and a white shirt in a suit but without a tie, which makes him look like an office worker. An image of boring normality with which he tries to compensate for his past as an activist.
“Many are frightened by my career in social movements. I ask you here for a vote of confidence,” Boulos begins, to the applause of a handful of followers.
Boulos, after São Paulo
The candidate, supported by President Lula, is behind in the polls against the current mayor, Ricardo Nunes, supported by former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro.
He has been the victim of a campaign of hoaxes by the right that accused him, among other things, of snifing cocaine and wanting to invade private property.
Faced with that, he repeats over and over again that he is not a drug addict and that the movement he led only occupied abandoned land of large owners.
His program includes the promise of building 50,000 social housing units in a city whose homeless population has skyrocketed since the pandemic and exceeds 60,000 people.
It also promises to create support points so that app drivers can rest and expand the network of health posts to end the waiting lines.
“How can such a rich city have hungry people? We have neighborhoods with the quality of life of Sweden and others with that of the poorest countries in the world,” he exclaims.
Beginnings in activism
Son of doctors and private school student, Boulos did not seem destined to become the promise of the Brazilian left.
In his teens, however, he asked his parents to move him to a public school, where he set up a student union.
At the age of 19, when he was already studying Philosophy at university, he left home to live in a building occupied by the Homeless Workers Movement, of which he later became a leader.
“When he entered the social movements, it was realized,” Marcos Boulos, father of the candidate and renowned infectious disease specialist, recently told the newspaper Folha de São Paulo.
In politics
From activism he jumped to politics with the Socialism and Freedom Party, with which he tried unsuccessfully to win the Mayor’s Office of São Paulo in 2020. In 2022, he was elected a federal deputy with the second highest vote in the country.
Two years later, the lack of names with traction in the Workers’ Party led Lula to choose him as a candidate for elections that are a warm-up for the 2026 presidential elections.
Cíntia Martins, a 45-year-old volunteer who is on the spot in front of the City Hall, hopes that she will be elected.
“I’ve been following him since before entering politics and I like how he treats the most humble… We know that he is from the real neighborhood, even if he is the son of doctors,” he tells EFE, while waving a campaign flag.
At the end of his speech, Boulos raises his fist, says “until victory, God willing,” and gets into the van with which he will travel the suburbs until the day of the election.
“I’ve already backpacked and I’ll only go home on the weekend,” he says, before closing the door.
International
Ukraine declares nationwide energy emergency amid russian attacks and extreme cold
The Ukrainian government on Wednesday declared a nationwide energy state of emergency amid continued Russian military attacks and extreme winter weather, with nighttime temperatures dropping as low as minus 18 degrees Celsius.
“The consequences of Russian attacks and worsening weather conditions are severe (…) Overall, a state of emergency will be declared for Ukraine’s energy sector,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement posted on social media following a meeting with senior officials.
Zelensky announced the creation of a “permanent coordination headquarters” to manage the crisis in the capital, Kyiv, and tasked former defence minister and current energy chief Denys Shmyhal with overseeing support efforts for affected individuals and communities, including addressing power outages, heating shortages and other “practical issues.”
“There are many problems that require urgent solutions,” the president said, noting that repair crews, energy companies, municipal services and the State Emergency Service are working “around the clock” to restore electricity supplies. Kyiv has been particularly affected after Russian strikes last Friday disabled key parts of the power grid, as daytime temperatures hover around minus 12 degrees Celsius and plunge to minus 18 at night.
Zelensky added that public authorities will “maximize efforts with partners to obtain the necessary equipment and additional support,” while the government will ensure “maximum deregulation of all processes” to speed up the connection of backup power equipment to the grid. He also confirmed that work is underway to significantly increase electricity imports into Ukraine.
The Ukrainian leader further instructed his Cabinet to review curfew regulations in light of the extreme cold, arguing that citizens must have the greatest possible access to assistance centers, while businesses should be given flexibility to plan their operations according to the state of the energy system.
International
France joins Denmark’s ‘Operation Arctic Resistance’ in Greenland amid U.S. tensions
French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed in the early hours of Thursday (Wednesday afternoon in El Salvador) that France will take part in “Operation Arctic Resistance,” after Denmark announced it would expand its military presence in Greenland amid rising tensions with the United States over Washington’s stated ambitions regarding the semi-autonomous territory.
“At Denmark’s request, I have decided that France will participate in the joint exercises organized by Denmark in Greenland, ‘Operation Arctic Resistance,’” Macron said in a brief message posted on social media at 5:18 p.m.
The French president added that “the first French military elements are already on their way, with others to follow,” though he did not specify the number of troops being deployed or the scale of France’s planned contribution.
The governments of Sweden, Norway and Germany have also confirmed the deployment of military contingents to Greenland. Germany’s armed forces will send a 13-member reconnaissance team to the Greenlandic capital, Nuuk, to take part in a mission scheduled to run from Thursday through Saturday, according to the German Ministry of Defence.
Denmark’s announcement came shortly before a Danish delegation met at the White House with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to discuss Washington’s plans regarding Greenland. Copenhagen said the military activities would be carried out “in close cooperation with NATO allies.”
International
Iran closes airspace amid U.S. threats and deadly nationwide protests
Iranian authorities closed the country’s airspace in the early hours of Thursday, according to data from flight-tracking website FlightRadar24, amid growing threats of a possible U.S. attack as protests across the country continue and have reportedly left thousands dead.
According to FlightRadar24, the Iranian government suspended all flights to and from the country, except for international flights that have received special authorization. The notice was initially issued for a duration of just over two hours.
The move comes after U.S. President Donald Trump in recent days threatened to strike Iran if its security forces failed to halt the deaths linked to weeks-long protests that began in Tehran and later spread to other Iranian cities. Despite the threats, the White House said diplomacy remains Trump’s preferred option.
Speaking from the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump claimed that “the deaths in Iran have stopped” and said there would be no executions of protesters following his warnings to Tehran. He added that his administration would seek to verify those claims.
“I’ve been told the deaths in Iran are stopping. They’ve stopped, and that there are no plans for executions,” Trump told reporters, cautioning that the United States would be “very upset” if those assurances proved to be untrue.
The statements contrast with reports from rights groups. The Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) said on Wednesday that more than 3,400 people have been killed since the protests erupted. Meanwhile, Kurdish-Iranian rights group Hengaw reported this week that a 26-year-old Iranian man, Erfan Soltani, was facing execution as of Wednesday.
Ukraine declares nationwide energy emergency amid russian attacks and extreme cold
France joins Denmark’s ‘Operation Arctic Resistance’ in Greenland amid U.S. tensions
Iran closes airspace amid U.S. threats and deadly nationwide protests
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
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