International

At least five peace signatories and social leaders are killed in fighting in Colombia

At least five peace signatories were killed this Thursday in the midst of the fighting between the guerrillas of the National Liberation Army (ELN) and a dissident of the former FARC in the turbulent Colombian region of Catatumbo (northeast), the UN denounced.

“I express my strongest condemnation for the murder of 5 peace signatories and leaders in Catatumbo. It is urgent to protect the civilian population and communities. I call on armed groups to cease violent actions. The true will for dialogue involves respecting the lives of those who opted for peace,” said the special representative of the UN Secretary General in Colombia, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, in his X account.

The fighting, apparently due to territorial disputes, takes place in several rural areas of the department of Norte de Santander, including the hamlet of El Aserrío, which is part of the municipality of Teorama, and in Filo Gringo, located in Tibú, two of the municipalities that are part of the Catatumbo, according to different authorities.

Rodrigo Londoño, head of the Commons party, which emerged from the demobilization of the FARC in 2016, said that the five murdered are signatories of peace and demanded “guarantees” from Colombian President Gustavo Petro, in the face of what he called “an ongoing genocide.”

“Serious situation in the Catatumbo region. I demand that the armed groups stop the confrontation. History will not forgive the atrocities they commit against the civilian population and the signatories of peace. The Catatumbo and all of Colombia deserve to live in peace,” said Londoño, who was the last commander of the FARC.

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According to the Institute of Studies for Development and Peace (Indepaz), two of the fatalities were identified as Albeiro Díaz Franco and Yurgen Martínez, who were murdered in a rural area of Teorama, where they were carrying out their reincorporation process.

Another of the dead ex-combatants is Jhan Carlos Carvajalino, who “was forcibly removed from his place of residence by armed men” and then murdered in Convención, a municipality neighboring Teorama.

Faced with what happened, the Army indicated that “it is in the area, fulfilling its mission of providing security and preserving the life and integrity of the communities that live in the municipalities of the Catatumbo region.”

President Petro, for his part, refueled a statement from the Association of Mothers of Catatumbo for Peace, which denounces what happened today in the region and asked the Government to intervene, and commented: “They have bloodied the Catatumbo. We hear the voice of the mothers.”

El Catatumbo, a poor and jungle region that borders Venezuela, is formed by the municipalities of Ábrego, Convención, El Carmen, El Tarra, Hacarí, La Playa, San Calixto, Sardinata, Teorama and Tibú, in which the ELN, FARC dissidents, a stronghold of the People’s Liberation Army (EPL) and other gangs that dispute control of coca crops and drug trafficking corridors operate.

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The Ombudsman’s Office expressed its “deep concern about the beginning of armed confrontations between the Central General Staff and the ELN in the Catatumbo region,” where “this armed conflict has generated a serious violation of human rights in the municipalities of this area of the country”.

International

Habeas Corpus at risk as Trump team eyes drastic border policy shift

The White House is reportedly considering suspending habeas corpus, the legal principle that protects individuals against arbitrary detention, as part of its efforts to escalate anti-immigration measures in the United States.

In remarks to reporters, Stephen Miller, a senior advisor to President Donald Trump, argued that the U.S. Constitution allows the suspension of habeas corpus “in times of invasion.”

“It’s an option we are actively considering, and it all depends on whether the courts do the right thing or not,” Miller stated.

The Trump administration has frequently invoked the notion of a “migrant invasion” to justify actions such as the militarization of the U.S.-Mexico border and the deportation of foreign nationals—primarily Venezuelans—to El Salvador’s CECOT megaprison.

International

Maduro to Xi: Venezuela is a loyal friend to China

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro assured his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, during a meeting held in Moscow on the sidelines of the 80th anniversary of the Red Army’s victory in World War II, that China has “loyal friends” in the Caribbean nation.

“You know that in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela you have loyal friends and people willing to continue working for a new world,” said the South American leader, according to footage aired Friday by Venezuelan state broadcaster VTV.

Maduro, accompanied by several of his ministers including Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López, highlighted the “great results” of a 2023 agreement between China and Venezuela called the “All-Weather and All-Round Strategic Partnership.”

“I believe we can multiply the great results we’re already seeing, and I’m sure that strong and clear guidelines will emerge from this meeting to keep moving forward together,” Maduro added.

International

Iberojet reaffirms commitment to Honduras as Central American Hub

Spanish airline Iberojet and Palmerola International Airport, located in central Honduras, signed a three-year renewal of their exclusive agreement to operate direct flights between the Honduran terminal and the cities of Madrid and Barcelona.

With this renewal, Iberojet—part of the Spanish tourism group Ávoris Corporación Empresarial—reaffirms its commitment to Honduras as its main gateway to Central America from Europe.

The agreement was signed by Iberojet’s Commercial Director, Mario Domínguez, and Erick Spears, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Palmerola.

The signing ceremony took place at the residence of the Spanish Ambassador to Honduras, Diego Nuño García, who served as an honorary witness.