International

Greenpeace will have to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to the Energy Transfer company

A popular jury ruled on Wednesday that the Greenpeace organization must pay hundreds of millions of dollars in damages to the company Energy Transfer (ET) for inciting protests against the construction of a company pipeline that degenerated into acts of vandalism.

The jury found Greenpeace responsible for defamation and other lawsuits filed by ET, which accused it of instigating the 2016 Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s protests against the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline in the north of the country, which delayed the project and raised costs.

The energy company, based in Dallas (Texas), claimed 300 million dollars (about 287 million euros), a figure that the environmental organization itself has declared that would threaten its very existence.

Greenpeace had denied ET’s accusations, claiming that it simply supported those protests and is not responsible for their development.

The jury, composed of nine people, has made its decision after two days of deliberations in a court in North Dakota (United States) and a trial that has lasted almost a month.

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In its lawsuit, ET included the entities Greenpeace International, Greenpeace Inc and the Greenpeace Fund.

The case has been denounced as an example of a Strategic Lawsuit against Public Participation (SLAPP), a type of civil litigation increasingly used by corporations, politicians and other powerful groups against activists, opponents or journalists, among others.

During the protests, which took place between 2016 and 2017, thousands of people camped for months arguing that the pipeline was being built on sacred lands and that it could pose a danger to the water supply.

According to The New York Times, the co-founder and chairman of the board of directors of Energy Transfer, Kelcy Warren – one of the largest donors in the last presidential campaign of the president, Donald Trump – assured in a video projected during the final arguments that the demonstrators created “a totally false narrative.”

One of the company’s lawyers, Trey Cox, said during the trial that “Greenpeace took a small and disorganized local case and exploited it to close the pipeline and promote his own selfish agenda,” reports the New York media.

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In a post on its website written before the verdict was known, the organization assures that, with this lawsuit, Energy Transfer “has used the US legal system as a weapon to try to silence us at a time when our voices are more necessary.”

International

Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.

During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.

“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.

“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”

Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.

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On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.

International

Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition

he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.

Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”

International

Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may

The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.

The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”

The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”

Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.

The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.