International
The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, assures that he does not care if he is called a dictator
The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, assured on Sunday night, in his speech for the first year of his second consecutive term, that “he does not care that they call him dictator” and that he prefers that “to see how they kill Salvadorans.”
Personally, he has called me dictator in all the media that they have wanted and been able to. From Salvadoran pamphlets, to international pamphlets, the most prestigious (unspecified),” Bukele said during a solemn session of the Legislative Assembly held at the National Theater in San Salvador.
“You know what? I don’t care if they call me a dictator,” he said to deputies of Congress, representatives of the diplomatic corps in El Salvador and various institutions, and assured that “I mean that they call me dictator to see how they kill Salvadorans in the streets.”
And he continued: “I prefer these moments when I grab my cell phone and see: dictator, dictator, dictator… in the news and not see murder, murder, murder…)”.
“I prefer to be called a dictator but that Salvadorans can finally live in peace. Let them stay discussing their semantics and we will continue to focus on seeking results and contrary to the lies that they spread day and night, we have more results than any other government in our entire history,” he added.
The President of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, said on Sunday night, in his speech for the first year of his second consecutive term, that democracy, transparency, human rights and the rule of law “are terms” that are actually used to keep people submissive.
“Democracy, institutionality, transparency, human rights, the rule of law, sound good, they are great ideals in reality, but they are terms that are actually only used to keep us submissive,” Bukele said during a solemn session of the Legislative Assembly held at the National Theater in San Salvador.
“Sadly we are witnessing how our sister countries still believe in these international organizations, they still believe in these treaties that are supposedly to help us with our human rights and some politicians in the region (Latin America) unfortunately lend themselves to this game,” said the president.
“What they, the defenders of democracy and the rule of law, really want is that we are unable to punish the murderers in the name of a supposed ideal of human rights that is no more than the rights of criminals,” the president told deputies of Congress, representatives of the diplomatic corps in El Salvador and various institutions.
The first year of Bukele’s second consecutive term, identified as unconstitutional, is marked by alerts for “an authoritarian escalation”, the detention of human rights activists and the imprisonment of hundreds of Venezuelans, expelled from the United States and who do not face criminal proceedings in El Salvador.
In addition, Bukele defended the approval of a Foreign Agents Act that imposes a 30% tax on international donations to non-governmental organizations, compared to similar legislation used by countries such as Nicaragua to close organizations.
“A few days ago this Legislative Assembly approved the Foreign Agents Law: it is a law to protect international cooperation,” Bukele said in his first-year speech of his second consecutive mandate, prohibited by the Constitution.
The president pointed out, during a plenary session of the Legislative Assembly at the National Theater in San Salvador, that this law is “to ensure that those funds that come from abroad and that claim to be for social projects are really for that to help people.”
“Most developed countries prohibit foreign interference. We allow foreign interference. We only ask them to pay taxes just like everyone else,” Bukele pointed out to deputies of Congress, representatives of the diplomatic corps in El Salvador and various institutions.
International
U.S. issues new environmental waivers to speed border wall construction in Arizona and New Mexico
The U.S. government announced on Thursday three new environmental waivers that will fast-track construction of the border wall with Mexico in Arizona and New Mexico—adding to a similar waiver granted in April for work in California.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the waivers will speed up the building of about 36 miles (roughly 58 kilometers) of new barrier in the Yuma and Tucson sectors of Arizona and in the El Paso sector of neighboring Texas.
The exemptions lift requirements to comply with several environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which would ordinarily apply to new roads or physical barriers in these areas. According to DHS, the projects “will close critical gaps in the border wall and enhance border-security operations in the El Paso, Tucson, and Yuma sectors of U.S. Border Patrol.”
“These waiver-backed projects are crucial steps toward securing the southern border and reinforcing our commitment to border security,” the department said.
The secretary’s authority to issue such waivers comes from Section 102 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, signed into law by President Bill Clinton. Secretary Noem invoked the same authority in April to accelerate wall construction in California.
U.S. Border Patrol agents apprehended 23,912 migrants along the Mexican border between February and April 2025, following Donald Trump’s return to the White House on January 20.
International
Sheinbaum calls for bilateral effort to combat cross-border criminal activity
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated on Thursday that her administration is seeking to collaborate with the Colombian government to address the activities of criminal groups operating in both countries. This follows reports suggesting the involvement of Colombian nationals in an attack that left eight members of Mexico’s National Guard dead last week in the western part of the country.
“We are looking to collaborate with the Government of Colombia to address any criminal activity involving members of criminal groups in Colombia or, in turn, any member of a Mexican criminal group,” Sheinbaum said during her morning press conference.
Her remarks came in response to statements made by Colombian President Gustavo Petro earlier this week. On Tuesday, Petro claimed that former Colombian soldiers were involved in the deadly attack near the border between the Mexican states of Michoacán and Jalisco, where several armed forces personnel were killed.
“A bomb just exploded against the Mexican army in Michoacán, leaving several dead. The army responded by arresting the suspected perpetrators. Most of them are former Colombian soldiers, and some are still active. The press knows about this, but it hasn’t been widely reported. We are exporting mercenaries to the mafia,” Petro stated.
International
Woman publicly whipped 100 times under Sharia law in Indonesia’s aceh province
A woman was publicly whipped 100 times on Wednesday after being sentenced by an Islamic court in Indonesia’s Aceh province, where Sharia law has been enforced since 2001.
The young woman was flogged in front of dozens of onlookers by an executioner whose face remained covered throughout the punishment, according to reports by EFE.
She pleaded for the whipping to stop at least twice and was comforted by other women who offered her food and water before the flogging resumed until all 100 lashes had been administered.
In addition to her, four men were also publicly whipped the same number of times for other violations of Sharia law, which punishes consensual same-sex relations, alcohol consumption, and sexual activity outside of marriage.
Aceh is the only province in Indonesia—home to the world’s largest Muslim population—where Sharia law is officially implemented. The country also ranks among the highest globally for female genital mutilation, often tied to religious beliefs.
Public floggings are common in Aceh. On February 27, two young men, aged 18 and 24, were also whipped for engaging in consensual sex.
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