Central America
Panama government and protesters strike deals to clear key highway
AFP
Panama’s government and indigenous leaders reached a second deal Sunday to clear all remaining demonstrators from the Panamerican Highway in exchange for lower fuel prices, ending a two-week blockade that had stymied food deliveries.
The government released footage from the signing of an initial agreement in far-west Chiriqui province, where most of the Central American country’s food is produced, and of a blocked section of the highway being cleared.
Angered by high prices and corruption, protesters had clogged the highway linking Panama to the rest of Central America over the past two weeks. Large trucks and banner-waving demonstrators paralyzed the strategic route, making it hard for the country of 4.4 million to feed itself.
To avert the crisis, a second deal was signed later Sunday in Santiago de Veragua, a city 250 kilometers (155 miles) northwest of Panama City, the epicenter of the negotiations and a protester stronghold.
“Many Panamanians have suffered from these stoppages,” said Vice-President Jose Gabriel Carrizo after signing the agreement. “This is a huge government effort.”
The deal establishes the fixed price of fuel for 91 and 95 octane gasoline and diesel, and is effective from July 18.
“The traffic of cars and heavy equipment in Veraguas is free,” Eduardo Cortés, who participated in the demonstrations on the highway, told AFP by phone.
The proposal of 3.25 dollars per gallon (3.78 liters), was better than the 3.30 offered in the deal made earlier in the day with the indigenous community of the Ngabe-Bugle Comarca in Chiriqui.
“This has not been easy, we have made progress with (reducing the cost of) the basic food basket,” said Luis Sanchez, a spokesman for the organizations promoting the protests.
In Panama City, a hundred people gathered on the waterfront to demonstrate. They all wore black, in contrast with the white suits worn by lawmakers during official ceremonies.
Food costs are “higher than what is earned. We have a big social problem,” lawyer Jaqueline Hurtado told AFP. “People are fed up and have taken to the streets to demonstrate for things to change.”
Retiree Iliana Arango said: “In my 68 years of life, I am tired of seeing governments that promise, go up, steal, go down, the next one follows and here we are lacking everything, medicine, education, food.”
Year-on-year inflation in Panama of 4.2 percent was recorded in May, along with an unemployment rate of about 10 percent and fuel price hikes of nearly 50 percent since January.
Despite its dollarized economy and high growth figures, the country has a high rate of social inequality.
Economic woes have led to a shortage of fuel in some parts of the country, and stalls at food markets in the capital have run out of products to sell.
Central America
Guatemala Court Voids List of Candidates for Top Prosecutor Position
Constitutional Court of Guatemala on Thursday annulled the shortlist of six candidates for attorney general and head of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, ordering authorities to repeat the evaluation phase of the selection process.
The ruling came in response to a legal appeal filed by Raúl Amílcar Falla Ovalle, who challenged the way professional experience had been assessed for some applicants, particularly those with careers in the judiciary.
As a result of the decision, the selection process has been suspended, and the Postulation Commission must return to the stage in which the original 48 applicants were evaluated.
According to the ruling, the commission must reapply the grading criteria without automatically counting years served as judges as equivalent to the professional experience required for the position.
“The Postulation Commission for the election of the Attorney General and Head of the Public Prosecutor’s Office is ordered to reassess the applicants by strictly applying the approved grading table,” the resolution states.
The Constitutional Court also stressed that the process must guarantee merit, competence, and suitability, while ensuring greater transparency in the assignment of scores.
Central America
U.S. extradites Iranian man over alleged sanctions evasion scheme
The United States has extradited from Panama an Iranian national accused of evading economic sanctions against Iran by illegally exporting U.S. technology. He is scheduled to appear this Monday before a court in Seattle.
Reza Dindar, 44, was extradited on April 17 after being detained in Panama since July 2025 on charges related to export control violations between 2011 and 2012, allegedly carried out through companies based in China.
The defendant appeared before a U.S. district court in Seattle, where he faces charges of violating sanctions imposed by the United States on Iran in 1995 during the administration of Bill Clinton. These sanctions prohibit the unauthorized export, re-export, or supply—directly or indirectly—of U.S. goods, technology, or services to Iran or its government.
According to the indictment, between 2010 and 2014, Dindar led the company New Port Sourcing Solutions in Xi’an, China, which allegedly concealed the procurement of U.S. products for shipment to clients in Iran.
Central America
Bukele administration surpasses 1,100 homicide-free days amid ongoing crackdown
On Saturday, April 18, the Policía Nacional Civil (PNC) reported that no homicides were recorded in El Salvador, bringing the total to 17 days without murders.
With this update, the country has accumulated 91 homicide-free days so far in 2026. January closed with 27 such days, followed by 24 in February and 23 in March, according to police data.
During the administration of President Nayib Bukele, a total of 1,193 days without homicides have been registered. Of those, 1,079 have occurred since the implementation of the state of exception.
This extraordinary security measure has been extended 49 times by the Asamblea Legislativa de El Salvador, with the latest extension in effect from April 1 to April 30, 2026. Under the measure, more than 91,700 gang members and collaborators have been detained and prosecuted for illicit association.
U.S. allows Venezuela to fund Maduro and Cilia Flores’ legal defense
U.S. Sanctions Network Linked to Fentanyl Trafficking Across India, Guatemala and Mexico
Pope Leo XIV Says Countries Have Border Rights but Migrants Deserve Respect
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
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International3 days agoIran refuses to reopen strait of Hormuz amid ongoing U.S. Naval blockade
-
Central America2 days agoGuatemala Court Voids List of Candidates for Top Prosecutor Position
-
International5 days agoTrump extends Iran ceasefire after Pakistan mediation request
-
International2 days agoPope Leo XIV Says Countries Have Border Rights but Migrants Deserve Respect
-
International5 days agoVenezuelan opposition demands election date and minimum wage increase
-
International5 days agoMaradona’s daughter accuses medical team of “horrible manipulation” in court
-
International2 days agoU.S. Sanctions Network Linked to Fentanyl Trafficking Across India, Guatemala and Mexico
-
International21 hours agoU.S. allows Venezuela to fund Maduro and Cilia Flores’ legal defense
-
International3 days agoAuthorities Say Teotihuacán Gunman Was Obsessed With Mass Shootings and Extremist Symbolism