International
Lima’s streets tense as Peru leader hints at early elections
| By AFP | Luis Jaime Cisneros and Ernesto Tovar |
Peru’s new president Dina Boluarte has said she will form a new government Saturday, even as demonstrators pressed on Lima streets for ex-president Pedro Castillo to be freed after an alleged failed coup bid.
Boluarte told journalists that if the situation “warrants it,” the government will consult with Congress on holding an early presidential vote.
She urged those “who are coming out in protest … to calm down.”
Demonstrations continued on Friday, with protesters blocking roads with rocks, logs, and burning tires as they called for early elections.
The roadblocks interrupted traffic along the southern Pan-American Highway that links Peru and Chile.
Two days after the failure of his coup attempt, Castillo is sharing a detention center with former president Alberto Fujimori at a police base in Lima.
The prosecution accuses this left-wing rural teacher of rebellion and conspiracy, and a high court ordered him into seven days in preliminary detention.
On the streets, meanwhile, the demonstrations continue for the second day and fuel uncertainty about the possibility that Boluarte can conclude her term in 2026, as she herself announced upon taking office.
Hundreds of demonstrators marched through the colonial center of the capital, demanding Castillo’s release.
“I voted for Castillo, this Congress does not represent us, we want Castillo freed,” Maribel Quispe told AFP, in the march that left the central Plaza San Martin, and included the Prosecutor’s Office on its route to Congress.
“We want them to close this corrupt Congress and free Castillo. He made the decision to close Congress because they wouldn’t let him work,” marcher Sara Medina said.
Several dozen riot police officers closed the avenues that lead to the legislature to prevent the protest from passing through.
The demonstrators burned banners with the image of President Boluarte, shouting “coup leader!”
Earlier Friday, Castillo’s former chief of staff said that the Peruvian ex-president “could have been induced” by drugs to dissolve Congress and does not remember delivering the national address that led to his downfall.
Congress was supposed to debate Castillo’s impeachment on Wednesday on corruption charges, but the president preempted them by announcing in a televised speech that he was dissolving the assembly and would rule by decree.
“There are indications that the president was forced to read the message of dissolution, and whoever wrote the text did so in order to provide an argument for his removal,” ex-aide Guido Bellido said on Twitter.
Bellido, who visited his former boss at the Lima police base where he is held while under investigation for rebellion and conspiracy, also questioned Castillo’s mental condition.
“The psychological state of P. Castillo when reading the message to the nation shows that he was not in control of his faculties. This suggests that he could have been induced. A toxicological test is urgently needed,” he said.
The former rural school teacher won a shock electoral victory over Peru’s traditional elites in June 2021.
The charges against him carry a jail term of between 10 and 20 years.
Boluarte, who served as vice president under Castillo, was hastily sworn in as Peru’s first woman president just hours after the impeachment.
However, doubt is mounting over her ability to hold onto the job until the end of her mandate in 2026 in a country prone to political instability that is now on its sixth president in six years.
International
At Least Eight Dead and 19 Injured in Deadly Bus Crash in Veracruz, Mexico
A tragic bus accident in the eastern state of Veracruz left at least eight people dead and 19 others injured on Wednesday afternoon, according to local authorities.
The vehicle was traveling through the town of Zontecomatlán when it crashed near a ravine, state Civil Protection officials reported late Wednesday night. “Regrettably, the prosecutor’s office has confirmed eight fatalities,” the agency stated in an official release.
Emergency Response and Medical Care Rescue teams worked into the night to assist the survivors. The 19 injured passengers were stabilized at the scene before being transported to hospitals in the nearby municipalities of Chicontepec and Huayacocotla. While the identities of the victims have not yet been released, Mexican press reports indicate the bus was en route from Mexico City to Chicontepec.
A Recurring Issue on Mexican Highways Road accidents involving long-haul passenger buses and freight transport are a frequent occurrence in Mexico. Experts often cite excessive speed, mechanical failure, or driver fatigue as the primary catalysts for these tragedies.
This latest incident follows another major disaster in late November, where 10 people were killed and 20 injured in a similar bus crash in the western state of Michoacán. The recurring nature of these accidents continues to spark national debate regarding the enforcement of stricter safety regulations for commercial transport units.
International
Jair Bolsonaro Hospitalized for Inguinal Hernia Surgery While Serving Sentence for Attempted Coup
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, currently serving a 27-year prison sentence for an attempted coup, underwent surgery this Thursday for an inguinal hernia. The procedure took place at the DF Star Hospital in Brasilia, according to his wife, Michelle Bolsonaro.
The 70-year-old former leader left prison on Wednesday for the first time since his incarceration in late November to prepare for the operation. “My love has just gone to the surgical center,” Michelle Bolsonaro posted on Instagram, where she has been documenting her accompaniment during his hospitalization.
Surgical Expectations and Health History Medical professionals treating the far-right ex-president (2019-2022) anticipate the operation will last approximately four hours. His recovery period in the hospital is expected to extend between five and seven days.
Dr. Claudio Birolini explained on Wednesday that while the surgery is standardized, it remains complex due to the patient’s history. Bolsonaro continues to suffer from the long-term effects of a 2018 campaign rally stabbing, an injury that required several major abdominal surgeries in the years following the attack.
“There is no such thing as a simple surgery. However, this is a scheduled and standardized procedure, so we expect it to be carried out without major complications,” Dr. Birolini stated.
Potential Additional Procedures Following the hernia repair, the medical team will evaluate whether Bolsonaro can undergo a second procedure: an anesthetic block of the phrenic nerve. This nerve controls the diaphragm, and the intervention would aim to resolve a chronic case of recurrent hiccups that has plagued the former president for years.
Bolsonaro remains under heavy security at the medical facility as he serves his lengthy sentence related to the events surrounding the January 2023 institutional crisis in Brazil.
International
Trump Orders Construction of New ‘Golden Fleet’ to Revitalize U.S. Naval Superiority
President Donald Trump issued an executive order this Monday for the immediate construction of two new warships that will bear his name. These vessels will be the pioneers of what he described as the “Golden Fleet,” a future generation of “Trump-class” battleships that he claimed would be “100 times more powerful” than those currently in service.
The announcement took place at his private residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. The President indicated that following the initial two ships, the administration aims to commission up to 25 additional vessels. He is scheduled to meet with Florida-based contractors next week to expedite production, criticizing existing defense firms for failing to deliver results efficiently.
This naval expansion is a cornerstone of Trump’s goal to revitalized the American shipbuilding industry and address the strategic gap between the U.S. and competitors like China.
The move comes amid heightened geopolitical tension. Just last week, Trump ordered the seizure of all sanctioned tankers involved with Venezuela’s “ghost fleet” to cripple the country’s crude oil industry. Since December 10, the U.S. military—deployed in the Caribbean under the guise of counter-narcotics operations—has already detained two tankers linked to Venezuelan oil transport.
At Least Eight Dead and 19 Injured in Deadly Bus Crash in Veracruz, Mexico
Jair Bolsonaro Hospitalized for Inguinal Hernia Surgery While Serving Sentence for Attempted Coup
Trump Orders Construction of New ‘Golden Fleet’ to Revitalize U.S. Naval Superiority
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