International

Lima’s streets tense as Peru leader hints at early elections

Photo: ERNESTO BENAVIDES / AFP

| 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.

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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.

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“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.

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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.

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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

King Charles III Says U.S.-UK Alliance Is “Irreplaceable and Unbreakable”

King Charles III of the United Kingdom reaffirmed the strength of the British-American relationship on Tuesday during a speech before the United States Congress, describing the alliance between the two nations as “irreplaceable and unbreakable.”

The address, delivered at the Capitol, marked the first speech by a British monarch before Congress since Queen Elizabeth II in 1991 and comes at a time of political tensions between Donald Trump’s administration and the Labour government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

“As President Trump himself observed during his state visit to Britain last autumn, the bond of kinship and identity between the United States and the United Kingdom is invaluable and eternal. It is irreplaceable and unbreakable,” the king said.

While reflecting on the upcoming 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, which will be commemorated this year, Charles III stated that the partnership between the two countries “was born out of disagreement, but is no less strong because of it.”

The monarch emphasized the democratic values shared by both nations and noted that major global changes have occurred whenever the two allies found common ground.

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“When we have found that way to agree, great changes have taken place not only for the benefit of our peoples, but for all peoples,” he said.

King Charles also quoted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently described the relationship as “an indispensable alliance.”

Concluding his speech, the monarch described the shared history of the United States and the United Kingdom as “a story of reconciliation, renewal, and an extraordinary partnership.”

He added that Washington and London have forged “one of the most consequential alliances in human history.”

“I pray with all my heart that our alliance continues to defend our shared values, together with our partners in Europe, the Commonwealth, and around the world, and that we ignore calls urging us to become increasingly isolationist,” Charles III stated.

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The king ended by urging both nations to “recommit to one another in selfless service to our peoples and to all peoples of the world.”

International

Trump Administration Considers Denying Green Cards Over Political Views

The administration of President Donald Trump is evaluating new immigration guidelines that could deny permanent residency to immigrants based on their political views, according to a report published by The New York Times.

The proposed measures, outlined in internal Department of Homeland Security documents, would instruct immigration officials to take applicants’ public expressions and ideological positions into account when reviewing green card applications.

According to the report, cases involving “possible anti-American and/or antisemitic conduct or ideologies” would need to be referred to higher authorities for additional review.

Even if applicants have not violated any laws, authorities could still reject residency requests if they determine that individuals have “endorsed, promoted, or supported anti-American views.”

Among the factors listed in the guidelines are participation in pro-Palestinian activities, actions considered antisemitic, and the burning of the U.S. flag.

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The documents reportedly describe such actions as “heavily negative” factors in immigration evaluations, potentially blocking applicants from obtaining permanent residency and, eventually, U.S. citizenship.

The directives also place particular attention on demonstrations held on university campuses following the 2023 Hamas attacks against Israel.

However, flag burning has previously been recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court as a form of protected free speech under the Constitution.

The proposal has sparked criticism from immigrant advocacy organizations, including the New York Immigration Coalition.

Its president, Murad Awawdeh, warned that the policies could pose a threat to fundamental rights and freedoms.

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International

Mexico Arrests CJNG Leader “El Jardinero” in Nayarit

Mexican authorities arrested Audias Flores, known as “El Jardinero,” on Monday during a naval operation in the western state of Nayarit, delivering another major blow to the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).

Flores was considered one of the top regional leaders within the cartel and had reportedly overseen criminal operations along Mexico’s Pacific coast. Security analysts viewed him as a potential successor to slain drug kingpin Nemesio Oseguera.

The arrest was carried out by Mexico’s Navy Special Forces in a planned operation, according to Security Minister Omar García Harfuch.

The United States Department of the Treasury had previously identified Flores as a “significant foreign narcotics trafficker,” while U.S. authorities offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his capture and extradition.

A U.S. grand jury indicted Flores in 2021 on charges including conspiracy to distribute cocaine and heroin.

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His capture comes months after the reported death of “El Mencho,” an operation that Mexican authorities considered a priority due to the cartel leader’s alleged involvement in a 2020 assassination attempt against García Harfuch.