International

H: the heroin derivative ravaging Ecuador’s poor

Photo: MARCOS PIN / AFP

January 20 | By AFP | Karla Pesantes |

Shaking and delirious, Rina ambles half-dressed beside a dump in Ecuador’s port city of Guayaquil.

She is under the psychotropic effects of “H,” a cheap and addictive drug that is ravaging the poorest sectors of Ecuadoran society.

The scene was captured on video on New Year’s Eve and relayed to the municipal health center, which came to her aid.

“When I consume (the drug) I hear voices,” the 24-year-old, who is using a pseudonym, told AFP.

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For the second time in less than a year she is following a drug rehabilitation program.

In her desperation, Rina stole and even worked as a prostitute to buy H, a heroin-based white powder that can be snorted or smoked and is sold for $1 a gram.

It is much cheaper and much more toxic than cocaine, which goes for $3 to $5.

H is cut with all sorts of toxic materials that can harm humans.

“We have found lime, cement, ether, rat poison and even ketamine, an analgesic used on horses,” in the white powder, said psychiatrist Julieta Sagnay, from the Guayaquil-based Neuroscience Institute, an NGO that supports drug addicts.

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Guayaquil, a city of almost three million people, has become a hub of drug trafficking and addiction.

Officials say 162 kilograms of H were seized in 2022.

Sagnay, an expert with more than 30 years of experience treating addicts, says the number of patients she treats for H use is increasing every day.

And their physical condition deteriorates quicker than other patients.

In just six months, H addicts are constantly moving their legs, scratching, and not sleeping or eating.

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Withdrawal symptoms are so severe, says Sagnay, that it is unbearable without at least eight days of pharmaceutical treatment.

‘They beat me’

There are three public clinics in Guayaquil for addicts and there are more than 30 private ones but they can cost up to $700 a month in a country where the minimum wage is just $450.

Some addicts turn to back-alley detox centers.

“They beat me, they poured a bucket of cold water on me and we ate chicken heads every day,” said Hugo Mora, who was treated four years ago in a dirty, dark, illegal center with no windows.

It only cost $150 but it was a failure.

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After trying out two such clinics, the 24-year-old street vendor spent a week in a municipal hospital, where he was treated in a large room with more than a dozen beds.

The hospital takes in up to 150 daily patients, 90 percent of whom are suffering from an H addiction.

The InSight Crime think tank says H arrived in Guayaquil in 2011, pushed by Colombian cartels hoping to develop the heroin market.

But the H powder contains less than three percent heroin, according to forensic psychologist and retired police officer Segundo Romero.

“As there is so little pure drug, the addict needs to consume more and buy more,” said the forensic psychologist.

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He told a story about meeting addicts in prison whose faces were covered in dust.

“As they no longer had any drugs, they had scratched the walls and put white paint in their nostrils,” he said.

With just one gram of heroin, a dealer can make 40 grams of H, with the mix of ingredients provoking psychotic symptoms and hallucinations.

In Cerro las Cabras, the drug supermarket in Duran, a town opposite Guayaquil along the Guayas river, H sales bring in $1 million a month, according to official estimates.

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International

Paris prosecutors alert U.S. over alleged deepfake strategy linked to Elon Musk

The Paris Prosecutor’s Office said on Saturday that it had alerted authorities in the United States over suspicions that tech entrepreneur Elon Musk may have encouraged the spread of sexualized deepfake content on the social platform X to artificially boost the company’s valuation.

According to prosecutors, the controversy surrounding explicit AI-generated videos—reportedly linked to Grok, the platform’s artificial intelligence system—may have been deliberately triggered to increase the market value of X and X AI.

The office added that the alleged strategy could be tied to the planned June 2026 public listing of a new entity formed through the merger of SpaceX and X AI.

French authorities said they contacted the U.S. Department of Justice as well as legal representatives at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this week to share their concerns.

Responding on X in French to a report about the case, Musk referred to French prosecutors using an offensive term.

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When contacted, X’s legal representative in France did not immediately comment.

Grok, the platform’s AI system, has its own account on X, allowing users to interact with it or request content generation. For a period, users were able to tag the bot in posts to generate or edit images, a feature that may have facilitated the spread of such material.

International

Netanyahu vows to target Iran’s leadership after missile strikes in southern Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Sunday to target Iran’s leadership directly, escalating rhetoric amid ongoing hostilities between Israel and Iran.

Speaking during a visit to the southern city of Arad, which was struck by an Iranian missile a day earlier, Netanyahu said Israel would intensify its response against Tehran.

“We are going after the regime. We are going after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, that gang of criminals,” he told reporters while standing among the debris left by the தாக்க.

He added that Israel intends to strike “personally” at Iran’s leadership, as well as its facilities and economic assets.

In addition to Arad, Iranian missiles also hit the city of Dimona on Saturday. The area is widely believed to host Israel’s undeclared nuclear facilities. The strike caused significant damage following a direct impact.

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Netanyahu also visited Dimona, where he urged residents to strictly follow military instructions and seek shelter whenever warning sirens are activated.

“The entire nation is a front line, and the home front is also a front line. And when we are on the front line, we follow these instructions,” he said.

International

US panel backs Trump-themed coin amid controversy

The United States Department of the Treasury confirmed to AFP that the Commission of Fine Arts approved the design of a new collectible coin featuring Donald Trump, with members of the commission appointed by the current administration.

According to the proposal, the coin will feature an image of Trump standing with clenched fists over a desk on the obverse, while the reverse will display an eagle, a traditional symbol of the United States.

The sale price of the collectible has not yet been disclosed, although the United States Mint typically offers similar items for more than $1,000.

“There is no more iconic portrait for the front of these coins than that of our president Donald Trump,” U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach said in a statement sent to AFP. He added that two additional coins — a $1 piece and a one-ounce gold coin — are also under consideration.

However, the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC), another body responsible for reviewing new coin proposals, declined to discuss the Trump design in late February.

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“Only nations governed by kings or dictators place the image of a sitting leader on their currency,” said Donald Scarinciat the time. “No country in the world has minted coins featuring a democratically elected leader during their term in office,” he added.

When contacted by AFP, the Treasury Department did not immediately respond to requests for further comment.