International
Colombia police find second top leader of Clan del Golfo criminal organization dead
March 2nd |
Police in Colombia reported on Wednesday that the second most senior leader of the criminal organization Autodefensas Gaitanistas, better known as the Gulf Clan, was found dead on a road in the northwest of the country.
The body of Wilmer Antonio Giraldo, alias “Siopas,” the second-in-command of the Gulf Clan, was identified after being found shot a few kilometers from the municipality of Dabeiba, in the department of Antioquia.
“A criminal profile of 12 years within this criminal structure, this organized armed group,” said Colonel Oscar Hernan Cortes, commander of the Police Department of Uraba, after noting that they are investigating the cause of death.
Security and intelligence sources told Reuters that the death was apparently the result of internal fighting within the Clan del Golfo, an organization with more than 3,000 members dedicated to drug trafficking and illegal gold mining.
Alias ‘Siopas’, 40, had demobilized in 2009 from the fifth front of the now defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), long before a peace process the government signed with the guerrilla group in 2016.
“Today he was under absolute command of all criminal actions in the department of Chocó and in the Colombian Pacific,” Cortes added in a video.
President Gustavo Petro, the first leftist president in the country’s history, is promoting a policy of total peace with organizations such as the National Liberation Army (ELN), the Gulf Clan, the Autodefensas Conquistadores de la Sierra Nevada, as well as urban groups, to end the nearly six-decade armed conflict.
Siopas’ was against a negotiation with Petro’s government that seeks the submission to justice of the members of this criminal gang in exchange for legal benefits such as reduced sentences, the sources said.
The armed confrontation in Colombia, fueled by drug trafficking, has left more than 450,000 dead between 1985 and 2018 alone.
International
Merengue concert turns to mourning as Jet Set collapse claims 136 lives
Dominican rescue teams will end search and recovery operations on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, at the Jet Set nightclubin Santo Domingo, where the building collapsed during a live concert.
Authorities estimate that the final 20 bodies will be recovered from the rubble today, bringing the official death toll to 136. This includes 12 additional bodies found overnight in the disaster zone, adding to the previously confirmed 124 fatalities.
Outside the collapsed nightclub, desperate relatives of the missing continue to gather, clinging to hope for news. Many also visited nearby hospitals and morgues in search of their loved ones.
A list of confirmed victims has been posted on a tent set up near the site, where the bodies are being transferred for identification.
The tragedy occurred during a performance by renowned merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who was among the deceased.
Central America
Colombia to host fourth EU-CELAC Summit in November
The Fourth Summit between the European Union (EU) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) will take place on November 9 and 10 in Santa Marta, Colombia, according to a joint statement released Wednesday by the Colombian government and the European Council.
The summit will be co-chaired by Colombian President Gustavo Petro, in his role as pro tempore president of CELAC, and European Council President António Costa, the statement added.
The last EU-CELAC summit took place in July 2023 in Brussels, when both blocs agreed to hold these meetings every two years.
The summit brings together the 27 EU member states and the 33 CELAC countries, representing 14% of the global population, 21% of global GDP, and one-third of the members of the United Nations, the communiqué noted.
International
Russia and US to Meet in Istanbul for Diplomatic Talks on April 10
The Kremlin confirmed today a forthcoming meeting with the United States to discuss the normalization of diplomatic relations, which will take place in Istanbul.
“Our participation will be through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” said Dmitry Peskov, the presidential spokesperson, during his daily telephone press conference.
Peskov was responding to a question about who would represent Russia in the new round of negotiations, which is supposedly scheduled for April 10.
Subsequently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the delegations will be led by the Russian ambassador to the U.S., Alexandr Darchiev, and the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, Sonata Coulter.
These are the same negotiators who met in late February in Istanbul, where the expert-level negotiation format was the same, according to the source.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had said a few days ago that the next meeting would be held in the Turkish city, though he did not confirm a date.
Lavrov, who participated in only one of these meetings, clarified that the upcoming discussions would address the issues still dividing Moscow and Washington diplomatically, referring to the operations of both countries’ embassies.
The Kremlin asserted that Washington has not yet responded to Russia’s security concerns, preventing a ceasefire declaration on land, sea, and air.
Meanwhile, Trump expressed discontent with Russia’s recent attacks, including one last week that killed 20 people in Krivi Rig, the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
So far, Russia has rejected a cessation of hostilities and only declared a 30-day ceasefire on March 18 against attacks on energy infrastructure, which was extended by Kyiv a week later.
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