International

Australia closes farms as avian flu spreads

Avian influenza continues to spread in the Australian state of Victoria, where more than 500,000 chickens have been slaughtered. Strict quarantine zones have also been established that restrict the movement of birds and equipment. Australian health authorities say that avian influenza is mainly spread among wild waterfowl.

The highly pathogenic strain H7N3 of avian influenza has been found in four farms, while another virus, H7N9, has been detected in a fifth property in the last seven weeks in the state of Victoria. Australian farms have been quarantined. At least 580,000 birds have been slaughtered as part of extensive biosecurity controls.

Japan and the United States have temporarily banned imports of poultry from Victoria as a precautionary measure.

In Australia, some supermarkets are restricting the amount of eggs that consumers can buy due to supply chain disruptions.

Avian influenza is a viral disease found all over the world. It spreads between birds or when contaminated food and equipment for animals moves between areas.

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Danyel Cucinotta is vice president of the Victoria Farmers’ Federation, an industry group. She told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Tuesday that the virus can spread quickly.

“There is very little we can do and no matter how good their biosecurity is, you can’t prevent wild birds from entering. This is a particular flight route for migratory birds. There are orders that all the birds are locked up. It’s about protecting our birds and protecting the food supply chain,” he said.

Avian influenza strains identified in the states of Victoria and Western Australia can infect people, but experts insist that cases are rare.

The virus can also infect cows. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has said that avian influenza has infected dairy cows in more than 80 herds in several states since the end of March.

At least three workers in the U.S. dairy industry. The United States has tested positive for avian influenza after exposure to infected livestock. The three patients are recovering.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States said that infections do not change their assessment that avian influenza is a low risk for the community in general and that they have not seen evidence of person-to-person transmission.

International

Trump urges Putin to reach peace deal

On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his desire for Russian President Vladimir Putin to “reach a deal” to end the war in Ukraine, while also reaffirming his willingness to impose sanctions on Russia.

“I want to see him reach an agreement to prevent Russian, Ukrainian, and other people from dying,” Trump stated during a press conference in the Oval Office at the White House.

“I think he will. I don’t want to have to impose secondary tariffs on Russian oil,” the Republican leader added, recalling that he had already taken similar measures against Venezuela by sanctioning buyers of the South American country’s crude oil.

Trump also reiterated his frustration over Ukraine’s resistance to an agreement that would allow the United States to exploit natural resources in the country—a condition he set in negotiations to end the war.

International

Deportation flight lands in Venezuela; government denies criminal gang links

A flight carrying 175 Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States arrived in Caracas on Sunday. This marks the third group to return since repatriation flights resumed a week ago, and among them is an alleged member of a criminal organization, according to Venezuelan authorities.

Unlike previous flights operated by the Venezuelan state airline Conviasa, this time, an aircraft from the U.S. airline Eastern landed at Maiquetía Airport, on the outskirts of Caracas, shortly after 2:00 p.m. with the deportees.

Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, who welcomed the returnees at the airport, stated that the 175 repatriated individuals were coming back “after being subjected, like all Venezuelans, to persecution” and dismissed claims that they belonged to the criminal organization El Tren de Aragua.

However, Cabello confirmed that “for the first time in these flights we have been carrying out, someone of significance wanted by Venezuelan justice has arrived, and he is not from El Tren de Aragua.” Instead, he belongs to a gang operating in the state of Trujillo. The minister did not disclose the individual’s identity or provide details on where he would be taken.

International

Son of journalist José Rubén Zamora condemns father’s return to prison as “illegal”

Guatemalan court decides Wednesday whether to convict journalist José Rubén Zamora

The son of renowned journalist José Rubén Zamora Marroquín, José Carlos Zamora, has denounced as “illegal” the court order that sent his father back to a Guatemalan prison on March 3, after already spending 819 days behind barsover a highly irregular money laundering case.

“My father’s return to prison was based on an arbitrary and illegal ruling. It is also alarming that the judge who had granted him house arrest received threats,” José Carlos Zamora told EFE in an interview on Saturday.

The 67-year-old journalist was sent back to prison inside the Mariscal Zavala military barracks on March 3, when Judge Erick García upheld a Court of Appeals ruling that overturned the house arrest granted to him in October. Zamora had already spent 819 days in prison over an alleged money laundering case.

His son condemned the situation as “unacceptable”, stating that the judge handling the case “cannot do his job in accordance with the law due to threats against his life.”