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Biden reaffirms support for Venezuela opposition leader

AFP/Editor

President Joe Biden reaffirmed US support  for Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido in a letter Monday even in the midst of efforts to resume negotiations with President Nicolas Maduro’s government. 

“Under your leadership and in coalition with civil society leaders you are preserving those ideals of freedom democracy and sovereignty,” Biden wrote in a letter addressed to Guaido and sent through the Office of Venezuelan Affairs in neighboring Colombia, an official in that office told AFP.

The letter was sent on the occasion of the anniversary of Venezuela’s independence, on July 5, 1811.

Biden said that Guaido is guiding his country “through a peaceful democratic transition of power.”

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Guaido is recognized by some 50 countries as Venezuela’s interim leader as head of the National Assembly after Maduro declared victory in 2018 elections widely decried as fraudulent.

The administration of former US president Donald Trump imposed severe financial sanctions on Venezuela and its national oil company PDVSA in an unsuccessful effort to oust the leftist as Venezuela has plunged deeper into political, economic and humanitarian crisis. 

The United States and the European Union said in June, however, that they would be willing to renegotiate certain sanctions if the Venezuelans made strides toward “credible elections.”

Guaido on Monday led rallies calling for new elections, after the main opposition parties boycotted the 2018 presidential election and the 2020 legislative elections. 

Maduro is totally opposed to the idea as gubernatorial and mayoral elections are coming up in November. 

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Maduro on Friday accused the United States of plotting to assassinate him, rhetorically asking if Biden had approved a plan. 

“Has Joe Biden signed off on Donald Trump’s orders to bring a civil war to Venezuela and to kill us? Yes or no? I’m asking,” he said, referring to a visit by CIA director William Burns and SouthCom chief Craig Faller to Colombia and Brazil. 

Washington and Caracas broke off diplomatic relations in 2019 after the White House’s recognition of Guaido’s mandate. 

The US embassy in Caracas is closed, with matters relating to the countries’ relationship now handled at an office in Bogota.

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International

WMO predicts 55% chance of weakened La Niña impacting global weather this winter

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reported on Thursday that there is a 55% chance that the La Niña phenomenon, typically associated with cooler temperatures, will affect global weather between December and February, though in a weakened form.

In its update released Thursday, the WMO clarified that while La Niña is usually linked to a temporary drop in average global temperatures, some regions could still experience warmer-than-normal conditions.

As 2026 progresses, the WMO expects the planet to shift toward neutral conditions, neither influenced by La Niña nor by its opposite, El Niño, which is associated with increased temperatures. The likelihood of neutral conditions is expected to rise to 75% between February and April, according to the agency’s regular bulletin on these phenomena.

La Niña occurs due to cooling of the central and eastern Pacific Ocean waters and is also linked to changes in tropical atmospheric circulation, including wind and rainfall patterns. The opposite phenomenon, El Niño, has not been observed by experts since 2024, which currently remains the warmest year on record.

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International

Spain’s PSOE summons Mark Zuckerberg over alleged mass surveillance on Android users

The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) requested on Wednesday that the Congress of Deputies summon Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, to explain the alleged mass surveillance of Facebook and Instagram users via Android devices without consent.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had previously indicated that his party would demand answers from the tech company’s executives for allegedly tracking the web activity of millions of people in Spain and across Europe without authorization. Meta responded in a statement to EFE, saying it is willing to “cooperate constructively with authorities on this matter.”

In addition to Zuckerberg, the PSOE has also requested the appearance of Javier Oliván, Meta’s Chief Operating Officer, and José Luis Zimmermann, Director of Public Affairs for Spain and Portugal. The socialists expect them to appear before the Congress’ Committee on Economy, Trade, and Digital Transformation, alongside independent experts.

The investigation is based on findings from European academic institutions such as IMDEA Networks (Spain), the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium), and Radboud University (Netherlands). These studies revealed that Meta implemented a hidden mechanism to track users’ browsing activities through its apps—even in incognito mode or when using virtual private networks (VPNs).

“In Spain, the law is above any algorithm or tech giant, and those who violate our rights will face consequences,” warned Prime Minister Sánchez.

According to the technical report, the system reportedly operated for nearly a year and allowed web activity to be directly linked to users’ personal profiles on Facebook and Instagram. The PSOE described these practices as “silent espionage without any explicit consent.”

If confirmed, Meta would have violated key European Union regulations, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the ePrivacy Directive, the Digital Services Act (DSA), and the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The tech giant is already facing class-action lawsuits in Germany, the United States, and Canada for similar cases.

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International

New York Times sues Pentagon over new press restrictions, citing First Amendment violations

The New York Times announced on Thursday that it has filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon over new restrictions imposed on the press when reporting on the U.S. military.

The newspaper stated on its website that the Pentagon’s policy is “exactly the type of restrictive scheme on freedom of speech and the press” that the Supreme Court and the D.C. Circuit Court have recognized as violating the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The First Amendment protects fundamental rights such as freedom of the press and expression.

On October 16, the deadline to accept the new rules, major U.S. media outlets—including journalists with more than thirty years of experience as Pentagon correspondents—returned their credentials in protest.

The lawsuit, filed by the NYT in the U.S. District Court in Washington, argues that the purpose of the policy is “to shut the doors of the Pentagon—areas that have historically been open to the press—to news organizations, like the plaintiffs, that investigate and report without fear or favoritism on the department’s actions and leadership.”

The newspaper is requesting that the court issue an injunction preventing the Pentagon from enforcing the press policy, along with a declaration that the provisions restricting First Amendment rights are unlawful.

The NYT noted that Pentagon officials have said that access to military facilities is a privilege subject to regulation, and that the new guidelines aim “to prevent leaks that could harm operational security and national safety.”

This past Tuesday, during the first press briefing held by the Pentagon since restricting access for most accredited national and international media following near-universal rejection of the new rules, influencers, bloggers, and reporters from so-called “new media” occupied the press room.

Several of the newly accredited journalists, such as Lance Johnston of the right-wing organization Fearless Media, boasted on social media that the desks “now belonged” to them—desks that had been used for decades by representatives of outlets like The Washington Post, The New York Times, and CNN.

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