International
Wildfires ravage vast area of eastern Bolivia: NGO
AFP
Devastating wildfires in Bolivia consumed 749,000 hectares from January to July, the Friends of Nature Foundation (FAN) NGO said on Thursday night.
FAN said it had used images from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite to study the damage.
As in neighboring Brazil, the fires have been aggravated by widespread deforestation aimed at expanding farming or pastureland.
The eastern Santa Cruz and northeastern Beni departments account for 94 percent of burnt areas, FAN said.
Up to the end of July, 137,000 hectares (3400,000 acres) had been burnt in Santa Cruz but the local governor said Thursday that figure had since passed 200,000.
Beni had registered 564,000 hectares of damage in the seven-month period.
Santa Cruz, which lies close to the border with Brazil, declared a “red alert” on Thursday.
“The red alert was declared because of the progressive increase in heat sources and because of the climactic conditions we’re facing,” said Yovenka Rosado, the coordinator for forest fires in Santa Cruz.
According to the FAN report, the vast majority of the burnt area was pastureland, shrubs and grasslands.
Just three percent was woodland while eight percent was land used for farming.
FAN estimates that more than 2.3 million hectares of forests and prairies were destroyed by fire in 2020 and 6.4 million hectares the year before.
International
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Judge Juan Merchan acquitted U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the case involving former porn actress Stormy Daniels.
“At this moment, I am issuing this verdict to cover all 34 charges,” Merchan stated. The judge also wished Trump good luck in his second term as president.
Trump will now become the first criminal president.
Merchan declined to impose any punishment. This decision strengthens Trump’s acquittal and clears the way for his return to the White House without the threat of prison or a fine.
“Never before has this court faced such a unique and remarkable set of circumstances,” Judge Merchan said.
International
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
Canada imposed sanctions on 14 high-ranking officials of the Venezuelan “regime” this Friday, including prominent members of the Military Counterintelligence Directorate (DGCIM), for their involvement in human rights violations in Venezuela.
Among those sanctioned are DGCIM prosecutors Dinorah Yoselin Bustamante Puerta and Farik Karin Salcedo Mora; the director of criminal investigations at the agency, Asdrubal José Brito Hernandez, as well as its former deputy director, Rafael Ramón Blanco Marrero.
The sanctions also target several members of the Bolivarian National Guard: its general commander, Elio Ramón Estrada Paredes; the commander of the capital region, Johan Alexander Hernández Lárez, and lieutenant colonel, Alexander Enrique Granko Arteaga.
Other individuals sanctioned include the director of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN), Alexis José Rodríguez Cabello, and his deputy director, Miguel Antonio Muñoz Palacios; Brigadier General of the Bolivarian National Police, Rubén Darío Santiago Servigna, and Domingo Antonio Hernández Lárez, commander of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces.
International
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said on Friday that she asked Edmundo González Urrutia, former candidate of the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), not to return to Venezuela to avoid putting himself at risk.
In a video message, Machado explained that the opposition evaluated the situation and concluded that González Urrutia would be in danger if he tried to enter Venezuela as he had planned.
González Urrutia, who claims to have won the July 28 elections with the support of more than 85% of the official voting records, had announced that he would return to Venezuela on January 10 to assume the presidency.
Earlier, Nicolás Maduro, who was declared the winner of those elections, took the oath of office for a third term.
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Ecuador prison riot leaves at least 43 dead
-
International5 days agoMachado calls Venezuelans to the streets one day before the presidential investiture
-
International4 days agoThe US ambassador says goodbye to Mexico without regretting “anything” despite bilateral tension
-
International3 days agoTrump considers declaring National Economic Emergency to justify universal tariffs
-
International4 days agoArgentine Jorge Fernández Díaz wins the 81st Nadal Award with ‘El secreto de Marcial’
-
International4 days agoA military judge sends the Supreme court trial against colonels accused of coup in Brazil
-
International3 days agoThirteen cuban military members missing after explosion at arms warehouse
-
International3 days agoIsraeli forces recover hostage remains amid ceasefire talks with Hamas
-
International5 days agoSheinbaum defends Mexico’s presence in Maduro’s investiture
-
International5 days agoBathing with elephants, the popular Thai tourist activity criticized by animal rights activists
-
International5 days agoJustin Trudeau announces his resignation from the leadership of his party and as Prime Minister of Canada
-
International3 days agoAt least 13 civilians killed in russian missile attack on Zaporizhzhia
-
International5 days agoBoluarte promises to reduce citizen insecurity in Peru this year
-
International3 days agoAmerican citizen killed by mexican police officer in Ciudad Juárez shooting
-
International3 days agoVenezuelan opposition candidate Enrique Márquez detained ahead of Maduro’s inauguration
-
International2 days agoMaría Corina Machado kidnapped and forced to record videos before being released, says opposition
-
International2 days agoMaria Corina Machado calls for nationwide protests ahead of presidential inauguration
-
International4 days ago
Donald Trump insists that Canada should be part of the US after Justin Trudeau’s resignation
-
International4 days agoThe Pentagon reaches an agreement with LGTBIQ veterans discharged for their sexual orientation
-
International2 days agoGovernor Jenniffer González expresses solidarity with Venezuela’s struggling opposition
-
International21 hours agoOAS chief calls for strengthening democracy in the region amid Venezuela’s crisis
-
International5 days agoNew Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip leave at least 48 dead in the last few hours
-
International2 days agoHundreds of venezuelan protesters demand ‘democratic change’ in Rome
-
International4 days agoCuba records just under 13,000 earthquakes in 2024, a record year of earthquakes
-
International5 days agoThe trial against Sarkozy opens for financing his campaign with Gaddafi money
-
International5 days agoEmmanuel Macron accuses Elon Musk of supporting “a reactionary international” in a world in “disorder”
-
International5 days agoThree Israelis killed in a Palestinian attack in the northern West Bank
-
International21 hours agoMaría Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
-
International5 days agoRussia announces the capture of the Ukrainian bastion of Kurákhove in the Donestsk region
-
International5 days agoThe federal president of Austria commissions the far-right Herbert Kickl to form a government
-
International5 days agoNorth Korea launches an intermediate-range missile, its first test in two months
-
International21 hours agoCanada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
-
International20 hours agoJudge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case