International
Two Mapuche die in clashes with Chilean security forces
AFP
Two members of Chile’s indigenous Mapuche community died and three others were injured on Wednesday in clashes with security forces, the government said.
The fighting happened in Arauco province in the south, an area that has been under a state of emergency since last month amid escalating violence.
The incident occurred a day after President Sebastian Pinera said he had asked Congress to extend the state of emergency and the deployment of military forces in four provinces in the Biobio and La Araucania regions, including Arauco.
“I can confirm two deaths so far and I can confirm three injured who have arrived at different hospitals,” Interior Minister Rodrigo Delgado said in the capital Santiago.
The minister said the deaths occurred during two attacks by hooded men near the town of Canete, 640 kilometers (400 miles) south of Santiago.
The deceased, two Mapuche community members aged 23 and 44, died of gunshot wounds, health officials said. The prosecutor’s office reported the arrest of three people.
The state of emergency was adopted by Pinera on October 12, a date which commemorates the arrival of Spanish colonizers in the Americas and which has become riven by controversy.
The president then extended by 15 days the militarization of these regions, which have experienced an historical conflict between the Mapuche people — Chile’s largest indigenous community — and the state.
The indigenous people are demanding the state return lands that they consider theirs by ancestral right and which have been handed over to private companies, mainly forestry companies and landowners.
The lack of a solution to Mapuche demands has prompted radical groups to carry out attacks on trucks and private property over the last decade.
One person was killed and 17 injured last month when clashes broke out in Santiago between security forces and protesters marching for Mapuche autonomy.
The confrontations have also brought to light the presence of drug trafficking and self-defense groups, as well as police operations denounced as set-ups by indigenous people.
International
Iran issues threat to Trump as conflict escalates over Strait of Hormuz
The head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, threatened U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday, warning him to “beware of being eliminated.”
The Republican president had warned on Monday that he would strike Iran “very hard” if the Islamic Republic blocked oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively been closed since the war began eleven days ago.
“Iran is not afraid of your empty threats. Others more powerful than you tried to destroy the Iranian nation and failed. Beware that you are not eliminated,” Larijani wrote on X.
Earlier, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards — the ideological military force of the Islamic Republic — also said their forces would move to block oil exports from the Gulf.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s military offensive against Iran is far from over.
“Our aspiration is that the Iranian people free themselves from the yoke of tyranny; ultimately, that depends on them. But there is no doubt that with the measures taken so far we are breaking their bones, and we are not finished yet,” Netanyahu said in a statement.
International
Driver detained after suspicious vehicle incident near the White House
The driver was detained and no injuries were reported after an incident that occurred before dawn in Lafayette Square, just north of the White House.
The U.S. Secret Service, which is responsible for presidential security, said in a statement that it was “investigating a suspicious vehicle.” The driver of the car was taken into custody and is currently being questioned.
Washington remains under heightened security measures amid the ongoing conflict involving the United States and Israel against Iran.
Police closed several major streets around the White House. However, by about 8:30 a.m. local time (12:30 GMT), government employees and staff from nearby institutions were allowed to pass through the area with proper identification, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
Dozens of emergency vehicles with flashing lights responded to the location, while tourists and residents waited for authorities to reopen the streets.
International
Trump Raises Possibility of “Friendly Takeover” of Cuba Amid Deepening Crisis
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, reiterated Monday the possibility that Washington could pursue a “friendly takeover” of Cuba, amid the severe crisis facing the island following the oil blockade promoted by the U.S. government.
Speaking at a press conference in Miami, the president said that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is currently “negotiating” with representatives of the Cuban government, although authorities in Havana have repeatedly denied that such talks are taking place.
Trump suggested that Washington could play a more direct role in the island’s future.
“It may be a friendly takeover. It may not be a friendly takeover. It wouldn’t matter because they’re really down to, as they say, fumes. They have no energy, they have no money. They are in deep trouble on a humanitarian basis, and we really don’t want to see that,” the U.S. president said.
The president also argued that the Cuban government had long depended heavily on support from Venezuela, particularly oil supplies.
According to Trump, that support has been drastically reduced following measures adopted by Washington.
“They were living off Venezuela. Venezuela doesn’t send them energy, fuel, oil, money, or anything anymore. They couldn’t survive without Venezuela, they couldn’t have made it, and we cut everything off,” Trump said.
UN experts warn Nicaragua runs vast transnational network to monitor exiled dissidents
Iran issues threat to Trump as conflict escalates over Strait of Hormuz
Driver detained after suspicious vehicle incident near the White House
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
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International5 days agoTrump announces 17-nation alliance in the Americas to “destroy” drug cartels
-
International4 days ago
Mexico, Brazil and Colombia left out of Trump’s “Shield of the Americas” summit
-
International2 days agoTrump Raises Possibility of “Friendly Takeover” of Cuba Amid Deepening Crisis
-
Central America2 days agoGuatemala Remains in “Restricted” Press Freedom Category, Chapultepec Index Warns
-
International17 hours agoIran issues threat to Trump as conflict escalates over Strait of Hormuz
-
International17 hours agoDriver detained after suspicious vehicle incident near the White House
-
Central America2 days agoUN Report Warns of Nicaragua’s “Transnational” Surveillance Network Targeting Dissidents
-
Sin categoría17 hours agoUN experts warn Nicaragua runs vast transnational network to monitor exiled dissidents
-
Central America2 days agoUN Rapporteur Warns of “Deep Crisis” in Guatemala’s Judicial System