International

Honduras elections: the top three candidates

AFP

Thirteen candidates will contest Honduras’s razor-tight presidential election on Sunday to see who will succeed scandal-tainted Juan Orlando Hernandez.

Here are short profiles of the top three challengers.

– Left –

Xiomara Castro was never meant to run for president, but she is the front runner to become her country’s first female leader.

As the wife of Manuel Zelaya, she was first lady in 2009 when her husband was deposed in a coup supported by the military, business elites and the political right.

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She made her name leading mass street protests against the coup and there began her own rise to presidential hopeful.

Tough but softly spoken, her popularity stems from her defense of the poor.

But in a deeply conservative and macho country, she faces the twin difficulties of opponents branding her a communist and a puppet for her husband.

“The shadow of Zelaya weighs heavily on her, and in Honduran society it can be assumed that Zelaya is the power behind the throne,” sociologist Eugenio Castro told AFP.

The ruling party has also tried to discredit her proposals to legalize abortion and same-sex marriage — touchy issues in much of Central America.

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Often seen wearing denim jeans, and always with a white cowboy hat, the 62-year-old insists she stands for a “Honduran-style democratic socialism” and has tried to distance herself from the leftist models in Cuba and Venezuela that scare many voters.

Already an unsuccessful candidate in 2013, when she narrowly lost to Hernandez, Castro has some heavyweight backing this time — not least in Salvador Nasralla, a television host who lost out to Hernandez in 2017 amidst accusations of fraud.

Castro was born into a middle-class Catholic family and married Zelaya aged just 16. The couple have four children.

Zelaya says the children have a mix of Spanish, Basque, indigenous, Arab and Senegalese blood.

– Right –

Tall, slim and always seen in jeans, a long-sleeved blue shirt and farming boots, Nasry Asfura likes to present himself as a rural worker allergic to offices.

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The 63-year-old of Palestinian descent, the current mayor of Tegucigalpa, is the candidate for the ruling right-wing National Party (PN).

With that comes the benefit of the political machinery that has kept the PN in power for a dozen years, but also the stigma of being linked to drug trafficking and corruption.

“I have never spent a single day sat in my office in the town hall, every day I go out into the streets to serve and see where there are problems,” he said, vowing to generate jobs if elected.

He is credited with improving the traffic congestion in Tegucigalpa by building many bridges, tunnels and roundabouts in the capital during his two four-year terms as mayor.

The father of three is a graduate in civil engineering and created a construction company that became one of the biggest in the country.

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Although styled as the law-and-order candidate, Asfura has not escaped the accusations of corruption blighting many Honduran politicians.

“He has been accused not just in Honduras, (but also) the Pandora Papers and in Costa Rica. That’s not a good sign,” said Eugenio Sosa, a professor of sociology at the National University.

Asfura was accused in October 2020 by the public prosecutor of embezzling $700,000, while he was linked in the Pandora Papers to influence peddling in Costa Rica.

And while he has not been linked himself to drug trafficking, “he’s been compromised by protecting Hernandez,” said Sosa.

– Center –

The centrist candidate, Yani Rosenthal, is a convicted drug trafficker.

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He spent three years in a US jail after admitting laundering drug trafficking money. He was released in August 2020, just in time to run for president.

He is the son of the late Jaime Rosenthal, one of the richest people in Honduras — and prison time was tough on someone used to a silver spoon.

“I learned to wash myself from the waist up in the sink and from the waist down in the toilet,” said the 56-year-old.

Despite his criminal record, in March he won the primaries to be the center-right Liberal Party’s candidate.

The law graduate has his work cut out as his beaten rival, Luis Zelaya, refused to support him and is instead backing Castro.

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He has presented himself as the centrist candidate against “left-wing extremism” and PN corruption.

“We don’t want a radical leftist path, nor a corrupt right-wing one, we want a liberal path down the center,” he said.

He claims to be the only candidate able to present “viable” economic solutions and has vowed to give every adult a $60 monthly voucher.

A father of four, he was minister of the presidency for two years under Zelaya and says he has a track record of creating jobs.

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International

UK braces for potential CO₂ shortage amid Middle East tensions

The government of United Kingdom is preparing contingency measures amid fears of a potential shortage of carbon dioxide (CO₂), which could impact the agri-food industry if the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, The Times reported on Thursday.

According to the newspaper, officials assessed this scenario during a recent crisis meeting aimed at evaluating the consequences of a prolonged conflict, triggered on February 28 by joint attacks from United States and Israel against Iran.

Under this scenario, CO₂ supplies—primarily a byproduct of fertilizer production using natural gas—could fall by up to 18%, affecting multiple sectors including agriculture and food production.

The gas is widely used in the slaughter of pigs and poultry, as well as in extending the shelf life of packaged foods. Breweries could also face disruptions due to reduced availability.

“I don’t want to comment on a leak, but now that the information is out there, I hope people feel reassured knowing we are working on it,” said Peter Kyle, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, in remarks to Sky News.

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While a drop in CO₂ supply is not expected to cause major shortages in supermarkets, it could limit product variety, The Times noted, citing access to internal government documents.

To mitigate the impact, authorities are considering prioritizing CO₂ supply for critical sectors such as healthcare and civil nuclear energy, where it is used in cooling systems for blood reserves, organs, vaccines, and electricity generation. The government may also request domestic producers to increase output.

Central America

El Salvador and Paraguay approve 2026–2028 cooperation program

The governments of El Salvador and Paraguay approved the 2026–2028 Cooperation Program, which includes six joint development projects, according to Salvadoran Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Adriana Mira.

Mira stated that El Salvador will act as the “main provider of cooperation,” contributing five initiatives focused on road infrastructure, tourism, and local development. She also noted that one of the projects will be led by the Paraguayan side, although no further details were disclosed.

The agreement was reached during the Second Meeting of the Joint Commission on Technical and Scientific Cooperation between both countries.

According to Paraguay’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the First Meeting of the Political Consultation and Bilateral Coordination Mechanism was also held, with the participation of Vice Minister Víctor Verdún.

In an official statement, the Paraguayan government reported that both delegations agreed to identify mechanisms to promote competitiveness, economic growth, and market access. They also committed to signing agreements related to air transport cooperation.

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International

Macron meets Machado, stresses need for democratic transition in Venezuela

Emmanuel Macron met on Monday at the Élysée Palace with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, where they discussed the importance of advancing a democratic transition in Venezuela.

In a message shared on social media, Macron highlighted Machado’s commitment to freedom and stressed the need to achieve a transition that is peaceful and respects the will of the Venezuelan people.

“I received María Corina Machado, Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Together, we discussed her commitment to freedom and the importance of achieving a democratic, peaceful transition in Venezuela that respects the will of its people,” he wrote.

For her part, Machado expressed her “deep gratitude” to Macron and to France for their support of democracy and freedom in Venezuela.

“We have gone through a long and painful journey, and we are now very close to freedom. Venezuela will become a nation of free and equal men and women—prosperous, safe, and united,” she said.