International

On the road with a migrant caravan leaving Honduras

AFP

Hundreds of men, women and children gathered early Saturday morning in the parking lot of San Pedro Sula’s main transit hub, on the edge of the northern Honduran city.

Before the sun rose, many had already departed on foot, carrying the few belongings they had in backpacks or bags towards Corinto, a small Honduran border town on the other side of the mountains.

While their final destination is the United States, their main goal is “a better future for their family,” said a Nicaraguan who provided only his first name, Ovaldo.

Originally from the Nicaraguan capital Managua, he lamented that the situation in his country “is quite difficult,” and his family faced “a very hard road.”

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He was accompanied by about 500 other migrants from a variety of countries including Honduras, Haiti, Venezuela and Nicaragua.

Some had even crossed the ocean from Africa.

They will join a nearly endless flow of people attempting to cross into Guatemala, then Mexico and ultimately the United States — which most will not manage to do.

At the Corinto border crossing, the group had arrived all together but broke into smaller groups to go through Guatemalan immigration.

Those who were missing identification or proof of a negative Covid-19 test were sent back into Honduras, according to an AFP photographer on the scene.

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Migrants who do make it past will still have more than 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) until the US border.

Guatemalan authorities said about 150 people entered the country at unauthorized crossings because they lacked the papers to get in.

A group of about 100 migrants who got past immigration controls were stopped in the jurisdiction of Izabal, near the border, where they threw stones and blunt objects at security forces.

The clashes injured a dozen officers who were trying to get the migrants to turn back, officials said.

The last caravan to leave San Pedro Sula was in January 2021, and contained about 7,000 people.

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It was broken up in Guatemala, when hundreds of soldiers attacked the migrants with sticks and tear gas, forcing them to return to Honduras.

Migrants in Saturday’s caravan said they were risking the dangerous journey for multiple reasons: to escape violence from drug traffickers and gangs, but also to start anew after natural disasters such as floods and droughts upended their lives.

International

Dominican court postpones hearing in deadly nightclub collapse case

10 reported dead after explosion in Dominican Republic

A Dominican court on Monday postponed until March a preliminary hearing against the owners of a nightclub that collapsed last year, killing more than 200 people.

The roof of the Jet Set nightclub collapsed in the early hours of April 8, 2025, during a concert by popular merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who died along with 235 other people.

Jet Set owner and manager Antonio Espaillat and his sister Maribel, who served as the club’s administrator, were arrested on charges of involuntary manslaughter but were later released on bail after posting approximately $842,500.

Both appeared at the Palace of Justice, where they were met by a small protest from relatives and friends of the victims.

“Thirty years in prison is not enough” and “President, we want JUSTICE,” read signs held by demonstrators.

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The preliminary hearing determines whether there is sufficient evidence to send the case to trial. The court decided to reschedule the hearing for March 16.

“We don’t want money and we’re not demanding anything else, only justice for those who died,” said Secundino Pérez, a 75-year-old shopkeeper who lost 12 friends in the Jet Set tragedy.

“Antonio and his family celebrated Christmas sitting at a table, celebrating their freedom,” said Edgar Gómez, who lost his daughter in the collapse.

The Dominican Republic’s Public Prosecutor’s Office maintains that the defendants “significantly altered” the structure of the nightclub. Prosecutors filed formal charges in November and requested that the case proceed to trial.

The charge of involuntary manslaughter carries a sentence of three months to two years in prison.

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“May your conscience never let you sleep. I lost my son,” a woman shouted through tears before the hearing, while others chanted, “Murderers, murderers, murderers.”

International

Venezuelan opposition leader dedicates Nobel Prize to Trump

U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that he was “eager” to welcome the opposition leader, who left Venezuela clandestinely with U.S. assistance, to receive her Nobel Prize in Oslo.

Machado dedicated her Nobel Prize to Trump, who nevertheless showed a very cautious attitude toward including her in any potential political transition in Venezuela.

The opposition leader said on Monday, after an audience with Pope Leo XIV, that “the defeat of evil is closer” in Venezuela following the U.S. military operation that overthrew and removed President Nicolás Maduro and his wife from the country.

Trump has claimed that he is now in control of the South American nation, stating that the primary objective at this stage is to stabilize the country before considering elections.

Venezuelan oil is Washington’s main objective, Trump added after Maduro’s overthrow.

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International

Police hunt gunmen after fatal shooting in Corsica

A man was shot dead on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica, local media reported. The victim was identified as Alain Orsoni, former president of local football club AC Ajaccio, according to sources close to the investigation cited by French news channel BFMTV.

Orsoni, 71, was killed in the town of Vero, near Ajaccio, the island’s capital, while attending his mother’s funeral.

He was also a former member of the National Liberation Front of Corsica (FLNC), a nationalist organization that has long sought independence for the island, reports said.

BFMTV reported that the gunmen fled the scene and remain at large. Local police have opened an investigation into the shooting.