Connect with us

International

On key anniversary, Biden urges support for abortion rights

AFP

President Joe Biden marked the 49th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court ruling establishing abortion rights in the United States by again urging that those rights be enshrined in federal law.

“The constitutional right established in Roe v. Wade nearly 50 years ago today is under assault as never before,” Biden said in a statement on Saturday in which he was joined by Vice President Kamala Harris.

“It is a right we believe should be codified into law, and we pledge to defend it with every tool we possess.”

The constitutional right laid out in the 1973 high court ruling has come under steady attack as laws in a number of Republican-led states have made it increasingly difficult for women to obtain abortions.

Advertisement
20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90
previous arrow
next arrow

“In recent years, we have seen efforts to restrict access to reproductive health care increase at an alarming rate,” the Biden-Harris statement said, citing recent laws in Texas, Mississippi and other states.

Abortion rights advocates fear that the current Supreme Court, including three conservative justices named by former president Donald Trump, will excoriate — or eliminate — that right.

In Washington on Friday, thousands of anti-abortion activists attended an annual rally on the National Mall with their hopes raised that the conservative-majority court will do exactly that.

“In the coming months we anticipate a monumental decision from the Supreme Court,” said Julia Letlow, a Republican congresswoman from Louisiana.

A president’s ability to affect the law is limited, but Congress has the power to pass laws providing some protection to abortion rights.

Advertisement
20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90
previous arrow
next arrow

“The Biden-Harris Administration strongly supports efforts to codify Roe, and we will continue to work with Congress” on such legislation, the White House statement said. 

It added: “We must ensure that our daughters and granddaughters have the same fundamental rights that their mothers and grandmothers fought for and won on this day, 49 years ago.”

Continue Reading
Advertisement
20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_300x250

International

Spanish Government Targets ‘Big Tech Impunity’ in AI Image Scandal

The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced Tuesday that his government will ask prosecutors to investigate X, Meta and TikTok over the alleged creation and distribution of sexually explicit images involving minors generated through artificial intelligence.

In a post on X, Sánchez said the government would formally request that the Public Prosecutor’s Office examine potential crimes that these platforms may have committed by allowing or facilitating the use of AI tools to generate such content.

“These platforms are harming the mental health, dignity and rights of our children,” Sánchez wrote, adding that “the impunity of the giants must end.”

In recent weeks, the Spanish leader has publicly clashed with tech figures such as Elon Musk and Pavel Durov after announcing on February 3 his intention to ban social media access for minors under the age of 16.

Sánchez also signaled plans to amend legislation so that platform executives could be held legally responsible for certain violations committed on their websites.

Advertisement

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

previous arrow
next arrow

According to figures released Tuesday by the government, one in five young people in Spain — particularly girls and teenage minors — say they have experienced the circulation of AI-generated fake nude images of themselves while underage.

Continue Reading

International

Father Faces Murder Charges in Georgia School Shooting Case

Colin Gray, 55, appeared in court Monday facing charges of murder and involuntary manslaughter in connection with the September 4, 2024, shooting at Apalachee High School, carried out by his son, Colt.

Two 14-year-old students and two teachers were killed, and nine others were injured in the shooting in Winder, Georgia. Colt Gray, who was 14 at the time and is now 16, has been charged as an adult and is awaiting a trial date.

During opening statements, prosecutors alleged that Gray gave his son the AR-15-style rifle used in the attack as a Christmas gift in 2023, despite prior warnings that the teenager had threatened to carry out a school shooting.

According to the FBI, local authorities interviewed Colt and his father in May 2023 after receiving anonymous reports about online threats made by the teen.

“This case is about this defendant and his actions—allowing a minor in his custody to have access to a firearm and ammunition after being warned that the minor intended to harm others,” said Brad Smith, the Barrow County prosecutor.

Advertisement

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

previous arrow
next arrow

Defense attorney Brian Hobbs told jurors that Colin Gray was unaware of his son’s intentions and had sought help for the teenager’s declining mental health.

School shootings remain a recurring issue in the United States, where firearms outnumber people and regulations governing the purchase of even high-powered, military-style rifles are relatively permissive.

Continue Reading

Central America

Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat

Guatemala’s attorney general, Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States over corruption allegations, lost a key vote on Monday in which a public university selected two of the 10 magistrates for the country’s highest constitutional court. However, she could still seek a seat through another nominating body.

The election of five full magistrates and five alternates to the Corte de Constitucionalidad (CC) is taking place gradually over more than two months and is considered crucial in the ongoing struggle for control of Guatemala’s judiciary, which critics say has long been influenced by a political and economic elite accused of corruption.

According to results announced at a press conference, the governing council of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC) rejected Porras, who had applied as either a full or alternate magistrate, and instead chose two candidates aligned with the university rector. The vote was held at a hotel in Antigua, about 35 kilometers from the capital.

Despite the setback, Porras — whose term as attorney general ends on May 16 — could still be nominated to the Constitutional Court by the Corte Suprema de Justicia, which appoints two magistrates. The remaining six are selected by the president, the bar association and Congress.

“It’s always a possibility,” the 72-year-old lawyer said days earlier when asked by reporters whether she would seek nomination through another institution if she lost the USAC vote.

Advertisement

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

previous arrow
next arrow

Porras has been sanctioned by Washington and the European Union for allegedly attempting two years ago to block the inauguration of President Bernardo Arévalo and for pursuing legal actions against anti-corruption prosecutors, judges, journalists and social leaders since taking office in 2018.

The USAC vote was controversial because most members of the university’s governing council are serving beyond the expiration of their terms. Students, academics and social activists staged protests against Porras’ candidacy.

Continue Reading

Trending

Central News