International
Colombian police interrupt drug kingpin hearing, cite escape plans

AFP
Colombian police halted a hearing Thursday for a notorious drug trafficker who was arrested late last year, saying they had found plans for a possible escape.
According to an official statement, the police ordered the “temporary suspension” of the hearing of Dairo Antonio Usuga, also known as “Otoniel,” before the Truth Commission, an extrajudicial body investigating a decades-long conflict between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) that ended with a 2016 peace agreement.
The statement said police were forced to take this unusual step because, “irresponsibly, the exact description of the place of detention of this individual was made public.”
In addition, “human sources and information gathered by the intelligence services… warned of plans by the Clan del Golfo to try to organize his escape,” the statement said, referring to the drug trafficking group Otoniel led before his capture.
However, some believe that the move was to prevent Otoniel from exposing government corruption in his testimony.
Gustavo Petro, a leftist senator and leading contender for the next presidential election, called the police move a “seditious act against the truth.
“The government does not want Otoniel to speak,” he said on Twitter.
Otoniel, 50, was arrested in October in northwest Colombia’s dense jungle during an operation involving some 700 uniformed agents backed by 18 helicopters.
He is currently being held in an ultra-high security facility in Bogota, awaiting extradition to the United States.
The FARC guerrillas laid down their arms after signing a historic peace pact in 2016, bringing an end to more than half-a-century of armed conflict.
But Colombia has been gripped by violence, particularly in recent months, as fighting continues over territory and resources between dissident FARC guerrillas, the ELN rebel group, paramilitary forces and drug cartels.
Colombia remains the world’s leading cocaine producer, with the United States its biggest buyer.
International
Paraguay summons Brazilian ambassador over Itaipú espionage scandal

Paraguay summoned the Brazilian ambassador in Asunción on Tuesday to demand “explanations” and called its own representative in Brasília for consultations following Brazil’s acknowledgment of an espionage operation. The Brazilian government, led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, attributed the operation to the previous administration.
The surveillance effort aimed to uncover Paraguay’s position in now-suspended negotiations with Brazil regarding the pricing of electricity from the binational Itaipú hydroelectric plant, according to reports in the Brazilian press.
The Brazilian government “categorically denied any involvement in the intelligence operation,” stating in a Foreign Ministry communiqué on Monday that the espionage was carried out under former President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2023).
“The operation was authorized by the previous government in June 2022 and was annulled by the interim director of the (state intelligence agency) ABIN on March 27, 2023, as soon as the current administration became aware of it,” Brazil’s government asserted.
Paraguay’s Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Brazilian Ambassador José Antonio Marcondes de Carvalho was summoned “to provide detailed explanations” regarding the operation. Additionally, Paraguay recalled its diplomatic representative in Brasília “to report on aspects related to the intelligence activity conducted by Brazil regarding Paraguay’s government affairs.”
International
Elon Musk to step down as government advisor, per Trump insiders

President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping down from his role as a government advisor, according to a report by Politico today.
Citing three individuals close to Trump, Politico states that the president is pleased with Musk’s leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he has implemented significant budget cuts. However, both have agreed that it is time for Musk to return to his businesses and support Trump from a different position outside the government.
A senior administration official told Politico that Musk will likely maintain an informal advisory role and continue to be an occasional visitor to the White House. Another source warned that anyone thinking Musk will completely disappear from Trump’s circle is “deluding themselves.”
According to the sources, this transition is expected to coincide with the end of Musk’s tenure as a “special government employee,” a temporary status that exempts him from certain ethics and conflict-of-interest regulations. This 130-day period is set to expire in late May or early June.
International
Milei vows to make Argentina so strong that Falkland Islanders “choose” to join

Argentine President Javier Milei reaffirmed his country’s claim over the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina) and praised the role of the nation’s armed forces during a ceremony marking the “Veterans and Fallen Soldiers of the Malvinas War Day,” commemorating 43 years since the 1982 conflict with the United Kingdom.
Argentina continues to assert sovereignty over the islands, arguing that Britain unlawfully seized them in 1833.
“If sovereignty over the Malvinas is the issue, we have always made it clear that the most important vote is the one cast with one’s feet. We hope that one day, the Malvinas residents will choose to vote with their feet and join us,” Milei stated.
“That is why we aim to become a global power—so much so that they would prefer to be Argentine, making deterrence or persuasion unnecessary. This is why we have embarked on a path of liberation, working to make Argentina the freest country in the world and once again the nation with the highest GDP per capita on the planet,” he added.
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