International

Four dead, 70 hurt in Bolivian university stampede

AFP

A stampede at a university in Bolivia Monday left four students dead and more than 70 injured when a tear gas grenade was detonated during an assembly, the institution and police said.

Five of the injured were in intensive care, said Roxana Choque, public prosecutor of the Potosi region in Bolivia’s southeast where the Tomas Frias university is based.

Hundreds of students had gathered in an enclosed sports arena of the university for student council elections, rector Pedro Lopez told reporters.

A heated debate ensued, and at least one student detonated a tear gas cannister, provoking the stampede, according to regional police chief Bernardo Isnado.

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The institution, Lopez added, was “in mourning.”

Two suspects have been arrested, said police official Nelson Pacheco. One is a student leader involved in convening the assembly and the other is suspected of actually setting off the tear gas grenade, he said.

Choque said many of the wounded had suffered multiple injuries, including broken bones, and the deceased had died of asphyxiation.

The public hospital of the city of some 270,000 inhabitants was overrun with wounded and relatives seeking information on missing students.

A woman, who did not give her name, sobbed as she told local media her daughter was in intensive care.

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“Are they going to give me my daughter alive?” she asked through tears.

“Please be patient. The hospital is overrun. There is no space,” an official of the institution urged dozens of family members jostling for space and news.

The government has announced an investigation into the events.

Fights between students in Bolivia are not uncommon, and tear gas had been deployed in previous confrontations.

In March last year, 12 students died at a different university when a railing collapsed during another assembly confrontation.

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International

IEA warns Middle East conflict could spark worst energy crisis in decades

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East could trigger the worst energy crisis in decades, warned Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), who described the situation as “very serious.”

Speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra, Birol compared the current scenario to the oil crises of the 1970s, noting that during those events the world lost around five million barrels of oil per day in each crisis.

“Today, we have lost 11 million barrels per day—more than the two major oil shocks combined,” he said.

The Turkish economist referred to the conflict that began on February 28, following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran, which have significantly disrupted global energy markets and driven oil prices higher.

Birol warned that the global economy is facing a “very, very serious threat” and expressed hope that the crisis will be resolved soon.

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“No country will be immune to the effects of this crisis if it continues in this direction. Global efforts are urgently needed,” he emphasized.

International

Colombian Air Force Hercules plane crashes during takeoff with troops onboard

A Lockheed C-130 Hercules operated by the Colombian Air Force was involved in a “tragic accident” while taking off from Puerto Leguízamo, in the Putumayo department of southern Colombia, as it was transporting troops, Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez reported on Monday.

The minister stated on social media that the exact number of victims and the causes of the crash have not yet been determined. He also extended his condolences to the families affected and urged the public to avoid speculation until official information is confirmed.

“This is a deeply painful event for the country. Our prayers are with the victims and their families,” Sánchez said, adding that emergency protocols have been activated and an investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, President Gustavo Petro expressed hope that there would be no fatalities in what he described as a “horrific accident that should not have happened.”

Petro also highlighted ongoing efforts to modernize the country’s air fleet and reiterated the need to acquire new helicopters and transport aircraft to strengthen military mobility, particularly in remote regions.

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According to local media reports, approximately 110 soldiers were on board the aircraft. So far, at least 20 injured military personnel have been rescued.

International

Paris prosecutors alert U.S. over alleged deepfake strategy linked to Elon Musk

The Paris Prosecutor’s Office said on Saturday that it had alerted authorities in the United States over suspicions that tech entrepreneur Elon Musk may have encouraged the spread of sexualized deepfake content on the social platform X to artificially boost the company’s valuation.

According to prosecutors, the controversy surrounding explicit AI-generated videos—reportedly linked to Grok, the platform’s artificial intelligence system—may have been deliberately triggered to increase the market value of X and X AI.

The office added that the alleged strategy could be tied to the planned June 2026 public listing of a new entity formed through the merger of SpaceX and X AI.

French authorities said they contacted the U.S. Department of Justice as well as legal representatives at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this week to share their concerns.

Responding on X in French to a report about the case, Musk referred to French prosecutors using an offensive term.

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When contacted, X’s legal representative in France did not immediately comment.

Grok, the platform’s AI system, has its own account on X, allowing users to interact with it or request content generation. For a period, users were able to tag the bot in posts to generate or edit images, a feature that may have facilitated the spread of such material.