Central America
Guatemala’s leader to skip Americas Summit after US sanctions
AFP
Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei said Tuesday he will skip next month’s Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles, after Washington sanctioned his top prosecutor over allegations of corruption.
The United States officially designated Guatemalan Attorney General Consuelo Porras for “significant corruption” Monday, just hours after she was reappointed for a second four-year term.
Speaking on Tuesday during an event at the Mexican embassy in Guatemala, Giammattei said he did not expect to be invited to the summit.
“In any case, I sent word that I’m not going,” he said.
“As long as I am president this country will be respected and its sovereignty will be respected.”
Earlier in the day, Porras blasted the US move, saying she will not bow to pressure from Washington.
“The attorney general and head of the public ministry does not accept any kind of interference nor pressure and will continue working in an objective and impartial manner ensuring strict compliance with the law,” her office said on Twitter.
It added that the “public ministry is an autonomous institution that is not subordinate to any international entity.”
Last year, the US said it had “lost confidence” in Porras after she sacked Guatemala’s top anti-corruption prosecutor Francisco Sandoval.
Sandoval, who fled to the United States after being fired, claimed he had encountered numerous obstacles in his work and had been prevented from investigating Giammattei without Porras’s permission.
Critics say Sandoval’s replacement is a defender of corruption and persecutor of the opposition.
Porras has had at least six anti-corruption prosecutors arrested on charges ranging from obstruction of justice to abuse of authority.
The prosecutors were fired amid ongoing investigations of politicians charged with graft, and claimed their treatment was revenge from those in power.
Giammattei said on Monday that Porras’s reappointment was supported unanimously by the commission tasked with vetting candidates for the position of attorney general.
The European Union said in a statement that the reappointment of Porras “raises concerns about the commitment of the Guatemalan authorities to tackle corruption and safeguard the independence of the judiciary.”
The EU said the Public Ministry’s legal action against judges, lawyers and prosecutors involved in investigating corruption “forms part of a wider pattern of intimidation and harassment that has led over 20 justice operators to leave the country.”
Participation in the Summit of Americans has already caused some controversy.
Rumors have been swirling that Washington will not invite Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua to the conference, with the presidents of Mexico and Bolivia announcing they would only attend as long as there are no exclusions.
Central America
El Niño could intensify global climate risks, warns World Meteorological Organization
Latin American countries, one of the regions in the world most affected by El Niño, must “take extreme precautions” and make use of so-called “climate intelligence” to mitigate the most severe impacts of the phenomenon, the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Celeste Saulo, told EFE on Tuesday.
With a 90% probability, El Niño is expected to return in the second half of this year, and a strong intensity cannot be ruled out.
As a result, the phenomenon could trigger intense rainfall and flooding in some areas, while causing droughts in others, leading to direct impacts on communities and a wide range of economic sectors, including fishing and agriculture.
Saulo said countries in the region have improved their scientific and institutional capacity to monitor and respond to El Niño, as well as to understand how it interacts with other climate variables, including those linked to climate change, in order to better forecast “more or less severe impacts.”
When describing likely consequences in South and Central America, the Argentine scientist first referred to the “Coastal El Niño,” as the phenomenon is known in Peru and Ecuador.
She explained that this event brings increased rainfall and ocean warming, which strongly affects the fishing industry.
She added that northern South America, Central America, and northeastern Brazil are typically exposed to below-normal rainfall or drought conditions. In past extreme episodes, El Niño has even affected the operational capacity of the Panama Canal and created serious water access and management challenges during severe droughts.
In contrast, southeastern South America—including southern Brazil, Paraguay, northern and northeastern Argentina, and Uruguay—can expect above-average rainfall, increasing the risk of flooding, severe storms, and landslides.
Given the potential for fear and misinformation among populations, Saulo urged people to “trust the institutions responsible for meteorological information,” stressing that national meteorological services are the official and authoritative sources in each country.
“These are the ultimate responsible authorities and the voices of expertise,” she emphasized.
The most recent El Niño episode occurred between 2023 and 2024 and was among the five strongest ever recorded, contributing to record global temperatures.
The WMO chief noted that climate models remain uncertain about the intensity of the next El Niño, though more accurate forecasts are expected in the coming weeks.
While climate change has not been proven to increase the frequency or intensity of El Niño events, scientists do know that both can interact and amplify extreme weather impacts, potentially leading to natural disasters.
Although Latin America is often heavily affected, El Niño impacts can also be felt in North America, the Caribbean, central and eastern Africa, parts of Asia, and Australia.
Central America
Northern Guatemala community warns of possible famine as dry season intensifies
As drought conditions intensify and the likelihood of an upcoming El Niño weather pattern increases, fear is spreading through an Indigenous village in northern Guatemala: the fear of starvation.
“If there is no rain, the crops will not grow. Whatever little we harvest we will eat, or we will have to buy it—if we have money. But if there is nothing, we will starve,” Cecilia Pasá told AFP.
The 38-year-old Maya woman, dressed in a colorful traditional handwoven outfit, has planted a small plot of corn a few meters from her adobe home, where she also raises small farm animals.
In Cunén, a mountainous and hard-to-reach area in the department of Quiché, nearly all of its approximately 47,000 residents live in poverty. Many communities rely on wells that are increasingly insufficient to meet basic water needs.
The region lies within the so-called Dry Corridor, an arid belt that stretches across parts of Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua, and is highly vulnerable to extreme climate events.
It was one of the areas in Guatemala hardest hit by the food crisis triggered by El Niño in 2023, a situation that now threatens to repeat itself amid limited government assistance.
El Niño, which occurs every two to seven years, is part of a natural climate cycle that affects sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean and can have significant global weather impacts.
The phenomenon is expected to develop between June and August, with effects likely to be felt worldwide in the following months.
Central America
Thousands of Teachers and Doctors Launch Nationwide Strike in Honduras
Thousands of public school teachers and healthcare workers launched a nationwide strike in Honduras on Monday amid ongoing labor and salary disputes with the government.
The protest action led to the suspension of classes in public schools and disrupted medical services at government-run healthcare facilities across the Central American country.
Union representatives said the strike was called in response to unresolved demands related to working conditions, salary adjustments and other labor concerns affecting employees in the education and health sectors.
As a result of the walkout, thousands of students were unable to attend classes, while patients faced delays and interruptions in medical care at public hospitals and clinics.
The strike represents one of the largest coordinated labor actions in recent months and highlights growing tensions between public sector workers and the Honduran government over employment conditions and compensation.
Authorities have not yet announced when normal operations in schools and healthcare facilities are expected to resume, while negotiations between union leaders and government officials remain ongoing.
El Niño could intensify global climate risks, warns World Meteorological Organization
Northern Guatemala community warns of possible famine as dry season intensifies
Thousands of Teachers and Doctors Launch Nationwide Strike in Honduras
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
Central America2 days agoThousands of Teachers and Doctors Launch Nationwide Strike in Honduras
-
International3 days agoColombia Votes in Pivotal Election as Left Seeks to Retain Power
-
Internacionales5 days agoRubén Gallego says U.S. policy may push for Cuba regime change under Trump administration
-
International5 days agoICE agent arrested in Texas over shooting of Venezuelan migrant in Minnesota
-
International3 days agoOAS Election Mission to Monitor Claims of Political Interference by Colombia’s President
-
Central America2 days agoArgentina Falls to Lowest Rating in Global Workers’ Rights Index Under Milei Administration
-
Central America4 days agoHonduras Could Lose All Its Forests by 2045 if Current Deforestation Rate Continues, Study Warns
-
Central America16 hours agoNorthern Guatemala community warns of possible famine as dry season intensifies
-
Central America16 hours ago
El Niño could intensify global climate risks, warns World Meteorological Organization