International

18 Ecuadoran police ‘missing’ after attack on station

AFP

Eighteen police officers are “missing” following an attack by Indigenous protesters on a police station in Ecuador’s eastern Amazon region, the interior minister said on Wednesday.

Another six officers were “seriously injured” and three more detained by the protesters, said Interior Minister Patricio Carrillo.

A protester also died in the attack in the Amazonian city of Puyo, a five-hour drive south of Quito, the government said on Tuesday night, bringing the death toll in 10 days of Indigenous-led anti-government protests to two.

“The mob began setting fires with police still inside patrol cars, began looting, burning public-private facilities such as the Guayaquil Bank, Red Cross, until they ended up torching the police facilities in the center of the city,” said Carrillo.

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On Wednesday, the government refused a key demand by Indigenous protesters to lift the state of emergency in six of Ecuador’s 24 provinces.

Some 10,000 Indigenous people have mobilized in the capital over the last 10 days to demand a reduction in fuel prices.

But there have been violent clashes between protesters and security forces, leaving 90 civilians and 100 police officers injured, with authorities arresting more than 80 people.

On Monday one protester died after falling into a ravine outside of Quito.

Police described the incident as an accident, but the public prosecutor’s office has opened a murder investigation.

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The protester who died on Tuesday in the attack on the police station was killed “handling an explosive device,” police said.

A lawyer for the Alliance of Human Rights Organizations told AFP he was “hit in the face, apparently with a tear gas bomb.”

Quito was relatively calm on Wednesday morning.

International

Maradona’s daughter accuses medical team of “horrible manipulation” in court

One of the daughters of Diego Maradona testified in court this Tuesday, breaking down in tears as she denounced what she described as “absolute and horrible manipulation” by her father’s medical team, during an emotional hearing in Argentina.

Gianinna Maradona stated that she and her siblings agreed to home hospitalization after doctors presented it as the best option following the neurosurgery Maradona underwent on November 3, 2020.

The football icon died on November 25 of that year, and the ongoing trial seeks to determine whether the conditions of his home care were appropriate.

According to Gianinna, what the family found at the residence where Maradona was recovering did not match what had been promised. She testified that there was no adequate medical equipment, constant monitoring, or even an ambulance available, despite assurances of continuous care.

“The manipulation was absolute and horrible,” she said during the hearing in San Isidro, near Buenos Aires.

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She accused members of the medical team, including neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, and psychologist Carlos Díaz, of misleading the family.

“I trusted these people, and all they did was manipulate us and leave my son without a grandfather,” she added.

Later in her testimony, recalling that six years have passed since her father’s death, she became emotional and said she struggled deeply with grief in the aftermath.

International

Trump extends Iran ceasefire after Pakistan mediation request

The president of the United States, Donald Trump, announced on Tuesday that he will extend the ceasefire with Iran, which was set to expire on Wednesday, following a request from Pakistan.

In a statement shared on Truth Social, Trump said the truce will remain in place until Iran presents a proposal and negotiations are concluded, regardless of the outcome.

“I will extend the ceasefire until their proposal is presented and negotiations are completed, whatever the result,” the U.S. leader stated.

Trump justified the decision by claiming that Iran’s government is “deeply divided” and noting that Pakistani authorities, acting as mediators, requested a pause in military action until Iranian leaders and representatives submit a unified proposal.

International

Venezuelan opposition demands election date and minimum wage increase

A group of opposition members from the Zulia Humana and former political prisoners on Tuesday demanded that authorities set a date for elections in Venezuela and increase the minimum wage, which has been frozen since 2022 and is currently worth just a few cents per month according to the Banco Central de Venezuela.

During a press conference in Maracaibo, Professor Eduardo Labrador stressed the urgency of establishing an electoral timeline. “We demand that a date be set for elections so Venezuelans can have free and transparent voting. It is essential to have that date now,” he said.

Economist Rodrigo Cabezas, who served under the late President Hugo Chávez, also called for an increase in the minimum wage, arguing that it is feasible through economic policy measures, although he did not specify an amount due to limited public data.

Cabezas warned that Venezuela experienced “galloping inflation” between March of last year and March 2026, a stage that precedes hyperinflation—a phenomenon the country has already faced. However, he clarified that Venezuela is not currently in hyperinflation, expressing hope that it will not return.