International

Argentina charges two more for Kirchner assassination attempt

Photo: Luis Robayo / AFP

AFP

An Argentinian court charged a man and a woman with complicity in the attempted assassination of Vice-President Cristina Kirchner last month, according to court documents cited by local media on Saturday.

Kirchner, 69, survived an assassination attempt on September 1 as she mingled with supporters outside her home, when a gun brandished by a man in the crowd failed to fire.

Local media said judge Maria Eugenia Capuchetti had charged Gabriel Carrizo, 27, leader of the gang known as “copitos” (cotton candy), and Agustina Diaz, 21, and sentenced them to pay 100 million pesos.

The alleged assailant, Fernando Sabag Montiel, 35, and his partner Brenda Uliarte, 23, were charged a fortnight ago with “attempted aggravated homicide”.

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All four people were in police custody.

“It was shown that the defendants Sabag Montiel, Uliarte, Carrizo and Diaz had a common plan to kill the vice-president of the nation,” said the judge in a document published Saturday by the Argentine press.

Capuchetti said the accused had begun their plot on April 22, the day Uliarte “would have acquired the semi-automatic pistol” used in the attack.

International

Florida judge sets 2027 trial in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against BBC

A federal judge in Florida has scheduled February 2027 for the trial in the lawsuit filed by U.S. President Donald Trump against the BBC, in which he is seeking $10 billion in damages for defamation.

Trump accuses the British broadcaster of airing a misleading edit of a speech he delivered on January 6, 2021, which, he says, made it appear that he explicitly urged his supporters to attack the U.S. Capitol in Washington.

The president filed the suit in December in federal court in Florida, alleging defamation and violations of a law governing business practices when the program was broadcast ahead of the 2024 election.

Trump is seeking $5 billion in damages for each of the two claims.

Lawyers for the BBC unsuccessfully asked the court to dismiss the case, arguing that Trump had not suffered a “legally recognizable harm,” since the investigative program Panorama, which included the edited footage, aired outside the United States.

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International

Head-of-state diplomacy key to guiding China–U.S. ties, Beijing says

Head-of-state diplomacy plays an irreplaceable strategic guiding role in China–United States relations, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Thursday during a regular press briefing, when asked about high-level exchanges between the two sides.

Lin added that in a recent phone call, U.S. President Donald Trump once again expressed his intention to visit China in April, while Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated his invitation.

Both sides remain in communication regarding the matter, the spokesperson said.

Lin noted that the essence of China–U.S. economic and trade ties lies in mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

“Both parties should work together to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, injecting greater certainty and stability into China–U.S. economic and trade cooperation, as well as into the global economy,” he said.

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International

Trump administration to end special immigration operation in Minnesota

The administration of Donald Trump is bringing to a close its special operation targeting illegal immigration in the northern state of Minnesota, border czar Tom Homan announced Thursday, following weeks of unrest and the fatal shootings of two activists by federal agents.

Thousands of federal officers had been deployed to Minnesota in December to carry out large-scale raids against undocumented immigrants.

The operations triggered strong reactions from residents and advocacy groups, leading to daily confrontations and the deaths of two people who were shot by federal agents.

“I proposed, and President Trump agreed, that this special operation should end in Minnesota,” Homan said during a press conference in the state capital, Minneapolis.

“A significant drawdown began this week and will continue into next week,” he added.

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Homan indicated that similar enforcement efforts could be launched in other cities.

“Next week we will redeploy the agents currently here back to their home stations or to other parts of the country where they are needed. But we will continue to enforce immigration laws,” he said.