International
US seeks six months in jail for ex-Trump aide Bannon
AFP
The US Justice Department asked a judge Monday to sentence Donald Trump’s former aide Steve Bannon to six months in prison for refusing to testify in Congress’s probe of the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
Bannon, a longtime political strategist and vocal advocate for the Republican former president, was found guilty in July on two counts of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena to testify.
The Justice Department said in a sentencing recommendation that the 68-year-old Bannon should receive the six-month sentence and pay a fine of $200,000 because he repeatedly sought to delay the proceedings by hinting he might cooperate.
Bannon “has pursued a bad-faith strategy of defiance and contempt,” the department said.
The investigation by a special House committee depicted Bannon last week as knowing in advance of the plan by hardline Trump supporters to attack the Capitol to prevent Democrat Joe Biden from being confirmed as the next president.
It also showed him advocating for Congress to block Biden — who defeated Trump in the November 2020 election — from becoming president.
“The rioters who overran the Capitol on January 6 did not just attack a building — they assaulted the rule of law upon which this country was built and through which it endures,” the department said.
“By flouting the Select Committee’s subpoena and its authority, the defendant exacerbated that assault.”
The maximum sentence for contempt of Congress is 12 months, and a $100,000 fine.
The department’s recommendation of six months in prison is at the top end of the standard sentencing guidelines, a calculation based on the context of the crime and the defendant’s own justice record.
Sentencing is set for October 21.
But Bannon, who currently runs a streaming political commentary website, “Bannon’s War Room,” could appeal the sentence, delaying its implementation well into next year.
International
Singer seriously injured after knife attack in Tokyo’s Akasaka District
A woman in her forties was stabbed on Sunday by a man in Tokyo’s busy Akasaka district, leaving her with serious injuries, according to local media reports.
At around 10:25 a.m. (local time), police received an emergency call reporting that a woman was bleeding after being attacked with a knife by a man wearing a black hood in the basement of a building in Akasaka, police sources told Kyodo News.
The woman sustained severe injuries to her abdomen and hand but was conscious when she was transported to a hospital, Tokyo Metropolitan Police said, adding that the suspected assailant fled the scene with what appeared to be a knife.
The victim, believed to be a singer, was reportedly attacked while waiting alone outside a live music club where she was scheduled to perform.
Police stated that they are searching for the suspect and noted that the woman did not know him.
International
Ombudsman confirms deaths of six minors in bombing targeting FARC dissidents
Colombia’s Ombudsman’s Office reported on Saturday the deaths of six minors who had been recruited by guerrilla groups, killed during the deadliest airstrike ordered by President Gustavo Petro in an Amazonian region in the south of the country.
Amid pre-election criticism and pressure from the United States demanding stronger action against drug trafficking, Petro has intensified military operations against armed groups. Over the past week, a series of bombings have left 28 people dead.
The minors were killed in an airstrike announced on Tuesday against a camp belonging to dissident factions of the now-defunct FARC guerrilla in the department of Guaviare, resulting in 19 deaths—the largest operation of its kind under Petro’s administration.
“This is all deeply regrettable; it is war in its most painful and inhumane expression, harming the most vulnerable—minors recruited due to lack of protection and now turned into military targets,” said Ombudswoman Iris Marín in an audio message sent to the press, confirming the deaths of six minors without providing their ages.
Marín held the guerrilla group led by the country’s most-wanted man, alias Iván Mordisco, responsible for recruiting the children.
However, she also stressed that “the military forces must take every feasible precaution to protect children,” in accordance with international principles that require “careful evaluation of the means and methods of warfare to avoid disproportionate or unnecessary harm.”
International
Colombia reaches $4.5 billion deal to acquire 17 Gripen Fighter Jets from Saab
The Colombian government has finalized a negotiation agreement with the Swedish company Saab for the purchase of 17 SAP-39 Gripen fighter jets, valued at more than $4.5 billion, according to local media reports.
Colombian outlets indicated that payments are scheduled to begin in 2026, starting with an initial installment of 100 billion Colombian pesos. However, the aircraft will be delivered between 2027 and 2032, when the final jet is expected to arrive in Colombia.
This new contract represents the second-largest public purchase made by Colombia so far this century, surpassed only by the investment in the Bogotá metro system, local media noted.
The agreement is expected to be officially signed during the ceremony commemorating the 216th anniversary of the Colombian Aerospace Force, to be held in Cali on November 14 of this year.
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