International
Brazil’s most-voted lawmaker suspended from Twitter
| By AFP |
An ultra-conservative who was the most-voted lawmaker in Brazil’s elections said Saturday his social media accounts had been suspended after he called for an investigation of alleged irregularities in President Jair Bolsonaro’s loss at the polls.
Nikolas Ferreira, 26, a social media star and fervent supporter of the far-right president, had posted a series of messages on Twitter Friday calling on electoral authorities to investigate accusations that some of Brazil’s electronic voting machines gave unusually large scores to leftist president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who defeated Bolsonaro in the October elections.
“I’m asking the (Superior Electoral Tribunal) to verify revelations made today of possible fraud in the Brazilian elections. Valid doubts have emerged,” wrote Ferreira, a devout Christian with more than two million followers on Twitter and Instagram.
He said the information came from a video on a pro-Bolsonaro YouTube channel about supposed irregularities in “unauditable” voting machines manufactured before 2020.
Bolsonaro and his supporters have regularly alleged Brazil’s voting system is plagued by fraud, with scant evidence.
The Superior Electoral Tribunal (TSE) has moved aggressively to counter disinformation around the elections, including by ordering false claims be blocked on social media — drawing accusations of bias from Bolsonaro.
Ferreira’s Twitter account was inaccessible in Brazil, displaying a message that said it had been “withheld in response to a legal demand.”
Ferreira accused the authorities of censorship in a message on Instagram, saying he “never alleged anything, just asked for an investigation.”
He posted a picture of himself with black tape over his mouth, with the message: “Share this information… The truth will prevail.”
The TSE did not confirm it had ordered Ferreira’s accounts suspended. A spokeswoman for the electoral authority told AFP such rulings are confidential court documents.
Ferreira, who says he is at “war” with the “silent threat of communism” in Brazil, was elected to Congress for the southeastern state of Minas Gerais with 1.5 million votes in the country’s October 2 elections.
Lula went on to defeat Bolsonaro in a polarizing presidential runoff election on October 30, with 50.9 percent of the vote to 49.1 percent for the incumbent.
International
Trump orders immediate U.S. nuclear testing, ending 30-year moratorium
U.S. President Donald Trump’s order to begin “immediate” testing of the country’s nuclear arsenal could, if carried out, end the nuclear testing moratorium that the United States has maintained for over 30 years.
The announcement follows Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nuclear maneuvers on October 22 from the Kremlin, which involved land, sea, and air exercises and the launch of a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of up to 12,000 kilometers.
In 1992, the U.S. Senate approved a temporary suspension of nuclear tests in August, followed by the House of Representatives in September, initially for nine months, with the goal of ending all U.S. atomic testing by September 1996.
Although then-President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, and his successor Bill Clinton, a Democrat, threatened to veto the measure, the moratorium has remained in place ever since.
The decision came after the fall of the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War, and a political climate in which many U.S. leaders and a significant portion of public opinion believed that the country should lead global denuclearization efforts. Technological advances have also allowed the United States to verify the reliability of its nuclear arsenal without conducting atomic explosions.
From World War II until 1992, the United States conducted over a thousand nuclear tests. Until 1963, these tests were atmospheric, after which only underground tests were performed.
Although the U.S. has not conducted nuclear detonations since September 1992, it has carried out several dozen subcritical experiments. These do not trigger chain nuclear reactions or produce atomic yield but are designed to verify the safety and effectiveness of the nuclear arsenal and remain within the limits established by the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
International
Brazilian president defends coordinated anti-drug operations after deadly Rio raid
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defended on Wednesday the integration of the country’s various police forces into an anti-drug strategy that avoids civilian casualties, commenting on Tuesday’s police operation in Rio de Janeiro that left 121 dead—the deadliest in Brazil’s history.
“We need coordinated efforts that strike at the backbone of drug trafficking without putting police, children, and innocent families at risk,” the progressive leader wrote on social media.
Lula, along with several of his ministers, emphasized that organized crime is not defeated through violent confrontations in the favelas, but by measures that decapitalize these groups and reduce their financial power.
“That was exactly what we did in August during the largest operation against organized crime in the country’s history, targeting the financial core of a major organization involved in drug trafficking, fuel adulteration, and money laundering,” he stated, referring to a recent operation against the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), a major national criminal group.
Lula stressed that Brazil cannot allow organized crime to continue destroying families, oppressing citizens, and spreading drugs and violence across cities.
He added that, in a federal country like Brazil, where public security is the responsibility of regional governments, it is necessary to unify the country’s police forces.
The head of state affirmed that integrating regional and national police forces to combat organized crime will be possible with the approval of a public security bill that the government has submitted to Congress.
International
US Deputy Secretary criticizes Mexico’s call to end Cuba trade embargo at UN
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau reacted on Wednesday against Mexico’s request at the United Nations to lift the trade embargo on Cuba.
Landau expressed on X that he felt “sad” as a “friend of Mexico” after Mexico’s ambassador to the UN, Héctor Vasconcelos, reiterated solidarity with Cuba and stressed the “urgent need to end the trade embargo.”
“Let’s base ourselves on reality and not fantasies. There is no trade embargo on Cuba (…) Cuba freely receives goods and visitors from many countries,” Landau wrote.
The reaction from the State Department official came after the Mexican delegation urgently requested the removal of sanctions against Cuba at the United Nations headquarters in New York, where a majority of 165 countries voted in favor of ending the embargo imposed on the island since 1960.
Seven countries voted against the proposal, and twelve abstained. The United States, Israel, Argentina, Hungary, Paraguay, and Ukraine were among those opposing the measure, but the overwhelming support left the U.S. and its allies in the minority.
Trump orders immediate U.S. nuclear testing, ending 30-year moratorium
Brazilian president defends coordinated anti-drug operations after deadly Rio raid
US Deputy Secretary criticizes Mexico’s call to end Cuba trade embargo at UN
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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