International

Colombia, rebels, seek US involvement in peace talks

Photo: Reuters

| By AFP |

Colombia’s government and the National Liberation Army (ELN), the last recognized rebel group in the country, said Friday they would invite the United States to join their peace process.

The talks are an initiative by President Gustavo Petro, who in August became Colombia’s first-ever leftist leader, and has vowed a less bellicose approach to ending violence wrought by armed groups, including leftist guerrillas and drug traffickers.

The parties resumed formal talks in Venezuela on Monday for the first time since 2019.

They agreed to reach out to the United States via diplomatic channels “to find out its willingness to participate in the process” and send a special envoy, according to a statement from Norway, one of the guarantors of the talks.

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The statement said the talks had taken place in an environment of “trust and optimism.”

The parties also agreed to invite Brazil, Chile, and Mexico to join Norway, Cuba, and Venezuela as guarantors of the process.

Germany, Switzerland, and Spain would also be invited as “accompanying countries.”

Around 30 delegates are attending the talks which are expected to last three weeks.

Colombia has suffered more than half a century of armed conflict between the state and various groups of left-wing guerrillas, right-wing paramilitaries and drug traffickers.

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The ELN started as a leftist ideological movement in 1964 before turning to crime, focusing on kidnapping, extortion of the oil industry, and drug trafficking in Colombia and neighboring Venezuela.

It has around 2,500 members, about 700 more than it did when negotiations were last broken off. The group is primarily active in the Pacific region and along the 2,200-kilometer (1,370-mile) border with Venezuela.

Dialogue with the group started in 2016 under ex-president Juan Manuel Santos, who signed a peace treaty with the larger Marxist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebel group that subsequently abandoned its weapons and created a political party.

But the talks with the ELN were called off in 2019 by conservative former president Ivan Duque following a car bomb attack on a police academy in Bogota that left 22 people dead.

Petro — himself a former guerrilla — reached out to the ELN shortly after coming to power, as part of his “total peace” policy.

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International

Rubio and Lavrov Hold Talks After Large-Scale Russian Assault on Ukraine

The United States remains willing to mediate in the war between Russia and Ukraine, Secretary of State Marco Rubiosaid Tuesday following a large-scale Russian attack against Kyiv.

“Every time you see these large attacks by either side, it is a reminder of why this is a terrible war (…) that must come to an end,” Rubio told reporters after holding a phone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Speaking during an official visit to India, Rubio stated that the United States is “ready and prepared to do whatever it can” to help facilitate an end to the conflict.

“We hope the opportunity presents itself at some point,” he added.

Russia warned on Monday that it could launch additional strikes against Kyiv, including attacks targeting what it described as “decision-making centers,” after carrying out weekend bombardments involving dozens of drones and missiles across Ukraine. The attacks reportedly killed four people.

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According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Lavrov urged the United States during the call to evacuate diplomats from its embassy in Kyiv.

Rubio later clarified that Moscow had issued a warning to all embassies in the Ukrainian capital, not only to the U.S. diplomatic mission.

International

Omar García Harfuch Announces Arrest of “El Chapo’s” Nephew

Mexican security forces captured a nephew of convicted drug lord Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán during an operation carried out in the northern border state of Sonora, authorities confirmed on Tuesday.

The suspect, identified as Isai “N,” is reportedly wanted by authorities in the United States.

Omar García Harfuch, Mexico’s secretary of security, stated on X that the detainee is a “nephew of ‘El Chapo,’” the former leader of the powerful Sinaloa Cartel, who is currently serving a life sentence in the United States.

Mexican media identified the suspect as Isai Martínez Zepeda, who had reportedly been arrested in June 2008 while allegedly carrying high-caliber weapons.

However, the press office of Mexico’s Security Ministry told AFP that it did not have additional details regarding the earlier arrest.

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Two sons of Joaquín Guzmán, Ovidio Guzmán López and Joaquín Guzmán López, are also imprisoned in the United States on drug trafficking charges.

International

Diplomatic Talks Continue as Iran Accuses U.S. of Ceasefire Violations

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran accused the United States on Tuesday of violating the fragile ceasefire over the past 48 hours in the province of Hormozgan Province, although officials did not specify the exact incident.

The accusations came after the United States Central Command announced on Monday that U.S. forces had targeted Iranian missile-launch facilities and vessels allegedly attempting to deploy mines in the Gulf region.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed that its forces fired on a U.S. aircraft that allegedly attempted to enter Iranian airspace.

“The terrorist U.S. military, which has continued its illegal and unjustified actions since the ceasefire (…) committed a serious violation of the ceasefire in Hormozgan Province over the past 48 hours,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry also warned that Iran “will not leave any hostile act unanswered and will not hesitate to defend itself,” without providing further details.