International

Brazil’s Lula appoints former mayor as finance minister

Photo: NELSON ALMEIDA / AFP

| By AFP |

Brazil’s president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday named former Sao Paulo mayor Fernando Haddad, viewed unfavorably by many in the business community, as his finance minister.

Lula da Silva, who narrowly defeated incumbent Jair Bolsonaro in October elections, unveiled ministers in the key posts of foreign affairs, justice, defense, and chief of staff.

However, all eyes were on his pick for finance minister, with markets nervous over the incoming government’s commitment to fiscal discipline and the inflation-hit economy in fragile recovery.

“(I chose) comrade Fernando Haddad as Minister of Finance,” Lula said during a press conference in the capital Brasilia.

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Haddad, 59, who served as education minister from 2005 to 2012, succeeds powerful liberal economy minister Paulo Guedes, an ally of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro.

After Lula’s new government takes office following his January 1 inauguration, the economy ministry will be dissolved and transformed into finance, industry and planning agencies.

When Haddad’s name started circulating for the role, markets reacted with unease, viewing him as too much on the left and fearing he would jeopardize the budgetary balance.

“He represents the heterodox economic policy” that Lula’s Workers’ Party (PT) defends, said Antonio Madeira of the MCM consultancy firm.

Madeira said that with Haddad in the finance ministry, he expects “an increase in spending” and “a more assertive state giving a significant role to public companies.”

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Despite some of the reluctance towards Haddad, the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange’s Ibovespa index was up Friday by 0.5% after the names of the future ministers were announced.

Lula also tapped Mauro Vieira as foreign minister.

Vieira is a 71-year-old career diplomat who has already served as foreign minister as well as ambassador to Argentina, the United States and the United Nations.

He is currently serving as ambassador to Croatia, which on Friday knocked Brazil out of the World Cup.

For the justice ministry, Lula appointed Flavio Dino, a former governor of the northeastern state of Maranhao.

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Rui Costa, governor of the province of Bahia, was named to a ministry that falls between the roles of prime minister and chief of staff.

Jose Mucio Monteiro, a civilian, was named defense minister.

After appointing five white men to the key ministries, Lula promised that “in time, you will see more women than men here … as well as a number of Afro-Brazilians.”

“We will try and form a government in the image of Brazilian society.”

Lula, a former unionist who already served two terms as president between 2003 and 2010, said that he would announce the names of more ministers next week and he has “not yet decided the total number of ministers” he would have in his government.

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One of the most highly anticipated posts is that of the environmental minister, who will play a crucial role as Brazil seeks to tackle deforestation in the Amazon.

International

Peruvian presidential candidate proposes death penalty amid crime surge

Peru is facing an unprecedented surge in crime ahead of its presidential election scheduled for April 12, with violence fueled by extortion networks and a wave of contract killings linked to organized crime.

Police data show that 2,200 homicides tied to organized crime were recorded in 2025, while extortion complaints increased by 19%, underscoring the growing security crisis in the South American nation.

Amid this backdrop, presidential candidate Álvarez has proposed reinstating the death penalty if elected, arguing that extreme measures are needed to curb the violence.

To implement the proposal, Álvarez said Peru would withdraw from the American Convention on Human Rights—also known as the Pact of San José—which the country signed in 1978. The agreement prevents member states that have abolished capital punishment from reinstating it.

Currently, Peruvian law only allows the death penalty in cases of treason during wartime.

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“We have to leave the Pact of San José and apply the death penalty in Peru because those miserable criminals don’t deserve to live,” Álvarez told AFP during a campaign stop at a market in Callao, the port city neighboring Lima.

“An iron fist against those criminals,” he added, proposing to declare hitmen as military targets.

During the campaign event, Álvarez walked through stalls selling vegetables, groceries, and fish, greeting vendors while musicians played cumbia music nearby.

The 62-year-old candidate, who spent more than four decades working in television as a comedian, is a newcomer to politics and is running for president under the País para Todos party.

Polls place him fifth in voter preference with nearly 4% support in a fragmented race featuring 36 candidates.

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“I am an artist who has taken a step into politics to bring peace to my country,” Álvarez told reporters while surrounded by supporters.

International

FBI: Man who attacked Michigan synagogue died from self-inflicted gunshot

The man who died during Thursday’s attack on a synagogue in the United States suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to the FBI.

FBI agent Jennifer Runyan told reporters that the suspect, identified as 41-year-old Lebanese citizen Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, shot himself at some point during the confrontation.

“At some point during the shooting, Ghazali suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” Runyan said during a press conference.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed the suspect’s identity.

Authorities said Ghazali drove a truck into the Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield, located in the state of Michigan, on Thursday.

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According to Michael Bouchard, sheriff of Oakland County, synagogue security personnel noticed the vehicle and confronted the suspect with gunfire.

Investigators said it would be premature to speculate about the motive for the attack, although reports indicate Ghazali recently lost relatives during Israeli strikes in Lebanon earlier this month.

“It would be irresponsible for me to speculate about his motive,” Runyan said.

Ghazali arrived in Detroit in 2011 on a spouse visa for U.S. citizens and obtained American citizenship in 2016, according to reporting by The New York Times.

He was the father of two teenagers, divorced from his wife in 2024, and had recently been working as a waiter.

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The newspaper also reported that Ghazali attended a memorial service in the nearby city of Dearborn for relatives killed in the recent conflict, alongside other grieving family members from the Lebanese town of Machghara.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said the incident is being investigated as an act of violence targeting the Jewish community.

A source from Michigan’s Lebanese-American community told CBS News that several of Ghazali’s relatives had been killed roughly ten days before the attack, leaving him deeply devastated.

International

Mexican Navy Ships Deliver Third Shipment of Humanitarian Aid to Cuba

Two logistics support vessels from the Mexican Navy — the ARM Papaloapan and the ARM Huasteco — docked again on Friday in the bay of Havana carrying a third shipment of humanitarian aid for Cuba.

The vessels had previously arrived on the Caribbean island on February 28 with a second cargo that included 1,200 tons of food, sent to help alleviate the country’s ongoing crisis, which has worsened following the U.S. oil restrictions affecting fuel supplies to the island.

Cuba’s deputy foreign minister Josefina Vidal confirmed the new shipment in a social media post.

“Two ships carrying a third shipment of aid from the Government and the people of Mexico for the Cuban people are now arriving at the port of Havana. Thank you Mexico for your solidarity with Cuba,” she wrote.

Previous aid shipments

During the second shipment, the Papaloapan transported 1,078 tons of beans and powdered milk, while the Huastecocarried 92 tons of beans and 23 tons of assorted food products collected by social organizations with support from the government of Mexico City.

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In recent months, Mexico has become the largest provider of humanitarian aid to Cuba, sending around 2,000 tons of supplies, mostly staple foods and hygiene products, in the two shipments prior to Friday’s delivery.

The first shipment alone included 814 tons of food.

Cuba praises Mexico’s support

Hours before the ships arrived, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel highlighted Mexico’s support during a televised appearance, describing the country as “a friendly and brotherly nation that has shown tremendous solidarity,”particularly praising Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.

Díaz-Canel also addressed reports suggesting that Mexican donations were being resold in state-run stores, dismissing them as a “disinformation campaign” promoted by right-wing groups.