International

Violence affects resumption of classes in Ecuador’s coastal region

Photo: El Comercio

April 28 |

The high levels of violence and insecurity in Ecuador affect the restart of classes in the coastal region of the South American country, where the school year began days ago, but with students who did not join.

According to local media, hundreds of families did not send their children to classes in schools located in areas of the provinces of Guayas, Esmeraldas, Manabí and El Oro, for fear of crime, drug trafficking, hired killings and the actions of organized gangs.

The longest list of neighborhoods considered very dangerous is in the city of Guayaquil. The National Police ordered, since last Monday, that 169 schools located in the most dangerous neighborhoods of the Ecuadorian coast receive custody, for which a total of 1,172 agents were assigned.

This is in response to the Safe Schools plan, promoted by the Ministries of the Interior and Education, through which the police are mobilized in motorcycles and patrols, mainly during the hours of entry and exit to and from schools.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

In addition, the schools are monitored from the Integrated System ECU-911. For this purpose, there are eight operational rooms in the Coast and Galapagos, 1,572 officers and 901 cameras around the schools.

For his part, the president of the National Union of Educators in Guayas, Hilario Beltrán, questioned the plan; he warned that the patrols are not fully complied with. He also said that teachers and parents are concerned that students are being captured by criminal organizations for drug consumption and sale.

Last week, the official declared that the teaching units in the Coast of Ecuador have been the most affected by the winter and the earthquake of March 18; therefore, some students will not be able to return to classes due to the scarcity of resources for a distance or virtual modality.

International

Winter Storm Fern Leaves 30 Dead and Over One Million Without Power Across the U.S.

The massive winter storm Fern, bringing polar temperatures, battered large portions of the United States for a third consecutive day on Monday, leaving at least 30 people dead, more than one million households without electricity, and thousands of flights grounded.

In the Great Lakes region, residents awoke to extreme cold, with temperatures dropping below -20°C. Forecasts indicate that conditions are expected to worsen in the coming days as an Arctic air mass moves south, particularly across the northern Great Plains and other central regions, where wind chills could plunge to -45°C, temperatures capable of causing frostbite within minutes.

Across the country, heavy snowfall exceeding 30 centimeters in roughly 20 states triggered widespread power outages. According to PowerOutage.com, nearly 800,000 customers remained without electricity on Monday morning, most of them in the southern United States.

In Tennessee, where ice brought down power lines, approximately 250,000 customers were still without power. Outages also affected more than 150,000 customers in Mississippi and over 100,000 in Louisiana, as utility crews struggled to restore service amid dangerous conditions.

International

Spain approves plan to regularize up to 500,000 migrants in Historic Shift

In November 2024, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a reform of the country’s immigration regulations aimed at regularizing 300,000 migrants per year over a three-year period, in an effort to counter population aging in a country where births have fallen by 25.6% since 2014, according to official data.

Going against the trend in much of Europe, Spain’s left-wing government has now approved an exceptional migrant regularization plan that could benefit up to 500,000 people, most of them from Latin America.

The measure will allow the regularization of around “half a million people” who have been living in Spain for at least five months, arrived before December 31, 2025, and have no criminal record, Migration Minister Elma Saiz explained on public television.

The plan, approved on Tuesday by the Council of Ministers, establishes that applications will be processed between April and June 30, enabling beneficiaries to work in any sector and anywhere in the country, Saiz said.

“Today is a historic day for our country. We are strengthening a migration model based on human rights, integration, and one that is compatible with economic growth and social cohesion,” the minister later stated at a press conference.

20250501_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

The socialist government of Pedro Sánchez stands out within the European Union for its migration policy, contrasting with the tightening of immigration measures across much of the bloc amid pressure from far-right movements.

Central America

Honduras swears in conservative president Asfura after disputed election

Conservative politician Nasry Asfura assumed the presidency of Honduras on Tuesday with an agenda closely aligned with the United States, a shift that could strain the country’s relationship with China as he seeks to confront the economic and security challenges facing the poorest and most violent nation in Central America.

Asfura’s rise to power, backed by U.S. President Donald Trump, marks the end of four years of left-wing rule and secures Trump another regional ally amid the advance of conservative governments in Chile, Bolivia, Peru, and Argentina.

The 67-year-old former mayor and construction businessman was sworn in during an austere ceremony at the National Congress, following a tightly contested election marred by opposition allegations of fraud and Trump’s threat to cut U.S. aid if his preferred candidate did not prevail.

Grateful for Washington’s support, Asfura—who is of Palestinian descent—traveled to the United States to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, before visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“We need to strengthen relations with our most important trading partner,” Asfura said after being declared the winner of the November 30 election by a narrow margin, following a tense vote count that lasted just over three weeks.