International
Peruvian president summoned to testify for protest deaths
May 25 |
Peruvian President Dina Boluarte was summoned by the prosecutor’s office to testify in an investigation for the alleged crimes of genocide, aggravated homicide and serious injuries committed during the anti-government protests that left more than 60 people dead in three months, the president’s lawyer said on Wednesday.
Joseph Campos told local radio RPP that Boluarte is due to testify before Attorney General Patricia Benavides on May 31. The president was summoned in January, February and March, but has not testified. In March she was not questioned because the prosecutor’s office asked to be included to participate in the proceedings.
The president did not make a statement during the day. The Associated Press asked the prosecutor’s office about the summons to the president’s office, but did not receive a response at the time.
Prime Minister Alberto Otárola was questioned in January and February in the same investigation. The protests have left 67 dead and more than 1,300 injured, according to the Ombudsman’s Office. Almost all of the dead are civilians, most of them were shot by firearms and some were hit by gunshots to the head.
Due to the rank of those investigated, the investigation is in charge of the Attorney General. Genocide is punishable by a minimum sentence of 20 years in prison. Also included in the investigation are former Prime Minister Pedro Angulo and other former officials.
Boluarte came to power on December 7 when his predecessor, then president Pedro Castillo, attempted to dissolve Parliament and was removed from office. Castillo is being held for 18 months for the alleged crime of rebellion in a prison for presidents in Lima.
Since then, protests began to ignite in the rural areas of the southern Andes demanding the resignation of Boluarte and the members of Parliament. The demonstrations spread in the south as far as Lima, but died down in mid-February.
However, Congress has not yet decided to bring forward the presidential and parliamentary elections. Four plans to shorten the term of Boluarte and the legislators were shelved for not reaching the necessary votes.
According to the most recent May poll by Ipsos Peru, 75% disapprove of Boluarte and 16% support her.
International
Appeals Court blocks Trump’s White House ballroom project without congressional approval
A U.S. appeals court ruled Friday that President Donald Trump must obtain approval from Congress before moving forward with his plan to build a large ballroom on the White House grounds, at the site where the East Wing of the presidential residence previously stood.
The decision was issued in a 2-1 ruling, with the judges determining that a project of such magnitude falls under Congress’ authority and cannot be carried out solely through executive action.
In its ruling, the court sided with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the organization that filed the lawsuit seeking to halt the construction. The judges found that the plaintiffs had convincingly demonstrated that Congress had never granted the executive branch the authority to “redesign or rebuild the White House, the People’s House, to satisfy the wishes of any particular president.”
Following the decision, Trump announced that he would appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, calling the decision incorrect.
“We will immediately appeal it to the Supreme Court,” the president wrote in a message posted on his social media platforms.
Trump also argued that the ruling could pose a security risk to the presidential complex, claiming that it threatens the safety of White House employees, future workers, visitors, heads of state, and other dignitaries.
The president has repeatedly said that the project would not require taxpayer funding and that its financing would come from private donations by business leaders close to his administration, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
However, a previous estimate published by The Washington Post placed the project’s cost at approximately $600 million and suggested that nearly half of the funding could come from public resources, contradicting Trump’s claims.
International
Rubio warns Cuba U.S. pressure campaign will continue through Trump’s term
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday that the Cuban government will not find a way out of the pressure campaign imposed by Washington and warned that waiting for the end of President Donald Trump’s second term will not change the situation for the island.
In an interview with U.S. outlet Axios, Rubio said the American administration will continue blocking any mechanisms Cuba uses to ease the impact of sanctions and other measures implemented by Washington.
Rubio argued that Havana can no longer rely on the possibility that time will bring a change in U.S. policy.
“Without a doubt, this situation is not going to disappear in the next two and a half years,” Rubio said, referring to the remaining period of Trump’s current term.
The U.S. official also said Cuba is facing an increasingly difficult scenario following the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces in January. According to Rubio, the event led to new restrictions on oil supplies to the island, worsening Cuba’s economic and energy crisis.
Rubio’s comments come amid continued tensions between Washington and Havana, with the U.S. government maintaining its policy of sanctions and diplomatic pressure on the Cuban authorities.
International
Afghan man sentenced to life in prison for deadly Munich vehicle attack
A German court on Thursday sentenced an Afghan man to life imprisonment for a 2025 attack in which he drove a vehicle into a trade union demonstration in Munich, killing two people and injuring around 40 others.
The Munich Higher Regional Court ruled that the 25-year-old man, identified only as Fahrad N. under German privacy laws, committed a particularly serious crime.
Presiding judge Michael Höhne said the court was convinced that the defendant deliberately drove his vehicle into the protesters from behind. He described the scene of the attack as a “real field of destruction.”
The verdict followed the request of federal prosecutors, while the defense had sought a 15-year prison sentence and admission to a psychiatric hospital.
Fahrad N. was convicted of two counts of murder and 23 counts of attempted murder, one more charge than prosecutors had requested. He was also found guilty of 19 counts of serious bodily harm and three counts of intentional injury.
The attack occurred on February 13, 2025, as Munich prepared to welcome international leaders attending the Munich Security Conference, while Germany was entering the final stage of its parliamentary election campaign.
That morning, around 1,400 people were marching through the city center in a demonstration organized by the services union Verdi. According to investigators, the Afghan national drove a BMW Mini past police officers escorting the march before intentionally crashing into the crowd.
The vehicle traveled approximately 23 meters before coming to a stop.
Fahrad N., who was interested in bodybuilding, arrived in Germany at the age of 15 as an unaccompanied minor and had his residence permit renewed. Authorities had previously considered him “well integrated” into local society.
Investigators said he later became radicalized under the influence of Afghan clerics he followed on social media in the months before the attack.
According to prosecutors, the defendant believed Western countries were responsible for the suffering of Muslim populations in Afghanistan and the Middle East, and concluded that he should “kill randomly selected people in Germany.”
Appeals Court blocks Trump’s White House ballroom project without congressional approval
Rubio warns Cuba U.S. pressure campaign will continue through Trump’s term
Afghan man sentenced to life in prison for deadly Munich vehicle attack
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International3 days agoIran Rejects Negotiations With U.S. as Strait of Hormuz Remains Blocked Amid New Attack
-
International4 days agoLula Launches Re-Election Campaign Amid Rising Tensions With Trump
-
International2 days agoMexican TikTok Influencer Shot Dead While Livestreaming in Sinaloa
-
Central America2 days agoGuatemala Declares Highest Alert in Areas Affected by Fuego Volcano Eruption
-
International1 day agoAfghan man sentenced to life in prison for deadly Munich vehicle attack
-
Central America3 days agoU.S. Defense Secretary to Close Multinational Military Exercises in Panama to Protect Canal
-
International2 hours agoRubio warns Cuba U.S. pressure campaign will continue through Trump’s term
-
International2 hours agoAppeals Court blocks Trump’s White House ballroom project without congressional approval