International
By water or land, the security forces shield Rosario against drug trafficking
Whether by water or by land, the hardest core of the Argentine federal forces, which the Minister of Security, Patricia Bullrich, promised a few days ago, is in Rosario equipped with state-of-the-art technology and armored vehicles to reinforce the fight against drug trafficking.
Drug violence, which has been present in the third largest city in Argentina for decades, has intensified in recent weeks with the random murder of citizens in retaliation for the measures of the governor of Santa Fe, Maximiliano Pullaro, to implement the ‘Bukele style’ in the prisons of his province.
Faced with the situation of insecurity, the Executive intervened with the creation of a crisis committee, which sent hundreds of troops from the Prefecture, Federal Police, Gendarmerie, Airport Police and even members of the Army and the Naval Navy to Rosario, working together within a unified command.
It is estimated that they reach a total of 2,000 uniformed personnel. Although sources from the Ministry of Security inform EFE that they are estimated figures and can be even more: in short, “how much should not be revealed.”
As a port city on the banks of the Paraná River, Rosario has the protection of the Argentine Naval Prefecture (PNA), which since last December patrols the waterway day and night with different boats, among which the ‘Toba’ coast guard stands out.
One of the four fast attack boats of the Sheldag class, of Israeli origin, transferred to Argentina in 2018 to protect the water borders of the coast and north of the country, has two static machine guns of 7.62 caliber on the sides of the bridge and a heavy of 12.7 in the bow, with space for 12 prefects.
With 25 meters of length, 6 meters of sleeve and 1.25 meters of drage it can reach 75 kilometers of speed; in addition, it has a rubber Zodiac for coastal approaches or shipments to other ships.
The chief officer of the PNA Damián Centurión, captain of the ‘Toba’, explains to the EFE team embarked on the ship to accompany a patrol that the most frequent crime on the coasts is the smuggling of narcotics.
“Our job is to control and suppress illicit activities in water such as smuggling. Mainly, we take care of the control of the waterways. Our stay here is indefinite. We know that there is a lot to do in Rosario,” he says.
The ship has “endured punishment,” since in the middle of a confrontation it endured bullets of 9 and 22 millimeter caliber without being penetrated
According to the captain, the ship has already “endured punishment”: in the middle of a confrontation, the naval aluminum withstored, without being penetrated, bullets of the caliber 9 and 22 millimeters.
They arrived in Rosario with the ‘Flag Plan’, installed shortly after Javier Milei assumed president, to strengthen security and, according to official data, the reduction in intentional homicides dropped to 47.83%.
In the first two months of 2024, the drug trafficker has carried out 24 murders, while the operatives managed to dismantle organized crime activities, in addition to seizing vehicles, weapons and mobile phones.
“At the moment, there was no worrying fact among our current patrol tasks that go from Rosario, Santa Fe, Arroyo Seco, San Lorenzo and wherever they require us. We are varying the schedules, but we are usually at night,” he adds.
For that work, the ‘Toba’ has thermal, night and daytime cameras with a range of 7 kilometers used to follow boats from a distance and automatically, thanks to its radar system.
The arrival of federal forces included their tactical groups, prepared to deal with anti-terrorist and drug trafficking situations: the special group of federal operations (GEOF) arrived on the streets of Rosario, which uses the ‘Mengshi’ (Chinese word for ‘brave soldier’) type CSK131.
It is a light armored vehicle of the four donated by China to Argentina and put into operation in 2018 for the G20 Summit, it has space for six men and is used to accompany police searches.
This Asian version of the famous HMMWV (‘Humvee’) accompanies checkpoints and checkpoints in the so-called ‘saturation operations’ – as EFE could verify -, which work in an intimidating way by controlling vehicles and in the surveillance of the most dangerous neighborhoods.
These operations begin at 5:00 p.m. (20:00 GMT) until 7:00 a.m. (10:00 GMT) the following day with the intention of preventing and mapping the criminal structure.
The ‘Mengshi’ can reach 135 kilometers per hour, withstand all kinds of calibers of firearms and explosive splinters of low and medium power; it can even be equipped with a heavy machine gun and even grenade launcher.
Although “narcoterrorism,” as the authorities call it, has long tentacles, the arrival of agents and heavy equipment for now shields Rosario against drug trafficking.
International
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump criticized what he described as unfair fees imposed on American ships passing through the Panama Canal and threatened to demand that Washington take back control of the strategic waterway.
“Our Navy and commerce have been threatened in a very unjust and reckless way. The rates that Panama charges are ridiculous,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The president-elect also denounced the growing influence of China in the canal, a situation he called concerning as U.S. businesses depend on the waterway to transport goods between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
“This complete scam against our country will end immediately,” he stated.
The Panama Canal, completed by the United States in 1914, was handed over to Panama under the 1977 treaty signed by Democratic President Jimmy Carter. Panama took full control of the commercial passage in 1999.
“It was exclusively for Panama to manage, not China or anyone else,” Trump said. “We would never allow it to fall into the wrong hands!”
“If Panama cannot guarantee a ‘safe, efficient, and reliable’ operation of the canal, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us in its entirety, without a doubt,” the Republican added.
Panamanian authorities did not immediately respond to Trump’s statements. While he will assume office on January 20, Trump has been exerting his political influence in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration.
Five percent of global maritime trade passes through the Panama Canal, which allows vessels traveling from Asia to the U.S. East Coast to avoid the long and dangerous route around the southern tip of South America.
The countries that use the Panama Canal the most are the United States, China, Japan, and South Korea.
In October, the Panama Canal Authority reported earnings of nearly $5 billion in the last fiscal year.
International
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised more “destruction” in Ukraine on Sunday, in response to a drone strike that hit a residential building in the city of Kazan, located in central Russia, on Saturday.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching a “massive” drone attack, which struck a luxury apartment block in Kazan, about 1,000 kilometers from the border.
Videos shared on Russian social media show drones hitting a high-rise glass building. No casualties have been reported as a result of the attack.
In his statements, Putin addressed the local leader of Tatarstan, the region where Kazan is located, during a virtual ceremony marking the opening of a road.
The attack in Kazan is the latest in a series of increasingly frequent bombings in this nearly three-year-old conflict. Ukraine has not commented on the attack.
Putin had previously threatened to strike the center of Kyiv with a hypersonic ballistic missile in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities were retaliation for Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied missiles to target Russian territory.
International
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
At least nine people were killed on Sunday after a small aircraft crashed in a commercial area of the tourist city of Gramado, in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, authorities confirmed.
“There are nine confirmed deaths according to Civil Defense services, and there are no survivors from the plane,” said Cléber dos Santos Lima, director of the Interior Police Department of the Civil Police of the state, in a statement to AFP.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the exact number of passengers and crew aboard the aircraft, a turbo-prop Piper Cheyenne 400. However, Civil Defense had previously stated that “preliminarily, the plane was carrying ten people.”
The plane crashed on Sunday morning “into the chimney of a building, then onto the second floor of a house, and finally fell onto a furniture store,” according to a statement from the Rio Grande do Sul Public Security Secretariat.
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
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
Ecuador prison riot leaves at least 43 dead
-
Central America4 days agoAmnesty International condemns Nicaragua’s unprecedented repression of dissent
-
Sports4 days agoReal Madrid clinches fourth Intercontinental Cup with 3-0 victory over Pachuca
-
Central America4 days agoEl Salvador’s MARN monitors ongoing seismic activity in La Unión department
-
International4 days agoMexico requests extradition of ‘Mini Lic’ for murder of journalist Javier Valdez
-
International3 days agoThe Court of the IADH rules out measures in favor of Gustavo Petro amid investigations into his campaign
-
International4 days agoMexican government to use church atriums for gun surrender program to combat violence
-
International3 days agoTrump links Mike Johnson’s re-election to meeting his budget requirements
-
International4 days agoCuba’s government stresses openness to serious, respectful U.S. relations
-
International3 days agoThe Constitutional Court of Peru annuls the sentence against the leader of Dina Boluarte’s former party
-
International4 days agoBegoña Gómez defends her actions as investigations into her role at Complutense University continue
-
International3 days agoGuterres calls for “avoiding at all costs” the integration of AI into nuclear weapons
-
International4 days agoNASA delays return of two astronauts stranded on ISS until at least March
-
International5 days agoAustrian man arrested in Croatia with deceased woman as passenger in his car
-
International5 days agoHomemade landmine explosion in Michoacán kills two soldiers, injures five
-
International5 days agoColombian nationals arrested for human trafficking and disappearance of migrant boat
-
International1 day agoAt least ten dead in Iran in a bus accident in the west of the country
-
International1 day agoHelene, the violent hurricane that destroyed the southeastern United States
-
International4 days agoUkraine’s security a priority as NATO discusses future of conflict with Russia
-
International1 day agoAt least 21 dead and 61 injured after Israel’s last attacks in Gaza
-
International4 days agoPatient hospitalized with severe avian flu case in Louisiana, CDC reports
-
International3 days agoAn appeals court disqualifies the prosecutor in the election case against Trump in Georgia
-
International1 day agoMilei closed about 200 areas of the Public Administration in its first year of Government
-
International1 day agoThe piangua, the mangrove mollusk that empowers women in the Colombian Pacific
-
International3 days agoThe new French prime minister launches an ultimatum to the moderate parties and the left rejects his offer
-
International1 day agoNew Syrian leader addresses with the United States the lifting of sanctions for reconstruction
-
International5 days agoEcuador announces debt swap of $1.527 billion to protect Amazon rainforest
-
Internacionales3 hours agoSinaloa security secretary resigns amid wave of violence and cartel infighting
-
International3 hours agoSmall plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
-
International3 hours agoPutin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
-
International3 hours agoTrump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway