International

Israel maintains plans for an operation in Rafah where it says that there are “8,000 terrorists” left

Israel plans to continue with its military operation in Rafah, in the southern end of the Gaza Strip, where, according to its ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, “8,000 terrorists” from Hamas are hidden in the city.

Erdan was addressing the members of the Security Council this Friday, precisely after most of them had expressly asked him not to carry out that operation due to the great accumulation of Palestinian civilians in that city who have nowhere to go.

According to Erdan, Israel has “dismantled” 18 battalions from Hamas, but four remain active in the streets of Rafah, with “8,000 terrorists,” and therefore “there is no alternative route to the ceasefire that does not go through (the attack on) Rafah,” he said.

“You can’t extinguish a fire by extinguishing only most of it, because the fire will be lit again. That’s what will happen without an operation in Rafah. Israel sees no other alternative,” he continued.

On the other hand, Erdan denied that there is famine in Gaza, and said that the UN reports that assure that 1.1 million Gazans are already about to fall into it are “defamatory narratives,” a product of “a tool of Hamas propaganda that the UN has chosen to make its own.”

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According to Erdan, if the humanitarian aid that enters Gaza does not reach its population – 18,283 trucks with 300,000 tons of aid, according to his figures – it is because “Hamas plunders most of it for themselves,” he said, without recognizing the multiple obstacles that the Israeli army is putting to the aid entrance.

What’s more, Erdan went so far as to say that “Israel has taken steps that no other army in any other conflict has ever taken in order to avoid civilian casualties.”

The war in Gaza has so far cost the lives of 32,000 people, of which more than half were women and children.

Central America

Nicaragua revokes legal status of 10 more NGOs, bringing total to over 5,600

The Nicaraguan government canceled the legal status of 10 more non-profit organizations on Friday (March 28, 2025), including the Swiss Foundation for Development Cooperation, bringing the total number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) shut down since December 2018 to over 5,600.

According to the Ministry of the Interior, the Swiss Foundation for Development Cooperation, which had been registered since March 9, 2002, was found to be in non-compliance for failing to report its financial status for 2024 and for having an expired board of directors.

Among the 10 NGOs whose legal status was revoked were religious organizations, educational groups, consumer associations, and aquaculture organizations, all dissolved “voluntarily” or closed under similar reasons.

As of today, more than 5,600 NGOs have been dismantled following the popular protests that erupted in April 2018 in Nicaragua. In most cases, the assets of these organizations have been ordered to be transferred to the state.

International

Marco Rubio warns Venezuela against military action against Guyana

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Venezuela on Thursday that a military attack on Guyana would be “a big mistake” and “a very bad day for them,” expressing his support for Georgetown in its territorial dispute with Caracas.

“It would be a very bad day for the Venezuelan regime if they attacked Guyana or ExxonMobil. It would be a very bad day, a very bad week for them, and it would not end well,” Rubio emphasized during a press conference in Georgetown alongside Guyanese President Irfaan Ali.

International

Ecuador oil spill worsens as containment dam collapses

The collapse of a containment dam holding back part of the 25,000+ barrels of oil spilled from a pipeline rupture nearly two weeks ago has worsened the environmental crisis in northwestern Ecuador, contaminating rivers and Pacific beaches.

The Ecuadorian government attributed the March 13 pipeline rupture—which led to the spill of 25,116 barrels of crude—to an act of sabotage. The spill affected three rivers and disrupted water supplies for several communities, according to authorities.

On Tuesday, due to heavy rains that have been falling since January, a containment dam on the Caple River collapsed. The Caple connects to other waterways in Esmeraldas Province, a coastal region bordering Colombia, state-owned Petroecuador said in a statement on Wednesday.

Seven containment barriers were installed in the Viche River, where crews worked to remove oil-contaminated debris. Additional absorbent materials were deployed in Caple, Viche, and Esmeraldas Rivers, which flow into the Pacific Ocean.

Authorities are also working to protect a wildlife refuge home to more than 250 species, including otters, howler monkeys, armadillos, frigatebirds, and pelicans.

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“This has been a total disaster,” said Ronald Ruiz, a leader in the Cube community, where the dam was located. He explained that the harsh winter rains caused river levels to rise, bringing debris that broke the containment barriersthat were holding the accumulated oil for extraction.