International
No signs of influence peddling in the case that made António Costa resign in Portugal
The Lisbon Court of Appeal did not appreciate signs of influence peddling in ‘Operation Influencer’, the judicial case that led to the resignation of former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa, and rejected the appeal filed by the Prosecutor’s Office to the precautionary measures applied to the suspects.
The facts investigated “are not, by themselves, integrative of any type of crime,” which means that he has not appreciated indications of a crime of influence peddling, according to a statement from the Court cited this Wednesday by local media.
The Court rejected the appeal filed by the Portuguese Prosecutor’s Office and agreed with the two main suspects in the case, Vítor Escária – former chief of staff of Costa – and Diogo Lacerda Machado, businessman and friend of the former socialist prime minister.
In that sense, he annulled the preventive measures applied against both, including a bail of 150,000 euros and the prohibition of leaving the country, considering that there is no type of risk that justifies them.
The judges considered that “none of the facts advanced resulted in the commission of crimes and the development of the functions of each of the interveners was not overcome, since all of them acted within the scope of them.”
The ‘Operation Influencer’ jumped in November 2023 and revolves around irregularities in lithium and hydrogen projects and in the construction of a data center.
The Prosecutor’s Office then reported that several suspects spoke of Costa’s involvement in the case for “unblocking procedures” and that these allegations would be analyzed in an autonomous investigation.
That same day, Costa submitted his resignation, although he assured that he had not committed illegal acts.
Since the resignation of the Prime Minister, the country’s attorney general, Lucília Gago, and the body she heads have been criticized for not having given further explanations about Costa’s alleged involvement in those irregularities and not having made public evidence against him.
Following Costa’s resignation, legislative elections were held in Portugal on March 10, which resulted in the coming to power of a center-right government headed by Luís Montenegro.
Earlier this month, after ceding the witness to the new Government, Costa told the press that, after leaving office, he had asked his lawyer to send a petition to be heard before Justice.
International
Pope Francis meets former Gaza hostages
Pope Francis met on Thursday at the Vatican with 16 Israelis who had been held hostage in Gaza for months by the Islamist group Hamas, according to the official Vatican news website.
The group consisted of ten women, four men, and two children, as reported by the same source. Several of the former hostages showed the Argentine pontiff banners or photos of their loved ones who remain in captivity.
Francis had previously met with the families of hostages in April this year and November 2023, but this was the first time he had met with individuals who had personally endured captivity.
Since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began, the pope has repeatedly called for the immediate release of Israeli hostages, while also condemning the suffering of the Palestinian population.
The war erupted on October 7, 2023, when Islamist militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1,206 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping 251, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures that include hostages who died in captivity.
Of the kidnapped, 97 are still being held in Gaza, but the Israeli military estimates that 34 of them have died.
The military offensive launched by Israel in response has killed at least 43,736 people in the Gaza Strip, mostly civilians, according to data from the Ministry of Health in the Hamas-governed territory.
International
Israeli airstrikes on Damascus kill 15 and injure 16, including women and children
Israeli forces carried out airstrikes on residential buildings in the Syrian capital, Damascus, and its surroundings on Thursday, resulting in at least 15 deaths and 16 injuries, according to Syria’s Ministry of Defense and state television.
The ministry stated that around 3:20 p.m. local time (12:20 GMT), the Israeli military launched an aerial attack from the direction of the occupied Golan Heights, targeting several residential buildings in the Mazzeh neighborhood in western Damascus and the Qudsaya suburb to the northwest of the capital.
The airstrikes “resulted in the death of 15 people and injuries to 16 others, including women and children,” based on initial estimates, in addition to significant damage to private property and civilian buildings, the ministry added.
Meanwhile, state television reported Israeli airstrikes on three buildings in Mazzeh and another on a building in an educational complex located in a residential area of Qudsaya.
Following the strikes, loud explosions were heard throughout the city, and thick plumes of smoke could be seen rising from the targeted locations. Ambulances and emergency services rushed to the scene to attend to the victims.
International
Drug trafficker dies after boat collision with Guardia Civil Vessel in Sanlúca
Three people were on the boat that collided with a Guardia Civil vessel around midnight at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, near the Andalusian city of Cádiz, a spokesperson for the Civil Guard reported.
Two officers sustained “contusions,” the spokesperson explained.
The drug traffickers managed to bring the boat to shore, where one of them was “abandoned” severely injured. The other two fled.
The Civil Guard officers attempted to resuscitate the victim before transporting him to Sanlúcar de Barrameda, but he ultimately died early in the morning.
The other two suspects took advantage of the officers’ absence while they were taking the victim and returned to set their boat on fire.
The collision occurred very close to the site of another accident on September 1, where a drug trafficker died following a Guardia Civil pursuit.
The suspects’ boat traveled “400 meters” before crashing head-on and “at full speed” into the riverbank, where a hundred bundles of hashish were found.
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