International
The pro-Palestinian student movement in the United States looks at itself in history to continue
Opposition to the war in Gaza has triggered a student movement in the United States not seen since the protests against apartheid in South Africa in the 1980s and in rejection of the Vietnam War in the 60s, although the difference is the strong police reaction to more peaceful rallies.
The one that has already been called by historians such as Robert Cohen, of New York University, as the largest university movement in the United States in the 21st century has parallels with the uprisings of the past, but is also unique in forcing Washington to “be more careful with what it does with its military help.”
For Juan González, who was one of the leaders of the 1968 protests at Columbia University (New York), today’s demonstrations are much more peaceful but are facing more immediate repression.
“Never in the history of student protests has a protest been suppressed for so little violation of the law,” said Cohen, an expert in social movements, in a recent interview.
“Basically they are setting up camps in public spaces, they are not interfering with classes (…) we took several buildings in a single day,” he said in an interview with EFE González, 76, who considers that the police response is being much more severe on this occasion, with eviction of peaceful camps and more than 2,000 arrested.
Authorities from both New York City in the United States and the university were willing to negotiate with González and the other student leaders, he explained, something that has only happened in a handful of educational centers during the current movement.
In educational centers such as the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Texas in Austin or the University of South Florida in Tampa in the United States, state and local law enforcement agencies have entered to evict the camps and forcibly expel the students shortly after they congregated with the approval of the university authorities.
Another of the main differences is the historical context: the student protests of 1968 against the Vietnam War were included in a much larger movement that transcended the campuses and that included other causes such as the rejection of racial discrimination.
“Our strike in Columbia began only a couple of weeks after Martin Luther King was killed (…) there were riots and riots in more than 100 cities across the country,” explained González, who recalls that the worst moment of police repression was when in 1970 the Ohio National Guard killed four students at Kent State University.
The students’ requests, however, have similarities. Currently, university students ask educational centers to cut all kinds of ties with Israel and its military industry, while in 1968 they asked the institution to cut ties with the IDA, a center that was investigating weapons to be used in Vietnam.
The protests of now are also loaded with an “internationalist perspective” something that for the historian of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Tanalís Padilla did not happen years ago in the United States.
“Within the empire, the country’s actions are rarely taken aware of,” Padilla said of these protests against injustices that are happening “in another part of the world.”
The author of “After Zapata” indicated that this student movement has similarities with the fight against the Vietnam war in the 70s and the civil rights claims in the 60s, but contrary to the first case, “U.S. soldiers are not dying” and, in the second, there was no internationalist vision and solidarity with the suffering of the people of Palestine.
“It is a movement of international solidarity that has not been seen in a long time, which gives hope and it is very important that it happens in the most powerful country in the world,” said the teacher, a Jewish descendant of victims of the Holocaust and who has participated in the MIT student camp.
International
Senate Bipartisan Vote Moves Measure to Block Further U.S. Military Action in Venezuela
The U.S. Senate took a significant step on Thursday toward limiting President Donald Trump’s military authority in Venezuela, advancing a bipartisan war powers resolution that would block further military actions without explicit congressional approval, lawmakers said.
In a 52-47 procedural vote, the measure moved forward after five Republican senators joined all Democrats in supporting the effort. The resolution aims to require presidential authorization from Congress before the United States can engage in any new hostilities against Venezuela, a rare rebuke of Trump from both sides of the aisle following the controversial military operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
If ultimately passed, the legislation would obligate the administration to withdraw U.S. forces from any imminent hostilities in or against Venezuela unless Congress explicitly authorizes such actions. However, the measure’s future remains uncertain as it heads next to the House of Representatives, where a Republican majority is less likely to approve it, and any final version would likely face a presidential veto. Overriding a veto would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers, a high threshold in the current political landscape.
President Trump has sharply criticized Republican senators who broke ranks to support the resolution, saying they should not be re-elected and arguing that the measure undermines his authority to act in national defense. Nevertheless, the vote signals growing bipartisan concern in Congress about unchecked executive military action in the absence of legislative authorization.
International
Petro and Trump Agree on Joint Action Against ELN Guerrillas After Tense Diplomacy
Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump agreed on “joint actions” to combat the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla group operating along the Colombia–Venezuela border, Colombia’s Interior Minister Armando Benedetti said on Thursday.
The announcement came after a period of heightened diplomatic tension triggered by recent U.S. airstrikes in Venezuela, the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and threats of possible U.S. military action in Colombia. The phone call Wednesday evening was the first direct conversation between Petro and Trump since both leaders took office, and it helped ease the strained relationship.
During the call, both presidents committed to carry out joint efforts against the ELN, a guerrilla group that has repeatedly attacked Colombian security forces and is accused of kidnapping soldiers. In December, the ELN declared a “armed strike,” confining civilians in areas under its control in response to perceived threats of U.S. intervention.
According to Benedetti, Petro welcomed Trump’s invitation to meet in Washington and asked for U.S. support to “strike hard” against ELN positions along the porous border with Venezuela, where guerrillas often flee after clashes with Colombian forces.
The border region is a longstanding flashpoint, where armed groups, drug traffickers and illegal mining networks compete for control. Previous attempts by Petro’s government to negotiate peace with the ELN have stalled after a major offensive in Catatumbo that left hundreds dead and displaced thousands.
International
Lula Vetoes Bill That Would Have Shortened Bolsonaro’s Prison Sentence
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva vetoed on Thursday a bill that would have significantly reduced the prison sentence of his far-right predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently serving time for attempting a coup d’état.
Despite the veto, the conservative-majority Congress retains the power to override the decision through a vote.
In September, following a landmark trial, Brazil’s Supreme Court sentenced Bolsonaro to 27 years in prison after finding him guilty of conspiring to remain in power in an “authoritarian” manner following his defeat to Lula in the 2022 presidential election.
The 70-year-old former president has been incarcerated in a Brasília prison since late November. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court rejected a request for house arrest on health grounds.
Under the current legal framework, Bolsonaro would be required to serve approximately eight years before becoming eligible for sentence leniency. However, a bill passed by Congress in December could have reduced that period to just over two years, prompting Lula’s veto.
Senate Bipartisan Vote Moves Measure to Block Further U.S. Military Action in Venezuela
Petro and Trump Agree on Joint Action Against ELN Guerrillas After Tense Diplomacy
Lula Vetoes Bill That Would Have Shortened Bolsonaro’s Prison Sentence
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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