International
Migrants at the border suffer post-traumatic stress after the violence in Mexico
Citizen associations warn of an increase in post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) in migrants stranded on the northern border of Mexico in the face of cases of kidnapping, abuse and exploitation they experience when crossing Mexican territory.
Migrants present this psychological disorder that arises in response to extremely stressful events, and is characterized by symptoms such as retrospective sequences or flashbacks, nightmares, intense anxiety and difficulties in sleeping or concentrating.
The biggest trigger is kidnappings, Sara Villegas Torres, a lawyer for the Jesuit Refugee Service in Ciudad Juárez, one of the epicenters of migration on the border of Mexico with the United States, told EFE.
“What we have mostly detected is the issue of kidnappings, not only here in the entity (Chihuahua) but throughout Mexico, it is inevitable to encounter these stories because it is something that happens to most of the people with whom we have contact,” he described.
In July alone, there were two massive kidnappings of a total of 36 migrants in Chihuahua, according to the organization Alto al Secuestro, which documented a total of 196 foreigners kidnapped in the seventh month of the year, a monthly increase of more than 20%.
This organization reported 772 kidnappings of migrants in 2023, representing about a third of the total national victims of this crime.
This leaves sequelae in people like Cindy Vázquez, from Honduras, who told EFE how a crime cartel kidnapped the group with which she was traveling in Mexico.
“They told us ‘drem down’. But we thought it was the Police or Migration, because we had no problems with migration. But when they got us down and got us up, I lost all my belongings, I lost everything because I didn’t have time to take anything out of the lower part of the bus. And when they got us into a car, even then I knew we were kidnapped,” he said.
They were transferred to a warehouse, 15 minutes away before reaching the state of Chihuahua, where there were also many people kidnapped, according to him, and his family had to give a rescue.
“They told us that we were deprived of our freedom and that we were going to be there as long as our family paid a ransom. Our family had to pay a lot of money,” he said.
He mentioned that the kidnappers were wearing a uniform, brown pants and a navy blue shirt with a shotgun on the back, but without official logos.
In the end they were able to leave with a payment of 10,000 dollars for her and her family, so she warned her compatriots that it is very dangerous to go through Mexico.
“We just wanted to get to a better place, that we could work, that we could start from scratch, but no, the truth is that I wouldn’t stay living in Mexico,” Cindy said.
Another case is that of Roxana Yamilet Velázquez, originally from El Salvador, who described the difficult road she and two other relatives, her cousins Diego José and Adriana Elizabeth, who died in the desert of the northern border of Mexico.
“It gave him like a heat respiratory arrest and from there we were transferred, well, Migration grabbed them and took us to a hospital because we were dehydrated,” he said.
He said that the sand was very hot to the point of burning his skin, and the water they carried in bottles boiled after a short time due to temperatures that reached 40 degrees.
“It was boiling, already very hot, we couldn’t drink or anything and my cousin started fighting about halfway. Even me too, and she couldn’t resist, because she was the one who fought the most,” Roxana recalled about how her cousin’s life was going.
These events occur in the midst of a 193% year-on-year increase in irregular migration through Mexico in the first half of the year to over 712,000 people, according to the Government’s Migration Policy Unit.
International
Ombudsman confirms deaths of six minors in bombing targeting FARC dissidents
Colombia’s Ombudsman’s Office reported on Saturday the deaths of six minors who had been recruited by guerrilla groups, killed during the deadliest airstrike ordered by President Gustavo Petro in an Amazonian region in the south of the country.
Amid pre-election criticism and pressure from the United States demanding stronger action against drug trafficking, Petro has intensified military operations against armed groups. Over the past week, a series of bombings have left 28 people dead.
The minors were killed in an airstrike announced on Tuesday against a camp belonging to dissident factions of the now-defunct FARC guerrilla in the department of Guaviare, resulting in 19 deaths—the largest operation of its kind under Petro’s administration.
“This is all deeply regrettable; it is war in its most painful and inhumane expression, harming the most vulnerable—minors recruited due to lack of protection and now turned into military targets,” said Ombudswoman Iris Marín in an audio message sent to the press, confirming the deaths of six minors without providing their ages.
Marín held the guerrilla group led by the country’s most-wanted man, alias Iván Mordisco, responsible for recruiting the children.
However, she also stressed that “the military forces must take every feasible precaution to protect children,” in accordance with international principles that require “careful evaluation of the means and methods of warfare to avoid disproportionate or unnecessary harm.”
International
Colombia reaches $4.5 billion deal to acquire 17 Gripen Fighter Jets from Saab
The Colombian government has finalized a negotiation agreement with the Swedish company Saab for the purchase of 17 SAP-39 Gripen fighter jets, valued at more than $4.5 billion, according to local media reports.
Colombian outlets indicated that payments are scheduled to begin in 2026, starting with an initial installment of 100 billion Colombian pesos. However, the aircraft will be delivered between 2027 and 2032, when the final jet is expected to arrive in Colombia.
This new contract represents the second-largest public purchase made by Colombia so far this century, surpassed only by the investment in the Bogotá metro system, local media noted.
The agreement is expected to be officially signed during the ceremony commemorating the 216th anniversary of the Colombian Aerospace Force, to be held in Cali on November 14 of this year.
International
Venezuela accuses U.S. of using Naval Deployment to pressure Maduro government
The world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, joined the U.S. Navy’s anti-drug operation in Latin America on Tuesday—a deployment Venezuela has condemned as an attempt to pressure President Nicolás Maduro from power.
In a statement, the U.S. Southern Command confirmed that the carrier, ordered to deploy nearly three weeks ago, has entered its area of responsibility, which includes Latin America and the Caribbean.
“The world’s largest aircraft carrier will strengthen the United States’ ability to detect, monitor, and dismantle illicit actors and activities that threaten the security and prosperity of U.S. territory and our safety in the Western Hemisphere,” said Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell.
According to the White House, the U.S. government under Donald Trump has carried out about twenty operations in the Caribbean and the Pacific since early September, resulting in the deaths of 76 suspected drug traffickers.
However, U.S. authorities have not yet presented evidence that the targeted vessels were being used for drug trafficking or posed a direct threat to the country.
The operations have raised concerns in Caracas, where the Maduro administration views the deployment as a strategic move aimed at provoking regime change in Venezuela.
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