International

The Venezuelan Prosecutor’s Office processes the request for an arrest warrant against Javier Milei

The Venezuelan Prosecutor’s Office is processing the request for an arrest warrant against the President of Argentina, Javier Milei – to whom it opened “an investigation” – for the “theft” of the Venezuelan-Iranian plane that was detained in Buenos Aires since June 2022 and was sent to the United States in February, the Attorney General, Tarek William Saab, reported on Wednesday.

The institution “announces the assignment of two prosecutors specialized in the matter, who are advancing the relevant steps to the case and are processing the arrest warrant” also against the Secretary General of the Presidency of Argentina, Karina Milei, and the Minister of Security of the Southern Country, Patricia Bullrich.

“This, in the coming hours, will have its consequences in a competent court here in Venezuela with the respective arrest warrants in the competent bodies, because that cannot go unpunished,” said Saab, whose statements were transmitted by the state channel VTV.

He explained that, in the case of the plane, which was “totally dismantled” in the United States, the crimes of “aggravated theft, legitimation of capital, illegitimate deprivation of liberty, simulation of a punishable act, illicit interference, aircraft inactivation and criminal association” were incurred, according to Venezuelan legislation.

On the other hand, Saab reported the appointment of a “specialized prosecutor in human rights protection to carry out the corresponding investigations” against Milei and Bullrich for “the actions committed against the Argentine people.”

“We could be in the presence of serious human rights violations that could constitute crimes against humanity,” he said.

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In that sense, the prosecutor, who called Milei “fascist” and “neo-Nazi,” said that in Argentina a “program of premeditated institutional violence” is applied against his population, so he pointed to the president of the southern country as “the most fierce human rights violator on the continent” and as “a brutal danger to the entire hemisphere.”

This month, the Argentine Foreign Ministry urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to request an arrest warrant against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and “other leaders of the regime,” in the face of “the worsening situation” after the presidential elections in the Caribbean country on July 28.

The Government of Argentina repudiated on Wednesday the decision of the Venezuelan Prosecutor’s Office to process the request for an arrest warrant against Argentine President Javier Milei, in the case of the Venezuelan-Iranian plane detained in Buenos Aires since 2022 and sent to the United States last February.

“The Argentine Republic repudiates the arrest warrants issued by the Attorney General of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela against the President of the Nation, Javier Milei, the Secretary General of the Presidency, Karina Milei, and the Minister of Security, Patricia Bullrich, following the incident of the Emtrasur plane,” the Argentine Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

According to the Government of Milei, “the aforementioned case was resolved by the Judiciary, an independent power over which the Executive cannot and should not have any interference, in application of an international agreement.”

“The Argentine government reminds the Venezuelan regime that the division of powers and the independence of judges prevail in the Argentine Republic, something that unfortunately does not happen in Venezuela under the regime of Nicolás Maduro,” the statement adds.

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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.

International

Federal court blocks Trump’s use of Enemy Alien Act for deportations

A federal appeals court upheld the block on former President Donald Trump’s use of the Enemy Alien Act on Wednesday, preventing him from using the law to expedite deportations of alleged members of the transnational criminal group Tren de Aragua.

With a 2-1 ruling, a panel from the Washington, D.C. Court of Appeals affirmed previous decisions by two lower court judges, maintaining the legal standoff between the White House and the judiciary.

On March 14, Trump invoked the 1798 Enemy Alien Act, a law traditionally used during wartime, to deport hundreds of Venezuelans whom he accused of belonging to Tren de Aragua, a criminal organization that originated in Venezuelan prisons.

The centuries-old law grants the president the power to detain, restrict, and expel foreign nationals from a country engaged in a “declared war” or an “invasion or predatory incursion” against the United States, following a public proclamation.