International

Thousands of people in Chile ask Boric for “concrete actions” after a year of war in Gaza

Thousands of people in Chile joined this Saturday in Santiago the global mobilization for the anniversary of the war in the Gaza Strip and asked the Government of Gabriel Boric for “concrete actions and not just words” and urged him to break diplomatic relations with Israel.

The march, which started from the Gabriela Mistral Cultural Center and in which chants such as “Israel kills and the Yankees sponsor” were heard, was called by the Palestinian community in Chile, considered the largest outside the Arab world, with about 500,000 people.

“Our country has always stood by Palestine and has always carried the name of human rights ahead. But we need concrete actions and not just words,” Nadia Gharib, of Palestinian descent and who attended the march with her family, told EFE.

What is the position of the president of Chile on Gaza?

Boric, a renowned defender of the Palestine cause, has repeatedly described the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip as “barbarism” and “criminal violence,” which has already left more than 41,000 people killed, mostly civilians.

During his speech at the last UN General Assembly, the president urged to “rebel against the double standard in human rights” and said that he refuses “to choose between Hamas terrorism or the massacre and genocide of Netanyahu’s Israel.”

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“We don’t have to choose between barbarisms. I choose humanity,” added Boric, who has so far refused to break diplomatic relations with Israel.

In January, Chile, along with Mexico, presented a request to the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate probable war crimes in the context of the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Chile also formally joined on September 12 the accusation of genocide against Israel that South Africa presented before the International Court of Justice, the highest court of the United Nations that is also located in The Hague.

More forcefulness against Israel

For Felipe, another demonstrator, the actions carried out so far are not enough and he asked to go further: “Any type of economic, military and political relationship with a State that is complying with a real genocide must be cut. And that is the first point in the table of all of us who have focused today on this mobilization,” he added.

A few meters later, the embroiderer Rosa Esther carried with a classmate a loom with children’s faces and the slogan “The children of Gaza are not a threat.”

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“We, through embroidery, capture that children are not a threat. Enough of making these innocent children suffer for a fight of egos, of adults,” he told EFE.

Chile recognized Palestine as a “free, independent and sovereign” state in 2011, during the first government of the conservative Sebastián Piñera (between 2010 and 2014).

International

Trump orders U.S. control of Strait of Hormuz after failed Iran talks

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that the United States will take control of the Strait of Hormuz“effective immediately,” following the collapse of negotiations with Iran held in Islamabad.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he had ordered the U.S. Navy to block vessels attempting to enter or exit the strategic waterway, a key route for global energy trade.

“The meeting went well, agreement was reached on most points, but the only really important one — nuclear weapons — was not approved,” Trump said, referring to the talks with Iranian representatives.

The president also stated that he had instructed authorities to intercept ships in international waters that had paid tolls to Iran to transit the strait, calling such payments “illegal.” He further accused Tehran of hindering an agreement by deploying mines in the area, describing the move as “international extortion.”

Trump added that the United States will undertake efforts to clear mines from the strait and expressed confidence that a future agreement ensuring free navigation could eventually be reached.

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The announcement came after Vice President JD Vance and special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner briefed the president on the outcome of the negotiations, considered the highest-level contacts between the two countries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

While Trump acknowledged that enough progress had been made to maintain a temporary truce, he criticized Iran for remaining unwilling to abandon its nuclear ambitions, calling its position “very inflexible” on the central issue.

International

Child Found Malnourished in Van in France; Father Admits Confinement

French gendarmes discovered a child in a van in Hagenbach, in northeastern France, after a neighbor reported hearing what she described as “childlike noises” coming from the parked vehicle.

After unlocking the van, officers found the boy lying in a fetal position, unclothed and covered with a blanket, surrounded by garbage and near human waste, according to a statement from the Mulhouse prosecutor, Nicolas Heitz.

Authorities said the child appeared pale and severely malnourished. Due to prolonged confinement in a seated position, he was no longer able to walk. He was immediately taken to a hospital in Mulhouse for medical care.

The boy’s father, who lived with his partner and two daughters aged 10 and 12, admitted to keeping the child confined and depriving him of proper care.

According to the prosecutor, the man said he placed the child in the van in November 2024, claiming he wanted to “protect him” because his partner intended to have the boy admitted to a psychiatric facility.

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The suspect also stated that he allowed the child out of the vehicle in May 2025 and permitted him to enter the family apartment around mid-year, when the rest of the family was on vacation.

The man’s partner—who is not the child’s mother—also faces charges, including failure to report abuse. However, she has denied all accusations.

International

Europe Faces Jet Fuel Shortage Risk Amid Hormuz Disruption

The Airports Council International Europe has warned of a potential “systemic shortage” of jet fuel if maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is not restored within the next three weeks, according to a letter reviewed by AFP on Friday.

In the document, addressed to the European Commission and first reported by the Financial Times, the European airport lobby stated that a “systemic jet fuel shortage will become a reality” in the European Union unless stable and significant transit through the strait resumes soon.

The association, which represents around 600 airports across 50 countries, called on Brussels to implement “urgent monitoring of fuel availability and supply” over the next six months.

Jet fuel prices have surged amid the conflict in the Middle East and the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global energy transport.

The conflict escalated on February 28 following joint U.S. and Israeli airstrikes against Iran.

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In response, Tehran imposed several countermeasures, including blocking maritime traffic through the strait, a route through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil, jet fuel, and gas supply passes.