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.”
“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.”
“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
Tensions Escalate in Middle East as U.S. Bombs Iran After Maritime Attacks
The United States launched new strikes against Iran on Wednesday, following President Donald Trump’s warning that Washington would “hit hard” against the Islamic Republic. While Trump ordered the retaliation after attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, he also said he hoped the latest wave of bombings would end soon and left the door open for renewed negotiations.
U.S. forces “have begun carrying out additional strikes against Iran to further reduce its ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” the United States Central Command said in a post on X.
Washington blamed Iran for what it described as “recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping.”
Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported that explosions were heard in the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Konarak, and Chabahar.
“This is in retaliation for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran. If it happens again, it will be much worse,” Trump wrote on social media alongside an image showing what appeared to be a bombing at an Iranian location.
Before ordering the strikes, the U.S. president said that the ceasefire with Iran had ended. Mediators Pakistan and Qatar called for de-escalation, while the United Nations also urged both sides to reduce tensions.
The Strait of Hormuz remains a critical flashpoint in the Middle East conflict, which began in late February after U.S. and Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran-linked attacks on at least three vessels in recent days triggered a U.S. offensive against Iranian targets on Tuesday. Tehran responded by launching attacks against Gulf countries that are allies of Washington.
International
Deadly Drug Trade Rivalry Suspected After Eight Bodies Discovered in Southern Mexico
Eight bodies were found Wednesday along a highway in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas, near the border with Guatemala, in an incident authorities believe may be linked to a dispute over local drug sales.
The victims — six men and two women — were found abandoned on a road in a mountainous area of the municipality of El Bosque, according to the state prosecutor’s office in a statement published on Facebook.
Initial investigations indicate that the killings may be connected to “a dispute over retail drug sales between local criminal groups operating in the region,” the prosecutor’s office said.
Local media reports that several criminal incidents have increased in the area since the beginning of the year.
The road where the bodies were discovered is located in a mountainous region largely inhabited by Indigenous communities. Authorities have not released further details about the victims or possible suspects as the investigation continues.
Central America
Regional Naval Operations Strike Drug Cartels, Disrupting Cocaine and Weapons Trafficking Routes
Transnational operations carried out by regional naval forces, including El Salvador’s National Navy, the United States Coast Guard, and Mexico’s Secretariat of the Navy (SEMAR), have dealt significant blows to international drug trafficking organizations.
The operations have not only led to the seizure of massive cocaine shipments, such as the 6.68 metric tons of cocaine valued at approximately $167 million presented last Wednesday by El Salvador’s Security Cabinet, but have also resulted in the confiscation of high-powered weapons allegedly intended as payment to criminal organizations, according to Security Minister Gustavo Villatoro.
“Based on the strength of the data, not just the narratives, we can state that our National Navy has documented the only known operation in the Pacific Ocean in which a criminal organization from the south was transporting drugs and exchanging them with a group from the north for firearms,” Villatoro said.
The exchange of weapons for drugs between criminal groups in the Pacific Ocean represents a logistical method in which South American cartels from countries such as Colombia and Ecuador negotiate with Mexican and Central American organizations to trade military-grade weapons for cocaine shipments.
Regional naval authorities have identified that meeting points located farther from the coastline in international waters make it easier for armed groups to receive supplies and carry out exchanges undetected. As a result, El Salvador’s National Navy deploys teams from the Trident Naval Task Force (FTNT) aboard maritime patrol vessels to intercept these operations.
Initially, the patrol units are ordered to travel up to 200 nautical miles offshore, but later receive instructions from the Maritime Operations Center to extend their missions beyond 1,000 nautical miles, reaching coordinates used by drug trafficking vessels operating in the open sea.
“We cannot lose focus on the routes these criminal organizations use to move drugs,” Minister Villatoro said, emphasizing the importance of maintaining surveillance over the various maritime corridors used for narcotics trafficking.
Panama launches anti-drone measures as prison security crisis deepens
Tensions Escalate in Middle East as U.S. Bombs Iran After Maritime Attacks
Deadly Drug Trade Rivalry Suspected After Eight Bodies Discovered in Southern Mexico
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International3 days agoWildfires Burn Nearly 7,800 Hectares in France as Extreme Heat Fuels Fire Risk
-
Central America1 day agoPanama launches anti-drone measures as prison security crisis deepens
-
International3 days agoUN Appeals for $296 Million in Emergency Aid Following Venezuela Earthquakes
-
International2 days agoDeadly Drug Trade Rivalry Suspected After Eight Bodies Discovered in Southern Mexico
-
International3 days agoUSAR El Salvador Helps Rescue Dogs Trapped for 12 Days Beneath Earthquake Rubble
-
Central America3 days agoRegional Naval Operations Strike Drug Cartels, Disrupting Cocaine and Weapons Trafficking Routes
-
International3 days agoGerman Doctor Sentenced to Life for Murdering 15 Patients in Serial Killing Case
-
International2 days agoTensions Escalate in Middle East as U.S. Bombs Iran After Maritime Attacks