International

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un orders the mass production of drones for suicide attacks

North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, supervised a test of drones destined for suicide attacks and stressed the need for “their rapid large-scale mass production,” according to state media reports on Friday.

These types of drones are used in different attack ranges and have the mission of accurately aiming at any enemy target on land or sea, the North Korean state agency KCNA detailed on Friday, which also shared some images of the leader supervising the weapons tests.

Kim’s instructions on drones

Kim provided guidance on the tests to be carried out with these drones, by an institute affiliated with the Unmanned Aerial Technology Complex, according to the source, while the tests consisted of accurately reaching targets after flying along several pre-established tactical routes.

The leader of the hermetic country expressed his satisfaction with these new weapons and said that their mass production is essential “in the military aspect today.”

“The competition for the use of drones as the main means of military capabilities… is accelerating in the world,” he said, highlighting its growing range of military applications, its low production cost and the simplicity of its production line.

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More unmanned vehicles

This call from Kim continues in line with the one he already made last August, when he urged to manufacture more unmanned vehicles, both aerial and aquatic, of a suicidal type or to incorporate artificial intelligence into this type of weapon.

North Korea has developed several drone models in the last decade, and even sent five of them to South Korea, with whom it is technically still at war, in December 2022, with one of them reaching the center of Seoul.

In the current period of intense bilateral military cooperation, it is known that Russia has delivered some drones to North Korea, although the exact type is unknown.

It is believed that in turn, some drones or missiles used by Iran to attack Israel last April could in turn be North Koreans.

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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.