International

The Pentagon reaches an agreement with LGTBIQ veterans discharged for their sexual orientation

The Pentagon announced on Monday that it reached an agreement with a group of five plaintiffs, representing more than 30,000 LGTBIQ veterans who unsubscribed because of their sexual orientation, according to US media reports.

Veterans who sued the Department of Defense were fired when a controversial measure was in force – known as ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ or ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ in English – that forced LGBTQ people to hide their sexuality in order to be military.

The agreement streamlines the process so that these veterans can eliminate references to their sexual orientation in the discharge documents and the Department of Defense records.

“When I was discharged because of my sexual orientation, I felt that my country was telling me that my service was worthless, that I was ‘less than’ for the person I loved,” Sherrill Farrell, a veteran of the US Navy and one of the five people who filed the lawsuit, said in a press release.

“Today, once again I feel proud to have served my country by defending veterans like me and ensuring that our honor is recognized,” she added.

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In the lawsuit, the veterans alleged that the Pentagon violated their rights by not granting them “honorable” casualties or removing references to their sexual orientation from their record after the discriminatory policy was removed in 2011.

The government tried to dismiss the lawsuit and a federal judge in California allowed the class action to take course in June, concluding that the army’s decision to leave the discharge documents of LGTBQ veterans unchanged “was motivated by a discriminatory intention.”

The ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy came into effect in 1993 and allowed sexual orientation to be indicated as the main reason for the dismissal of the military.

Some of the veterans discharged under this restriction lost access to benefits such as military discounts, college tuition assistance, loan programs, and more.

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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.