Survivors Describe Deadly Snowstorm In Chilean Patagonia

Survivors Describe Deadly Snowstorm in Chilean Patagonia Five tourists, from Mexico, Britain and Germany, died Monday on a popular hiking trail in the Torres del Paine National Park. Listen to this article · 5:56 min Learn more Share full article Three people are visible on a mountainous area. They are wearing visibility vests and other climbing and rescue equipment. There is snow on the rocks and there are trees in the background. A picture released by Chile’s Carabineros shows a rescue team at the end of their search and recovery operation for a group of tourists.Credit...Agence France-Presse, via Carabineros de Chile By Livia Albeck-Ripka and Pascale Bonnefoy Nov. 21, 2025 When the hikers left the campsite early Monday, it was drizzling, windy and just above freezing in Torres del Paine, a national park with towering granite peaks and glaciers in Chilean Patagonia. They had the most difficult stretch of their journey ahead. But they had no idea they would be hit by a blizzard with hurricane-force winds of 120 miles an hour, unable to see more than 10 feet in front of them. Within hours, more than two dozen were injured and five were missing. The next day, the authorities confirmed that all five of the missing — tourists from Mexico, Britain and Germany — had died. At a news conference on Thursday, Cristián Crisosto, the regional prosecutor for Magallanes, which includes the national park, said that he had opened an investigation and that the police were taking statements from park staff, from Vertice, the company that operates the campground, known as Los Perros, and from 69 people who were there on the day of the snowstorm. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Mr. Crisosto said all five had died of hypothermia, and 27 people were injured in the blizzard. Álvaro Elizalde, the Chilean interior minister, said the government was working with consulates to return the bodies of Cristina Calvillo Tovar and Julián García Pimentel from Mexico, Victoria Bond from Britain and Nadine Lichey and Andreas Von Pein from Germany. Chile’s National Forest Corporation said Wednesday that it deeply regretted the episode and was focused on relocating anyone who had been on the affected trail, the O Circuit, a challenging 85-mile loop that takes eight or nine days to complete. The five died on a stretch of the circuit known as the John Gardner Pass, the highest and most exposed section. The park authority said the circuit would be closed while it investigates. In an interview with local media on Wednesday, Mauricio Ruiz, the regional director of the park service in Magallanes, said there were no rangers in the park on Monday because they left the previous day to vote in the country’s presidential election. He described the region where the blizzard took place as “the most complex area of the mountain.” Rodrigo Illesca, the director of the park service, told the radio station ADN that he was not informed of the emergency until 6 p.m. on Monday. Dozens of hikers who were on the trail and at the campground on the day of the snowstorm sharply criticized the lack of warning and the emergency response, which they said was severely delayed and insufficient. Editors’ Picks The World’s Largest Afro Took Three People to Measure It I Was Deemed Unfit to Be a Mother Why ‘Surveillance Pricing’ Strikes a Nerve SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT “We want to make it clear that this was a terrible, avoidable tragedy. Nobody should have been allowed, let alone encouraged, to go up the pass that day, as we were by Vertice staff,” the group said in a statement shared by one of the hikers. According to the group, the staff at the camp offered no safety guidance or help, even after dozens of hikers — forced to turn back because of the conditions — had returned to the campsite suffering from hypothermia, frostbite, abrasions and head injuries. “They just were not seeming to grasp what had happened, like at all,” said Dr. Megan Wingfield, one of the surviving hikers. Vertice, the company that operates the campground, said in a statement that it had contacted the authorities and provided logistical support to rescue teams. Dr. Wingfield, 34, said she and her husband, both anesthesiologists and avid hikers from Colorado, had arrived at the Los Perros campsite on Sunday evening, planning to hike the John Gardner Pass the next day. The hikers had no internet access at the site, she said, but asked the staff whether the rain and wind were typical for this time of year. She said the staff reassured her and others that the conditions were not unusual, and recommended hiking the pass between about 8 a.m. and noon. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Around 6:45 a.m. the next day, the couple left the campsite, Dr. Wingfield said, wearing warm layers, wind pants, raincoats, hiking boots and crampons, as well as gloves, hats and gaiters to keep their faces warm. Within a few hours, she said, the wind was so strong that she and others in the group could barely stand. Then, less than 700 feet from the top of the pass, three young men heading in the opposite direction, their facial hair encased in icicles, warned them it was too treacherous to go on. “We all sort of came to the conclusion, ‘OK, we’re not doing this,’” she said. The group turned around. Between gusts, the hikers could see about 10 feet ahead, and otherwise only two or three. They were forced to backtrack down a steep rocky slope that had turned into an “ice rink,” she said. Bodies slid in all directions. One man skidded nearly 50 feet, headfirst toward a pile of rocks, Dr. Wingfield said. “Thank God, his backpack hit the rocks before his head did,” she said. “He stood up and said, ‘Am I going to die today?’” The ice, she said, was streaked with blood. People screamed as they slid into one another. When a man who was diabetic collapsed, Dr. Wingfield and her husband wrapped him in an emergency shelter, gave him a packet of applesauce and pleaded with him to keep going. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Around 11:30 a.m., Dr. Wingfield and her husband had returned to the camp with dozens of others, many bleeding and bruised, and nearly all with mild hypothermia, she said. There were doctors in the group who worked to treat the injured, she added, but the staff offered no assistance, refused to call for help and would not open a room where the group could stay warm. Around 12:30 p.m., she said, the hikers organized a search-and-rescue effort for those who had not returned. Some were trying to determine who was missing and which authorities to call. A few recalled one of the hikers, who was later found dead, falling repeatedly. Just after 3:30 p.m., another hiker, Arab Ginnett, posted for help on social media. “We are snowed in and people are still out on the pass,” she wrote. “We need urgent help, climbers and rescuers are on the risk of dying based on our current situation,” she said. Livia Albeck-Ripka is a Times reporter based in Los Angeles, covering breaking news, California and other subjects. Share full article

Argentine Congress Report Accuses President Of Crypto Fraud

Argentine Congress Report Accuses President of Crypto Fraud Argentina An Argentine congressional commission this week found that President Javier Milei may have committed misconduct and engaged in “alleged fraud” by using his public office to promote a cryptocurrency project that later collapsed, MercoPress reported Wednesday. The House of Deputies’ Investigative Commission released a final report this week in which they alleged that Milei and his sister, Presidential Secretary Karina Milei, were “key players” in enabling what lawmakers allege was an international scam. The scandal began in mid-February, when Milei promoted the $LIBRA token on social media. The token initially surged in value but crashed within hours, causing losses of several million dollars for more than 114,000 digital wallets. Industry analysts described the operation as a “rug pull,” a scam in which developers boost a token’s value and then exit before it collapses, according to the Buenos Aires Times. Technical reports show that 80 percent of wallets lost money, while 36 individuals made profits of more than $1 million. The commission’s findings claimed that Milei breached Argentina’s public ethics law by using his presidential authority to promote a private venture and by bypassing technical and legal reviews. The report also found direct links between Milei and the project’s promoters, including US entrepreneur Hayden Davis and Argentines Mauricio Novelli and Manuel Terrones Godoy. Meanwhile, the commission said it will also file criminal complaints against a number of officials who allegedly obstructed the investigation, including Justice Minister Mariano Cúneo Libarona and Anti-Corruption Office head Alejandro Melik. Lawmakers wrote that these officials “systematically refused to cooperate” with the probe. Milei has denied promoting the project, claiming he merely “shared” it and “did not know the details.” He called himself a “fanatic techno optimist” who wants Argentina to become a “technology hub.” The commission has now submitted its report to Congress to determine whether Milei engaged in poor performance of his duties. However, no timeline for considering the question has been set, and observers said that after new pro-Milei lawmakers elected in October’s midterm vote take office on Dec. 10, it’s likely that no further action will be taken.

Peruvian Roulette: Peruvians Take To The Streets Against Another New Government That Feels all Too Familiar

Peruvian Roulette: Peruvians Take to the Streets Against Another New Government that Feels All Too Familiar Peru Ernesto, 43, used to love being a bus driver in the Peruvian capital of Lima. Now, he is scared of dying on the job for refusing to pay gangs. “Before, they’d rob you, take your cell phone, or your day’s earnings,” Ernesto told El País. “Now it’s like Russian roulette: Imagine I go out right now and it’s my turn, they shoot me and it’s all over.” “People are terrified,” he added. Driving a bus has become one of Peru’s most dangerous jobs, with drivers often murdered for refusing to pay protection money to gangs such as Peru’s Los Pulpos and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua. But most people being extorted have very little extra to give. “We’re being murdered for 5 soles ($1.50),” Julio Campos, a 57-year-old bus driver, told Le Monde. “Extortion has become institutionalized.” From January to September this year, the country had 20,705 complaints for extortion, though analysts believe the actual number of such crimes is far higher. Meanwhile, murders in Peru have surged: There were 2,082 homicides last year – half of them contract killings – up from a previous high of 676 total homicides in 2017. Fed up with crime, political chaos and the rising cost of living, Gen Z-led protests broke out in September, often turning violent. A month later, President Dina Boluarte, 63, already under investigation for corruption and facing single-digit approval ratings, was impeached for “permanent moral incapacity,” but mainly for failing to make a dent in the growing criminality taking over the country. The move came just hours after a shooting at a concert in Lima outraged the public. Boluarte was replaced by interim President José Jerí, a conservative politician best known for being elected as the Speaker of Congress despite being accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a Christmas party last year. He has become Peru’s eighth president in less than a decade. According to the Economist, one of Jerí’s first moves as interim president was to “unfollow adult content accounts on social media and delete his lecherous past posts,” with critics calling him “el presidente Pajero,” or “the wanker president.” Fresh protests broke out with Peruvians calling for Jerí to resign, but they were met by a harsh government crackdown in which one protester died and hundreds more were injured. In response to the unrest, Jerí declared a one-month state of emergency in Lima and the neighboring port of Callao. He’s also made a show of visiting prisons to promote a tough-on-crime image, wrote CNN’s Spanish edition. Still, youth groups have pledged to defy the state of emergency – which has sent soldiers onto the streets and restricted the freedoms of assembly and movement – and continue protesting. “We have the constitutional right to protest,” said Jorge Calmet, one of the Gen Z protest leaders. “That right cannot be taken away from us by a police commander, a congressman – and certainly not by someone who pretends to be president. We will march as many times as necessary.” Despite violent nationwide protests and a failed attempt by leftist lawmakers to impeach him, Jeri has refused to resign, the Financial Times noted. With approval ratings below 5 percent, the unpopular leader is seen as more of the same, analysts say. Still, “Even by the recent dismal standards of Peruvian politics, the ascension of Jose Jeri to be interim president marks a new low” for the country, World Politics Review wrote.  Meanwhile, analysts say that it wasn’t Boluarte’s failure to tackle rising crime that got her impeached but that lawmakers realized her usefulness to them was over – that support for her would hurt their 2026 election campaigns. In 2022, serving as vice president, Boluarte took over the top job following the ouster of far-left President Pedro Castillo, who was impeached for attempting to dissolve Congress to prevent his removal, the BBC explained. Without her own political party in Congress, she was only able to govern due to the support of an informal coalition of right-wing and centrist lawmakers. During her administration, these politicians effectively reshaped Peru’s institutions to protect themselves from corruption investigations, a move that included weakening law enforcement and the judicial system, thereby empowering criminal networks. Analysts say that’s why Boluarte’s impeachment should not be viewed as resolving a political problem. Rather, it actually deepened Peru’s crisis to bring the country to a breaking point. They add that the upcoming election – which has no clear frontrunner yet – could still serve up a reformist leader who could address crime and corruption and shore up Peru’s democracy. Or it may lead to a populist president who capitalizes on the widespread frustration with insecurity and inflation by promising strict order among an electorate that feels abandoned by its leaders. “Peru’s crisis is no longer just about corruption or governance – it is about the basic survival of the rule of law,” wrote Martin Cassinelli of the Atlantic Council. “The October protests should not be seen as another episode in the country’s cyclical instability but as a warning that the old model – political chaos insulated from economic collapse – has possibly reached its breaking point. Unless the next government restores both security and institutional credibility, Peru’s democracy risks becoming not merely ungovernable, but unrecognizable.”

Ecuadorians Reject Foreign Military Bases In Their Country

Ecuadorians Reject Foreign Military Bases in the Country Ecuador Ecuadoreans overwhelmingly rejected four constitutional proposals backed by President Daniel Noboa on Sunday, including the reversal of a ban on foreign military bases in the country passed by the legislature in 2008, the BBC reported. The result was a disappointment for Noboa, having campaigned for the reversal, claiming foreign troops would help fight organized crime and curb the rising violence that has swept the country in recent years, as it has emerged as one of the world’s drug-trafficking hotspots. It also dashed US hopes of expanding its presence in the eastern Pacific. Earlier this year, Noboa said that he wanted foreign militaries to join what he described as a “war” against narco-trafficking groups. Ecuador does not produce cocaine, but its huge ports and proximity to Colombia and Peru – where drugs are produced in large quantities – make the country an appealing and lucrative location for drug-trafficking gangs. According to Noboa, about 70 percent of the world’s cocaine transits through Ecuador. Noboa has also recently discussed increased regional security and migration co-operation with US officials and met with US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem last week to examine possible locations for US bases, MercoPress added. The US – which is currently striking alleged drug-smuggling boats in the eastern Pacific and the Caribbean – had hoped the referendum would allow it to re-establish a military base in Ecuador. The US was forced to close a facility on the country’s Pacific coast 16 years ago, when former President Rafael Correa decided not to renew its lease and pushed for the ban. Voters in Ecuador also rejected proposals to eliminate state funding for political parties, reduce the size of Congress, and establish a constitutional assembly to rewrite the country’s constitution. Noboa insisted that a new constitution would allow for tougher punishments for criminals and stronger measures to secure the borders. But critics contended that the proposed changes would not solve Ecuador’s security situation and accused Noboa of trying to obtain a custom-made constitution to govern without limits. They also warned that plans to shrink the size of Congress and reduce funding for political parties could result in a reduction in checks and balances on the government and weaker representation for Ecuadorans living in poorer areas. The government countered that the moves would trim state expenditures. A military crackdown on criminal gangs, including deploying armed soldiers on the streets, has been the hallmark of Noboa’s presidency. While his supporters think the approach has been successful, opponents accuse his government of authoritarianism. Share this story

Mexico: Generation Z Protestors Clash With Police

Gen Z-led Protesters Clash With Police Over Rising Insecurity Mexico Thousands of people took to the streets of Mexico’s capital Saturday to protest against rising crime, corruption, and impunity from prosecution in a demonstration led by Gen Z activists but joined by older opposition supporters, the Associated Press reported. The protest began peacefully but later descended into clashes near the National Palace in Mexico City, where President Claudia Sheinbaum resides. Protesters dismantled parts of a security barrier and threw stones, fireworks, and chains at police, who responded with tear gas. Authorities said at least 120 people were injured, including 100 police officers. Twenty people were arrested. The marches were organized by members of Generation Z – people born between the late 1990s and early 2010s – with participants carrying signs denouncing insecurity and government inaction. Others rallied against the assassination of Mayor Carlos Manzo, who was killed in the western city of Uruapan earlier this month. Manzo was known for confronting drug cartels in Michoacán state and has become a rallying symbol for protesters demanding stronger action against the criminal organizations, the BBC noted. While Sheinbaum has increased efforts to combat fentanyl trafficking and cartel violence, her administration has come under scrutiny in recent months over a series of high-profile assassinations. The president – who retains an approval rating above 70 percent after her first year in office – dismissed Saturday’s protests as politically driven. She accused right-wing opponents of financing the marches and using bots to amplify calls for participation. Former President Vicente Fox and Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego expressed support for the demonstrations, while some Gen Z protesters said earlier this week they would not back the weekend rallies.

Argentina Opens Files On Nazi War Criminals Fleeing To Argentina

https://www.foxnews.com/world/argentina-reveals-secret-wwii-files-hitlers-henchmen-who-fled-before-after-war.amp

Chile: A Change Lection Isn't Likely To Bring Change

A ‘Change’ Election In Chile Isn’t Likely To Bring Change Chile Henchmen convicted of murdering, torturing, and suppressing the civil rights of Chileans under military dictator Augusto Pinochet from 1973 to 1990 had been enjoying tennis courts, barbecues, television, and a well-stocked library until Chilean President Gabriel Boric recently announced they would serve their sentences like normal prisoners from now on. “The fact that Chile has a special prison like this has no justification,” said Boric, according to the Guardian. “Places will be decided according to security criteria, not privilege…this is a step further in the direction of a more democratic Chile, which is more respectful of human dignity.” The move was a clear message to voters who will decide on Nov. 16 whether to elect a new head of state who would continue Boric’s progressive policies or restore the conservatism that the memory of Pinochet evokes in the South American country. An increase in crime in recent years – kidnappings and murders have doubled in the past decade – has put public safety at the top of voters’ minds, giving conservatives a boost. Many Chileans are expressing nostalgia for the tough-on-crime days under Pinochet, especially the young, who weren’t even born when he and other generals ordered warplanes to bomb the presidential palace in 1973 and had thousands of opponents rounded up and murdered or disappeared. “I didn’t live through that time, but we need someone who takes a firm hand like he did,” Vicente Sepulveda, a 20-year-old engineering student, told Agence France-Presse. Chile is one of South America’s safest countries but the rise in violent crime has caused deep disquiet in a nation with a reputation for stability, causing the issue to become a national obsession. Communist Party member Jeannette Jara, who was Boric’s labor minister, is currently running ahead in the polls, wrote the Americas Society/ Council of the Americas. But her success might reflect how numerous right-wing candidates are vying to be the standard-bearer of their ideology, splitting the vote. Still, because candidates must succeed in two rounds of voting, Jara can’t rest on her laurels: Some analysts say she’ll lose to the conservative candidate if the vote goes to a second round. Jara’s challenges include Boric’s failure to score major policy gains that might have ended some of the ideological battles in Chile. Voters rejected two new constitutions – one leftist and progressive, one right-wing and populist. The proposed constitutions aimed to address some of the tensions that flared in 2019 when large-scale protests broke out after students took to the streets to complain about fare increases in the capital Santiago’s subways. Police cracked down on the largely peaceful demonstrations that followed. Analysts suspect the country might now swing to the right to see if Boric’s opponents can succeed where the incumbent has failed, a European Parliament policy paper explained. The changes could be dramatic. Following in the footsteps of Javier Milei, the president of neighboring Argentina, right-wing candidate José Antonio Kast, the frontrunner among the Chilean conservative candidates, would cut billions in government spending, enact tough policing, and crack down on migration, reported El País. Boric administration officials warned that those moves would affect legally mandatory social welfare spending. Jara has proposed a minimum income and other spending to reduce crime and reduce migration, especially from Venezuela, wrote Americas Quarterly. Voters will decide whether to double down on Boric’s prescriptions or seek out a second opinion. But regardless of whom they pick to lead the nation, it isn’t likely much will change, say analysts. “Chile has held seven nationwide ballots in the six years since large-scale protests rocked the (country)…,” wrote World Politics Review. “…that will make the presidential and legislative elections…and the second round…the ninth and tenth times Chileans will have gone to the polls since the country so loudly demanded that its political system be changed. And yet, no clear direction for change has emerged, nor is one likely to this time.”

Brasil: Indigenous Protestors Storm UN Climate Talks

Indigenous Protesters Storm UN Climate Talks in Brazil Brazil Hundreds of Indigenous and environmental activists clashed with security guards this week at the United Nations climate summit in Belém, northern Brazil, after forcing their way into the conference center to demand stronger protections for Indigenous lands and a greater voice in global climate talks, Al Jazeera reported. Conference representatives said protesters breached barriers at the main entrance late Tuesday, causing “minor injuries to two security staff, and minor damage to the venue.” Witnesses said participants included Indigenous and non-Indigenous demonstrators, some wearing feathered headdresses, holding signs that read “Our forests are not for sale” and chanting “They cannot decide for us without us.” Brazil is hosting the UN Climate of Parties – short for COP30 – where leaders and representatives of 195 countries are meeting this week to discuss efforts to combat climate change. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has sought to showcase COP30 as a milestone for climate cooperation and Indigenous leadership. Lula told world leaders last week that participants would be “inspired by Indigenous peoples and traditional communities – for whom sustainability has always been…(a) way of life.” But observers noted that the protests highlighted growing tensions between the Brazilian government’s public embrace of Indigenous inclusion and what demonstrators described as the ongoing exploitation of the Amazon rainforest by its host countries. Days before the clashes, Petrobras, Brazil’s state oil company, was granted a license for exploratory drilling near the mouth of the Amazon River. Many Indigenous groups and environmental advocates have been calling for Indigenous lands to be freed from commercial exploitation: They criticized Lula’s left-leaning administration for investing in building “a whole new city” in Belém to host the conference – it was also recently designated as Brazil’s temporary capital – instead of in education, health, and forest protection elsewhere, the Guardian wrote. Others also stressed that Indigenous people need to be present at the COP30, considering that the global conference has seen the participation of thousands of lobbyists from the fossil fuel industry in recent decades. This year’s COP30 summit follows a ruling by the International Court of Justice declaring that nations failing to meet climate commitments could be in violation of international law. The absence of the United States – which has opposed recent global climate finance and emissions initiatives under President Donald Trump – has further sharpened divisions over the summit’s direction.

Why Are They Few Black People In Argentina and Mexico?

Profile photo for Da Mu Da Mu · Follow Works at Market Force Information Mystery Shopping7y Why are there many black people in Latin America except in Mexico and Argentina? For both Mexico and Argentina the reasons are different as to why there are so few people of African descent. In Mexico, the main reasons were two fold. For one the Spanish looked at the plentiful native populations (native american) and determined it was more economical to use them for free or cheap labor rather than import African slaves at considerable cost. Secondly, Mexico went from colonial outpost to the principal Spanish settlement and ruling center in the New World, and with that meant significant Spanish migration, and with that Catholic education and teaching, evangelization/conversion, and founding of important Catholic institutions in Mexico. Whatever one may think about colonial Spaniards and colonial Catholic priests and missionaries, writings indicate that both Mexican and Spanish Catholic leaders acknowledged that slavery (whether African or native) was a moral evil that must be done away with. In fact, just like Britain did, Spain, and many Latin American countries (including Mexico) did away with slavery years (even decades) before the U.S. fought the Civil War over slavery. For Argentina the simple answer is geography and time. Argentina developed fairly late because it was such a remote region of the Spanish colonial empire. The country remained sparsely populated for a long time, even after they gained independence from Spain. The little population it had prior to the 1850s was largely Spanish, native peoples, or mestizos. The main population boom in Argentina didn’t arrive until the late 1800s, and early 1900s with large immigration waves from Europe. Many Italians, Germans, Spanish, as well as some Czechs, French, Hungarians, and a smattering of Brits made for a big wave of immigrants and their descendants. Since Argentina is a temperate weather country, it also had little to offer agriculturally to the Spanish in its early years, and therefore little need for the importation of slaves. That is not to say that African slaves weren’t transferred to Argentina, but that over time, just like in Mexico the few slaves that were transported there were diluted by the eventual far larger native and European populations. 104.1K views View 541 upvotes View 9 shares

Mexican President Presses Charges After Being Groped While On The Street

Mexican President Presses Charges After Being Groped in the Street Mexico Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced Wednesday that she is pressing charges against a man who groped her while she was greeting people outside the presidential palace in the capital this week, the Washington Post reported. Video shared on social media shows that while Sheinbaum, 63, was walking from the presidential palace to the Education Ministry and interacting with supporters on Tuesday, a man approached her from behind. He put an arm around her, grabbed her breast, and tried to kiss her neck until a member of her team stepped between them. Sheinbaum is seen calmly but swiftly removing the man’s hands and walking away. The man had been bothering other women in the area before groping the president. Sheinbaum, who said she was unaware of the attack until she saw the video, filed a complaint with the Mexico City attorney general’s office. The man has been arrested, according to the BBC. Women’s rights groups noted that the attack demonstrates how ingrained machismo is in Mexican society, where women are routinely assaulted on the street in broad daylight. Sheinbaum’s decision to press charges was seen as a message that these crimes cannot go unpunished. “If I do not report the crime, what condition will all Mexican women be left in?” Sheinbaum said. “If they do this to the president, what will happen to all of the young women in our country?” Sheinbaum said Tuesday that sexual harassment should be criminalized across the country, adding that she would take action to address the problem. She had promised to tackle these crimes during her campaign. Data from 2022 found that seven in 10 Mexican females over the age of 15 have reported having experienced some kind of violence. Feminicides are also common in the country, and about 98 percent of gender-based murders go unpunished.

Cristina Kirchner Goes On Trial For Largest Corruption Case In Argentina History!

Kirchner on trial in Argentina's 'biggest ever' corruption case By Tomás VIOLALuis ROBAYO, 11 hours ago Cristina Kirchner has been under house arrest after being convicted of fraud in a separate case /AFP Argentine ex-president Cristina Kirchner, already serving a six-year fraud sentence under house arrest, went on trial Thursday in a new corruption case described as the biggest in her country's history. The center-left Kirchner, a dominant and polarizing figure in Argentine politics for over two decades, served two terms from 2007-2015. Her latest trial comes as her ailing Peronist movement -- named after iconic post-war leader Juan Peron -- reels from its stinging defeat at the hands of budget-slashing President Javier Milei's party in last month's midterm elections. Milei has hailed the result as a vindication of his radical free-market agenda, which the Peronists, champions of state intervention in the economy, vehemently oppose. The so-called "notebooks" case at the heart of Kirchner's latest trial follows "the biggest ever corruption investigation in Argentina's legal history," according to prosecutor Estele Leon. It revolves around records kept by a government chauffeur of cash bribes he claims to have delivered from businessmen to government officials between 2003 and 2015. Kirchner, 72, was first lady from 2003-2007, when her late husband Nestor Kirchner was president. She succeeded him after his term ended and later served as vice president to Alberto Fernandez from 2019 until 2023, when Milei took office. She is accused of leading a criminal enterprise that took millions of dollars in bribes from businesspeople in return for the awarding of state contracts. She appeared at the start of her trial via Zoom from her apartment in Buenos Aires. A total of 87 people are charged in the case, including dozens of businesspeople and a former minister. Kirchner's defense team has cast doubt on the credibility of the notebooks at the heart of the prosecution's case, saying the entries were changed over 1,500 times. - Battle over left's future - Kirchner's political career effectively ended in June when the Supreme Court upheld her corruption conviction over the awarding of public works contracts in the southern Patagonia region when she was president. She was sentenced to six years in prison, which she was allowed serve under house arrest with an electronic ankle monitor, and banned from holding public office for the rest of her life. The charismatic politician, who is revered by many on the left but detested by the right, maintains she is the victim of a right-wing judicial hounding aimed at destroying her career. Kirchner faces between six and 10 years in prison if convicted at the end of what is expected to be a lengthy trial, and would likely ask again to serve her term under house arrest. She continues to try to rally her supporters on social media and by appearing regularly on her balcony to greet well-wishers. Her attempt to retain leadership of the Peronist movement has created tensions with Buenos Aires' popular governor, Axel Kicillof, widely seen as a possible future presidential contender. "Peronism is going through a leadership crisis," political analyst Raul Timerman told AFP. 4 Comments Login to write comments Response Community Policy YOU MAY ALSO LIKE AFP partner publisher · 191.3K followers Follow Argentine ex-president Kirchner goes on trial in new corruption case Argentine ex-president Cristina Kirchner, who is serving a six-year fraud sentence under house arrest, goes on trial Thursday in a separate case for allegedly taking millions of dollars in bribes. Kirchner, who was placed under house arrest with an electronic ankle monitor in June after being convicted of "fraudulent administration" as president, maintains she is the victim of a politically-inspired judicial hounding. 21h

Brasil Dismantles Hundreds Of Illegal Dredges In Major Amazon Mining Crackdown

Brazil dismantles hundreds of illegal dredges in major Amazon mining crackdown By Steven Grattan, 14 hours ago Dredging barges operated by illegal miners converge on the Madeira River, a tributary of the Amazon River, searching for gold, in Autazes, Amazonas state, Brazil, in November 2021. (Edmar Barros / Associated Press) Brazilian police backed by Interpol have destroyed hundreds of dredges used in illegal gold mining along the Madeira River, in one of the biggest coordinated crackdowns yet on criminal networks operating across the Amazon Basin. The international police agency said officers dismantled 277 floating mining rafts worth an estimated $6.8 million. When factoring in lost gold, equipment and environmental damage, officials estimated the total financial blow to organized crime groups at about $193 million. The Madeira River, one of the Amazon’s largest tributaries, flows from the Andes through Bolivia into northern Brazil before joining the main Amazon River — an area long plagued by illegal mining and environmental crime. The raids were led by Brazil’s Federal Police Amazon and Environment Protection Division, a special unit focused on combating environmental crimes, with support from a new regional coordination center linking law enforcement agencies from several Amazon countries. More than 100 officers used satellite data to map 155 square miles of forest and river areas scarred by mining, Interpol said Monday. Interpol — the international organization that helps police in nearly 200 countries share intelligence and coordinate operations — said the crackdown builds on a series of recent cross-border missions in Latin America targeting illegal gold mining, logging and wildlife trafficking. Such crimes are among the biggest drivers of deforestation and river contamination in the Amazon, and often fund broader organized crime networks. The operation comes just weeks before world leaders gather in the northern Brazilian city of Belem for COP30, where Brazil is expected to highlight its efforts to curb Amazon destruction and illegal mining. “This operation marks a new chapter in our collective effort to protect the Amazon,” Interpol Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza said in a statement, calling it proof that regional cooperation can strike at the financial networks behind environmental crimes. Interpol said liaison officers from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, Peru and Suriname took part in the operation, though it did not specify when it took place. Authorities said samples of sediment and other materials were collected for forensic analysis to trace their origin and detect hazardous substances such as mercury and cyanide. Residents were also tested for possible toxic exposure linked to gold-mining activities. Brazil’s Federal Police said follow-up investigations aim to identify and prosecute the financiers and ringleaders behind the illicit gold trade — not just the miners, who are often exploited in the process. Grattan writes for the Associated Press.

Mexicans Protest Murder Of Mayor Killed At Day of the Dead Festivities

Mexicans Protest Murder of Mayor Killed At Day of the Dead Festivities Mexico Hundreds of Mexicans took to the streets of Uruapan, in the western state of Michoacán, on Sunday, calling for justice during the funeral of Mayor Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodríguez, an outspoken critic of organized crime who was shot dead the day before during Day of the Dead festivities, Al Jazeera reported. Uruapan residents, clad in black clothing and holding up photographs of Manzo Rodríguez, 40, participated in the funeral procession of the former mayor while chanting “Justice! Justice! Out with Morena!” referring to the ruling party of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, the Associated Press added. Manzo Rodríguez, a former Morena legislator, was shot Saturday night in the town’s historic center and died later that day at the hospital, according to authorities. Footage of the attack shared on social media shows dozens of people running for cover after hearing gunshots. A city council member and a bodyguard were also wounded in the shooting. The former mayor, who had expressed concerns for his safety and was often seen wearing a bulletproof vest, had been under protection since December 2024, three months after taking office. Authorities told reporters that the mayor was killed by an unidentified man who shot him seven times and was later killed at the scene. The murder weapon was connected to two previous armed clashes between rival criminal groups in the area. Recently, Manzo Rodríguez had used social media to ask the federal government for help to confront the criminal groups. He had also accused Michoacán’s pro-government governor and the state police of corruption. After the shooting, Sheinbaum condemned the assassination and promised justice. The murder is the latest in a long list of assassinations of local politicians in Mexico, often targeted by criminal gangs. A mayor of the municipality of Tacambaro, also in Michoacán, was killed in June. Michoacán is one of the country’s most violent states, where criminal gangs fight for control of the territory, drug distribution routes, and other illegal activities. Uruapan, also known as Mexico’s avocado capital, is particularly vulnerable because the industry is a target for organized crime.

Venezuela: Some In The Region Welcome US 'Gunboat Diplomacy'

As the US Ships Move Toward Venezuela, Some in the Region Welcome the ‘Gunboat Diplomacy’ Venezuela As the world’s biggest warship, the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier, headed to the Venezuelan coast, the South American country’s president, clearly worried, claimed US President Donald Trump was manufacturing a crisis. “They are fabricating an extravagant narrative, a vulgar, criminal, and totally fake one,” said President Nicolás Maduro, in an address to the nation. “Venezuela is a country that does not produce cocaine leaves.” Only a small amount of cocaine in the US arrives via Venezuela, according to the Washington Office on Latin America, a think tank. But Trump has claimed that Maduro, as the alleged leader of the Cartel de los Soles, along with Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua, are leveraging the Venezuelan state to aid and abet drug runners selling their products in the US. American officials have killed 64 people in air strikes against alleged Venezuelan drug boats in recent weeks in the Caribbean and the Pacific. Trump has described the attacks as acts of war. He hasn’t ruled out invading Venezuela either. “We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela,” he said, adding: “We’re going to stop them by land also…The land is going to be next.” His critics, including Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, have described these attacks as extrajudicial killings, the Guardian noted. “So far, they have alleged that these people are drug dealers. No one’s said their name, no one’s said what evidence, no one’s said whether they’re armed, and we’ve had no evidence presented,” he said on Fox News Sunday. Meanwhile, many legal experts deem them illegal, questioning the administration’s justification that it is in an “armed conflict” with drug traffickers. The US has also sought to apprehend Maduro by offering a $50 million reward for information leading to his arrest. The endgame, according to analysts, is that Trump is likely trying to increase pressure in a bid to oust Maduro’s regime, wrote the BBC. Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina, who recently won the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote democracy and civil rights in Venezuela, and is in hiding because of them, has undoubtedly influenced the White House’s thinking, added Reuters. The Gerald R. Ford, its accompanying destroyers, and detachments of US marines in the region could represent a force whose goal might be to invade Venezuela, an oil-rich nation that has sunk into poverty under Maduro’s corruption and collectivist economic policies. American bombers have been flying in Venezuelan airspace, too. Until more American soldiers mass in Puerto Rico, a land invasion is unlikely, however, the Economist contended. “Plenty of firepower is in place,” it wrote. “The build-up of ships is the largest in the region since the Cuban missile crisis of 1962…(but) the aim of this gunboat diplomacy is fuzzy.” This could all be an effort to rattle Maduro, it added, or to map out his air defenses, or both. Alternatively, the American goal might be to scare Venezuelan generals sufficiently for them to mount a coup against Maduro, the Hill reasoned. The results might be backfiring so far, however. Venezuela and Russia recently signed an agreement to cooperate more closely on energy, mining, transport, and security, for instance, the German Press Agency noted. To that end, a Russian cargo plane that may have carried mercenaries or weapons recently landed in the capital of Caracas, Defense News added. Maduro is a survivor. He probably lost reelection in 2024, but, as the Journal of Democracy explained, he controls the government and kept himself in office. Gunboat diplomacy can be very effective, too, however, as well as popular in Latin America. “At first glance, the number of countries and leaders that are rhetorically supportive of Trump’s aggressive military operations against the cartels may be surprising, as it goes against the conventional narrative that Latin America always rejects US interference in regional affairs,” wrote World Politics Review. “But on closer scrutiny, it makes more sense. Security populism and promises to use military assets to target criminals are winning election campaigns across the region.” 

Why Didn't The Argentines Try To Stop The British Task Force On The Way To The alkans/

Profile photo for Frank West Frank West · Follow Updated 1h Why didn’t Argentina try to stop the British task force on its way to the Falklands in 1982? This has always puzzled me — Argentina has a long coast and surely knew the fleet was coming. Why didn’t they intercept or attack it on its voyage south? The Argentines did try to intercept the British at sea. It just didn’t work. The Argentine Navy sortied a fairly sizable task force of around 20 ships to intercept the British. Included in the fleet was the aircraft carrier ARA Veinticinco de Mayo, the cruiser ARA General Belgrano, other surface ships like destroyers and corvettes, and the submarine ARA San Luis. These warships represented a lot of firepower and, especially considering the Argentine aircraft carrier, was potentially very dangerous to the British. ARA Veinticinco de Mayo & ARA General Belgrano The Royal Navy dealt with this threat by sending the nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror. She fired 3 torpedoes at the Gen Belgrano on 2 May ‘82. The Argentine cruiser was struck twice and sank in minutes at the cost of over 300 lives. (Edited) HMS Conqueror (S48) This action spooked the Argentine leadership who immediately withdrew the remaining warships back to port. They stayed in harbor for the duration of the war. The Argentinian Navy just didn’t have an answer for a modern nuclear submarine. If they had, the Argentines had a decent chance of stopping the British fleet. AMA Gen Belgrano, low in the water before sinking on 2 May 1982. The sinking of the Belgrano cost many young lives, but it did force a positive outcome. The loss of the Falklands war, compounded by the sinking of the Belgrano, discredited the Argentine military junta and contributed to the restoration of civilian rule in 1983. __________________________________________ ***EDIT - UPDATE*** Several people in the comments have pointed out, correctly, that the action I describe above actually happened after the British were in the Falklands area. So, they ask again, why didn’t the Argentines “intercept” the British well before? Fair enough, so here’s that answer: The Argentines didn’t really think the British would fight. Not properly. They assumed the conflict would be settled by negotiation, so they neglected to prepare for a large naval war. Consequently, there was no plan ahead of time to ready the fleet and defend the islands. The British moved very fast. The ARA wasn’t ready to put to sea for a couple of weeks, but the British launched about 3 days after the invasion. There was a British submarine on station in about 48 hours. It just took too long for the Argentines to assemble and fit-out their full fleet. Submarines. By the time the Argentines were ready to sail, the British had submarines deployed south of the Falklands. That forced the ARA to move cautiously and slowly. No operations master plan. The Argentines didn’t have an integrated war plan. Each military branch planned independently. As such, the Army didn’t really consult the Navy and the Navy didn’t know what the Air Force was doing, etc. If they had worked together, the ARA could have sailed before the invasion, the Air Force could have deployed fighters to the islands….and they wouldn’t have wasted so much time. So there’s the answer. The Argentines were unprepared and didn’t anticipate a proper fight. Therefore, they neglected to use their forces in a coordinated, strategic, and timely manner. By the time it was clear there would be a real war, it took them too long to respond and react. C’est la guerre… 146.3K views View 1,649 upvotes View 8 shares 1 of 26 answers 130 comments from Robert Storms and more More from your Digest MyIQ Sponsored Answer 30 questions to find out your score. Are you smarter than the average American? The ave