Category Archives: Americas

Canada’s employment minister resigns after shifting his claims of Indigenous ancestry

Posted on by

Randy Boissonnault to ‘step away from cabinet’ after being accused of ‘pretendianism’ and improper business dealings

Canada’s employment minister has resigned from the cabinet after weeks of scrutiny over both his business dealings and his shifting claims of Indigenous ancestry.

Moments before question period on Wednesday, prime minister Justin Trudeau’s office said Randy Boissonnault would “step away from cabinet effective immediately” and will “focus on clearing the allegations made against him”.

Continue reading...

Standoff as Canada Yukon town council refuses to swear oath to King Charles

Posted on by

Council in Yukon territory deadlocked, citing the crown’s tarnished relations with Indigenous peoples in the region

The council of a town in Canada’s Yukon territory has been locked for weeks in bureaucratic standstill after its members refused to swear a mandatory oath of allegiance to King Charles, citing the crown’s tarnished relations with Indigenous peoples in the region.

The standoff, which threatens to cost them their seats, reflects a complicated view of the country’s head of state, who lives thousands of miles away, and increasingly serves as a reminder to a history of violence and broken promises

Continue reading...

Milei plan to privatise Argentina river sparks fears among local communities

Posted on by

Communities on Paraná River fear privatisation of waterway operations will destroy way of life

River communities in Argentina fear that Javier Milei’s plans to privatise operations on a key shipping route could lead to environmental damage and destroy their way of life.

Since taking office almost a year ago, the self-styled “anarcho-capitalist” president has pledged to privatise a number of the state’s assets. The latest is the Paraguay-Paraná waterway – a shipping route of strategic importance for Argentina and its neighbours.

Continue reading...

Brazil celebrates Black Consciousness Day as national holiday for first time

Posted on by

Legacy of African Brazilians honored on 329th anniversary of resistance leader Zumbi’s death by Portuguese forces

During the more than 350 years during which slavery was legal in Brazil, harsh conditions prompted a string of uprisings, often resulting in the establishment of quilombos – independent communities formed by escaped Africans who were formerly enslaved, and their descendants.

None were more prominent than the one known as Palmares, where, in the 17th century, as many as 11,000 people lived in a string of communities across parts of the north-eastern states of Alagoas and Pernambuco.

Continue reading...

US recognizes Edmundo González Urrutia as Venezuelan ‘president-elect’

Posted on by

Antony Blinken makes statement months after President Nicolás Maduro claimed to have won July contest

The US government has recognized Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia as the “president-elect” of the South American country, months after President Nicolás Maduro claimed to have won the July contest.

Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, recognized González in a post on X in which he also demanded “respect for the will” of Venezuelan voters.

Continue reading...

Ukraine allies criticise G20 statement for not naming Russia’s role in conflict

Posted on by

Scholz, Starmer, Trudeau and Macron among leaders who say communique finalized by Lula ‘not strong enough’

Ukraine’s western allies have criticised the final G20 communique as inadequate for failing to highlight Russia’s invasion of its neighbour in 2022 as the conflict enters its 1,000th day.

The final agreed text from the summit in Brazil was significantly weaker than that of the previous year, only highlighting humanitarian suffering in Ukraine and the importance of territorial integrity.

Continue reading...

At least 28 suspected gang members killed in Port-au-Prince, say Haiti police

Posted on by

Armed groups clash with residents and police after plans for attack on Pétionville area announced on social media

Gangs have launched a fresh attack on Haiti’s capital, targeting an upscale community in Port-au-Prince where people with guns clashed with residents who fought side by side with police.

The attack on Pétionville was led by the Viv Ansanm group, whose leader, former police officer Jimmy Chérizier, had announced the plan in a video posted on social media.

Continue reading...

Starmer twice declines to directly condemn jailing of Hong Kong pro-democracy figures

Posted on by

UK prime minister was condemned by Iain Duncan Smith, who is on Beijing’s sanctions list

Keir Starmer has twice declined to directly condemn the jailing of dozens of Hong Kong’s most prominent pro-democracy figures, less than 24 hours after meeting China’s president at the G20 summit.

The UK prime minister was asked both during a BBC interview and at his press conference in Rio de Janeiro to respond to the jailing of the activists, including being asked if he would condemn the sentences directly, but he reiterated the importance of building bridges with China for the sake of economic growth.

Continue reading...

Take two: Biden makes it into G20 leaders’ photo after missing first one

Posted on by

Summit leaders have reshoot in Rio after Biden, Justin Trudeau and Giorgia Meloni were no-shows the day before

The first time G20 leaders took their photo together at a summit in Rio, they forgot Joe Biden. On Tuesday, they had a reshoot – with the outgoing US president firmly back in the frame.

Biden; the Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau; and the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni all missed the photo on Monday due to what US officials called “logistical issues”.

Continue reading...

El Salvador ex-president among 11 to face trial for 1989 murder of Jesuits

Posted on by

Army killing of six priests, their housekeeper and her daughter was one of civil war’s most notorious crimes

A court in El Salvador has ruled to bring a former president and retired military officials to trial for their alleged roles in the prominent murder of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her teenage daughter during the country’s civil war 35 years ago.

The former president Alfredo Cristiani, a former congressman and nine retired military officials are charged with murder and acts of terrorism over one of the most notorious crimes committed during El Salvador’s 12-year civil war, which left 75,000 civilians dead and only formally ended in 1992.

Continue reading...

Brazilian police arrest five over plot to assassinate Lula after 2022 election win

Posted on by

Four military personnel and a police agent held on suspicion of plan to prevent inauguration of president

Brazil’s federal police have arrested four special forces military personnel and one of their own agents on suspicion of planning the assassination of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on 15 December 2022 to prevent his inauguration after his victory over the then president, far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro.

According to the police, the plot also included plans to assassinate the vice-president, Geraldo Alckmin, and the supreme court justice, Alexandre de Moraes, who at the time was already leading investigations into the so-called “hate cabinet,” as Bolsonaro mobs had become known.

Continue reading...

Bird flu in Canada may have mutated to become more transmissible to humans

Posted on by

Scientists are racing to understand what a hospitalized teen’s case of bird flu may mean for future outbreaks

The teenager hospitalized with bird flu in British Columbia, Canada, may have a variation of the virus that has a mutation making it more transmissible among people, early data shows – a warning of what the virus can do that is especially worrisome in countries such as the US where some H5N1 cases are not being detected.

The US “absolutely” is not testing and monitoring bird flu cases enough, which means scientists could miss mutated cases like these, said Richard Webby, a virologist at St Jude children’s research hospital’s department of infectious diseases.

Continue reading...

Alarm over new law giving Paraguay powers to crack down on NGOs

Posted on by

Activists condemn law and liken it to civil society crackdowns in Venezuela, Nicaragua, Hungary and Russia

Opposition parties and human rights organisations in Paraguay have condemned an “alarming” new law giving the government powers to shutter NGOs who fail to comply with onerous additional audits – and suspend their directors and staff for up to five years.

Amnesty International warned that the deeply controversial bill – signed into law by President Santiago Peña late on Friday – violated freedom of expression, and likened it to civil society crackdowns in Venezuela, Nicaragua, Hungary and Russia.

Continue reading...

Canada reportedly foils Iranian plot to kill former justice minister Irwin Cotler

Posted on by

Tehran alleged to have targeted retired politician, 84, who is also human rights activist and critic of Iran

Canadian authorities foiled an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate a former justice minister and rights activist who has been a strong critic of Tehran, the Globe and Mail newspaper has reported.

The 84-year-old was justice minister and attorney general from 2003 to 2006. He retired from politics in 2015 but has remained active with many associations that campaign for human rights around the world.

Continue reading...

No-show Joe: G20 leaders take group photo without Biden

Posted on by

US president arrived for photograph with other world leaders – but found they had gone ahead without him

Joe Biden headed for a photo with fellow G20 leaders in Rio de Janeiro at his final summit as US president on Monday – only to find they had already taken the picture without him.

Frustrated US officials blamed “logistical issues” for the blunder which meant that Biden missed out on the shot, along with the Canadian and Italian prime ministers.

Continue reading...

Lula launches alliance to combat world hunger as Brazil hosts G20

Posted on by

Summit’s first day notable for frosty meeting of far-right Argentinian leader Javier Milei and leftwing host

The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has opened the G20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro with the launch of an alliance to combat hunger, which he described as the “ultimate symbol of our collective tragedy”.

Brazil holds the rotating presidency of the group and is hosting the meeting this Monday and Tuesday, attended by all but two – Russia and Saudi Arabia – of the 19 member countries.

Continue reading...

Weather tracker: Tropical Storm Sara and Super Typhoon Man-yi wreak havoc

Posted on by

Powerful storm systems bring heavy rainfall, widespread flooding and landslides to Central America and Asia

Tropical Storm Sara has caused significant disruption across Central America in recent days after forming in the Caribbean Sea on Thursday afternoon. It is the 18th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season and the third this month. The large number of tropical storm and hurricane formations this season can be attributed to the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico being warmer than average, thus providing more energy for the development and intensification of these systems.

Since its formation, Sara has affected Honduras, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Belize and Guatemala, bringing heavy rainfall, widespread flooding and landslides. The slow-moving nature of the storm has exacerbated the damage, prolonging the duration of its impact. However, Sara is losing strength; initially it had sustained winds of 45mph on Thursday but weakened slightly after moving inland, with winds dropping to 40mph by Sunday. According to the National Hurricane Centre, Sara is expected to dissipate into an area of low pressure as it moves north-west toward the southern region of the Yucatan peninsula on Monday.

Continue reading...

Narendra Modi to make ‘historic’ Guyana visit for energy talks

Posted on by

Indian PM’s trip expected to focus on trade and investment as oil-rich Caribbean country’s economic boom continues

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, will make a “historic” state visit to the oil-rich Caribbean nation of Guyana this week when the two countries are expected to sign energy and defence agreements.

Modi’s visit to the country, from Tuesday to Thursday, will be the first from an Indian prime minister since Indira Gandhi’s in 1968, two years after Guyana gained independence from Britain.

Continue reading...

Keir Starmer promises Ukraine will be ‘top of the agenda’ at G20

Posted on by

UK prime minister to meet world leaders at summit in Brazil that Vladimir Putin has declined to attend

Ukraine will be “top of the agenda” this week at a meeting of leaders from the world’s most powerful economies, Keir Starmer has pledged, though he said he had “no plans” to follow the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, and speak directly to Vladimir Putin.

Starmer will meet world leaders on Monday at the G20 summit in Brazil, which the Russian president has declined to attend, sending his foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, in his place.

Continue reading...

Argentina seeks arrests of 61 rightwing rioters from Brazil

Posted on by

Supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro wanted for role in 2023 storming of government buildings

Argentina has ordered the arrest of 61 Brazilian citizens for participating in the 2023 storming of government buildings in Brasília by supporters of the far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro, an Argentine source said on Saturday.

Two people have been arrested so far who face prison sentences in Brazil, a judicial source in Argentina told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorised to speak publicly.

Continue reading...