Research challenges idea of ‘generation sensible’ as alcohol and drug use increase after teenage years
Binge drinking rates among gen Z have risen sharply since their teenage years, according to research that challenges their reputation as “generation sensible”.
Almost seven in 10 (68%) 23-year-olds reported binge drinking in the past year, while nearly a third (29%) said they did so at least monthly, up from 10% at age 17.
Continue reading...Move brings total number of people killed in US strikes on suspected boats since September to at least 148
The US military launched a strike on an alleged drug smuggling boat in the eastern Pacific on Friday, killing three men in its second strike this week.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” US Southern Command, which oversees operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, said on Twitter/X.
Continue reading...Pedro Inzunza Coronel, alias ‘El Pichón’, was killed during an anti-drug operation by the Mexican navy in Sinaloa
Mexican authorities have killed one of the country’s top fentanyl traffickers, accused of importing tens of thousands of kilos of the drug into the US and wanted by the US authorities on narco-terrorism charges.
Pedro Inzunza Coronel, alias “El Pichón”, (The Pigeon) was killed on Sunday during an anti-drug operation by the Mexican navy in the north-western state of Sinaloa.
Continue reading...Forward Trust patron says ‘compassion and love’ is needed to end fear and shame felt by those affected
The Princess of Wales has called for an end to the “stigma” surrounding addictions, saying the experiences of those dependent on drugs, alcohol or gambling are “shaped by fear, shame and judgment”.
Catherine, who is a patron of the charity Forward Trust supporting recovering addicts, said more open conversations were needed to bring the issue “out of the shadows” and for society to show “compassion and love” to those affected.
Continue reading...Unsealed indictment says Ryan Wedding tracked down witness who was then murdered before he could testify
US authorities have charged a fugitive former Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned drug kingpin with the murder of a witness who was prepared to testify against him.
The attorney general, Pam Bondi, said on Wednesday that Ryan Wedding was accused in a newly unsealed indictment of tracking down a witness in Colombia who was then murdered before he could give evidence.
Continue reading...Mexico’s president responds to Trump’s latest warning that he could authorize strikes against drug cartels in country
Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has again dismissed Donald Trump’s threat of military action against drug cartels inside her country, telling reporters: “It’s not going to happen.”
Sheinbaum made the comments on Tuesday morning in response to the US president’s latest warning that he could authorise strikes in Mexico.
Continue reading...Man accused of groping family’s nanny, evading bridge tolls and swinging IV pole at nurse and threatening to kill her
A convicted drug dealer who had been granted clemency by Donald Trump was sent back to federal prison on Monday for violating the terms of his release after being charged with several new crimes.
Jonathan Braun was sentenced to 27 months behind bars.
Continue reading...President says she’s repeatedly rejected such offers from Trump for US to confront Mexico’s powerful drug cartels
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum has flatly denied reports that the United States is planning to send troops into Mexico to confront the country’s powerful cartels, noting that she had repeatedly rejected such offers from Donald Trump.
“It’s not going to happen,” Sheinbaum said during her daily morning news conference on Tuesday. “We do not agree with any process of interference or interventionism.”
Continue reading...Shares jump on higher profits as Emma Walmsley is ‘hopeful’ standoff with NHS can be resolved
GSK’s outgoing chief executive, Emma Walmsley, has said Britain will struggle to be a “life sciences superpower” unless it overhauls drug pricing.
As ministers draw up proposals to increase the amount the NHS spends on new medicines by up to 25%, Walmsley said she was “hopeful and ambitious” that the standoff with the pharma industry could be resolved.
Continue reading...Pete Hegseth claimed that six ‘narco-terrorists’ onboard craft were killed in night strike in international waters
The US has carried out another military strike against what it claimed was a vessel carrying illegal drugs in the Caribbean, killing six people onboard, the Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, said.
In a social media post, Hegseth stated: “The vessel was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics.”
Continue reading...It is unknown whether US military rendered aid to survivors after attack on suspected ‘narcoterrorist’ vessel
The US military carried out a new strike on Thursday against a suspected drug vessel in the Caribbean, and in what is believed to be the first such case, there were survivors among the crew, a US official told Reuters.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not offer additional details about the incident, which has not been previously reported. But it raises new questions, including whether the US military rendered aid to the survivors and whether they are now in US military custody.
Continue reading...Public health warning issued after drugs known as nitazenes detected amid move to ban pill testing
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Teddy bear-shaped pills laced with synthetic opioids have been linked to a death in Queensland, triggering a public health warning about a group of highly potent illicit drugs called nitazenes.
N-pyrrolidino-protonitazene and protonitazene were detected in toxicology and samples taken from pale yellow pills marked with the letter “Y” in the state’s south-east.
Continue reading...First vote in Congress on military campaign that White House says has hit four vessels and killed at least 21 people
Senate Republicans voted down legislation Wednesday that would have put a check on Donald Trump’s ability to use deadly military force against drug cartels after Democrats tried to counter the administration’s extraordinary assertion of presidential war powers to destroy vessels in the Caribbean.
The vote fell mostly along party lines, 48-51, with two Republicans, Rand Paul and Lisa Murkowski, voting in favor and the Democrat John Fetterman voting against.
Continue reading...Unlike his fellow basketball player, Brittney Griner, Jarred Shaw has received scant attention after being arrested for a drugs offence overseas
When Jarred Shaw, an American basketball player in Indonesia, stepped down to the lobby in his apartment complex earlier this year to collect a package containing illegally imported cannabis gummies, he thought that the medicine to ease his Crohn’s disease had arrived.
It had – but so too had 10 undercover police officers. A video on social media shows Shaw, wearing a black T-shirt and shorts, shouting for help as the swarm of officers move to apprehend him.
The Indonesian National Police did not respond to a request for comment for this story.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Miller’s homeland security council has played a key part in coordinating operations, sources say
Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, has played a leading role in directing US strikes against suspected Venezuelan drug boats, according to three people familiar with the situation. At times, his role has superseded that of Marco Rubio, the secretary of state and national security adviser.
The strikes on the Venezuelan boats allegedly carrying narcotics, which the administration has claimed were necessary because interdiction did not work, have been orchestrated through the homeland security council (HSC), which Miller leads as the homeland security adviser.
Continue reading...At UN, Gustavo Petro says ‘poor young people’ died in US strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats off Caribbean coast
Colombia’s president Gustavo Petro addressed the UN general assembly Tuesday to call for a “criminal process” to be opened against counterpart Donald Trump for US strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean.
Petro said unarmed “poor young people” died in the strikes that Washington said were part of a US anti-drug operation off the coast of Venezuela, whose president Washington accuses of running a cartel.
Continue reading...Doctors call president’s warning that pregnant women should limit use of acetaminophen – also known as paracetamol - ‘highly concerning’ and ‘irresponsible’
Medical experts are raising alarms after Donald Trump warned pregnant women to avoid taking Tylenol, baselessly linking the painkiller – also known as paracetamol - with a rise in autism among children.
From the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), doctors have endorsed the use of acetaminophen during pregnancy after Trump said pregnant women who can’t “tough it out” without the painkiller should limit their intake.
Continue reading...Report links Arizona-Sonora smuggling to rising homicide and overdose deaths in both countries
A new “golden triangle” of fentanyl and gun trafficking between Mexico and the US ties together the homicide and overdose crises of the two countries, according to a a new study.
The triangle spans Baja California, Sinaloa and Sonora – the three states where almost all fentanyl seizures in Mexico take place – and connects to Arizona through a quieter part of the US-Mexico border that has become a hotspot for trafficking in both directions.
Continue reading...Jasveen Sangha, fifth and last defendant charged in Friends star’s overdose to strike plea agreement with prosecutors
A woman known as the “ketamine queen”, charged with selling Matthew Perry the drug that killed him, agreed to plead guilty on Monday.
Jasveen Sangha becomes the fifth and final defendant charged in the overdose death of the Friends star to strike a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. Having initially pleaded not guilty, her change of plea means she’ll avoid a trial that had been planned for August.
Continue reading...Perhaps not coincidentally, the timing of tariff discussions was closely followed by the transfer of wanted criminals
Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has denied that the transfer of 26 alleged cartel members to the United States was part of any kind of deal with Washington and was instead about her country’s own security priorities.
This week’s expulsion marked the second time Mexico had sent top criminals to the US this year: in February, Mexican authorities handed over 29 cartel members, including druglord Rafael Caro Quintero, who was responsible for the murder of a DEA agent in 1985. The latest transfers took place after US authorities vowed that prosecutors would not seek the death penalty in any of the cases.
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