Category: Americas

Biden Admin Working With Panama, Columbia to Stop Illegal Migration Through Darién Gap

The Biden administration has announced new joint efforts with the governments of Panama and Columbia to prevent illegal migration through the treacherous Darién Gap that connects North America to South America. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas issued a joint statement on Tuesday, along with Panamanian Foreign Minister Janaina Tewaney and Colombian Foreign Minister Álvaro…


Mexican Migration Chief to Be Charged in Fire but Keep Job

MEXICO CITY—Mexico’s immigration head will face criminal charges in a fire that killed 40 migrants in a detention center last month, but President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Wednesday that he will not dismiss the official known for his hard line on northbound migration. Obrador’s decision to keep Francisco Garduño as head of the Mexican…


China Using ‘Checkbook Diplomacy’ in Latin America to Alienate Taiwan as Invasion Threat Rises: Analysts

The list of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies in Latin America continues to shrink as China tightens its grip on the region. Though beyond trade maneuvers, some analysts believe China’s isolation of Taiwan in the region also aims to secure favorable “votes” before taking aggressive action against the island nation. The assessment couldn’t be more timely. On…


42 Arrested, 173 Guns Seized in Disruption of Cross-Border Firearms Trafficking: Toronto Police

The Toronto police said 42 individuals have been arrested and over 400 criminal charges were laid as a result of a yearlong investigation into a major cross-border firearms trafficking scheme. The police operation, dubbed Project Moneypenny, saw the seizure of 173 firearms, alongside ammunition and roughly $184,000 in proceeds of crime, from Canada and the United…


Mexican Ballad Singer Julián Figueroa Dies at 27

MEXICO CITY—Mexican ballad singer Julián Figueroa has died at the age of 27, his mother confirmed Monday. Figueroa was the son of actress Maribel Guardia and singer Joan Sebastian, who died in 2015. Guardia wrote that Figueroa died of a heart ailment. Like his father, Figueroa sang northern-inspired ballads backed by a traditional band. His…


LIVE 1 PM ET: Officials From US, Panama, and Colombia Discuss Migration Issues in Darien Gap

Officials from U.S. Homeland Security, Panama, and Colombia discuss migration issues in Darien Gap at 1:00 p.m. ET on April 11. …


Officials From US, Panama, and Colombia Discuss Migration Issues in Darien Gap

Officials from U.S. Homeland Security, Panama, and Colombia discuss migration issues in Darien Gap at 1:00 p.m. ET on April 11. …


Some People Living Near Colombian Volcano Are Loath to Evacuate

BOGOTA—Colombia’s government is trying to speed up the evacuation of some 2,500 families living closest to the Nevado del Ruiz volcano, which is being monitored for a possible eruption, but some residents are refusing to leave. The volcano’s eruption in 1985 killed more than 25,000 people in Colombia’s biggest-ever natural disaster, with avalanches of earth…


US Man Found Dead on Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula

MEXICO CITY—The body of a U.S. man who had been missing since Feb. 11 has been found in a clandestine burial pit on Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, prosecutors in the state of Baja California Sur said Wednesday. State prosecutor Daniel de la Rosa said a local man and his sister had been arrested in connection…


Firefighters Battle Large Blaze at Sprawling Mexican Market

MEXICO CITY—Some 200 firefighters battled a huge blaze in Mexico City’s sprawling wholesale market Thursday night without any reported injuries. The Central de Abasto supplies the capital’s other neighborhood markets, restaurants, and other parts of the country. Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said the fire started in an area of the market where wooden pallets…