For today, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, and El País; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will run for president as an independent and drop his Democratic primary bid, by Ali Swenson | AP PHILADELPHIA — Longtime environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said today he will run for president as an independent and drop his Democratic primary bid, adding a wrinkle to a 2024 race heading toward a likely rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Kennedy was running a long-shot primary bid and has better favorability ratings among Republicans than . . . READ MORE . . .
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Progressive activist Cornel West leaves the Green Party and will run for president as an independent, by Steve Peoples | AP NEW YORK — Progressive activist Cornel West said Thursday that he is no longer running for president under the Green Party banner. Instead, the high-profile African American thought leader will run as an independent. “I’m running . . . to end the iron grip of the ruling class and ensure true democracy!” West wrote on the social media platform X. “People are hungry for change. They want . . . READ MORE . . .
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Ecuador removes, investigates security officials after killings of suspects in candidate assassination. From Reuters. Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso announced on Saturday a shake up of the high ranks of the security forces following the killing of seven inmates accused in the murder of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. He removed the prisons director and the head of the police investigations unit, and replaced the head of the national police with a long-time member of the force with nearly 35 years . . . READ MORE . . .
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Guatemalans protest attempts to overturn the results of presidential election. Reported by Eyder Peralta | NPR For over a week now, thousands of people in Guatemala have been blockading roads and taking to the streets in protest at attempts to undermine the president-elect’s transition to power. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.
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Guatemala’s attorney general asks authorities to act against pro-democracy protests. From AP. GUATEMALA CITY — Guatemala’s attorney general today called for the government to act against largely peaceful protesters, who have taken to the streets demanding her resignation for what they say are clear attempts to undermine their nation’s democracy. Protests broke out in Guatemala two weeks ago following one of the most tumultuous elections in the country’s recent history. The protests are fueled . . . READ MORE . . .
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‘Without water, there is no life’: Drought in Brazil’s Amazon is sharpening fears for the future, by Edmar Barros | AP MANAUS, Brazil — Communities dependent on the Amazon rainforest’s waterways are stranded without supply of fuel, food or filtered water. Dozens of river dolphins perished and washed up on shore. Thousands of lifeless fish float on the water’s surface. These are the first grim visions of extreme drought sweeping across Brazil’s Amazon. Wildlife and hundreds of thousands of people are affected, with experts predicting . . . READ MORE . . .
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La sequía en la Amazonía de Brasil agudiza los temores para el futuro, por Edmar Barros | Agencia AP MANAOS, Brasil — Comunidades que dependen de las vías fluviales de la selva de la Amazonía están aisladas, sin recibir suministros de combustible, alimentos o agua filtrada. Decenas de delfines de río murieron y fueron arrastrados a la orilla. Miles de peces sin vida flotan sobre la superficie del agua. Estas son algunas de las primeras imágenes sombrías de la extrema sequía que se extiende por la Amazonía de Brasil. Los niveles de agua históricamente bajos . . . LEA MÁS . . .
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La ‘puerta giratoria’ de Ortega y Murillo en Nicaragua: el régimen vuelve a llenar las cárceles de presos políticos, por Wilfredo Miranda | El País SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica — Dos diputados y otro sacerdote han sido los últimos presos políticos que el régimen de Daniel Ortega y Rosario Murillo ha metido entre rejas en Nicaragua. En un contexto de represión sin freno, y luego de excarcelar y desterrar a 222 prisioneros en febrero pasado, el aparato sandinista ha mantenido . . . LEA MÁS . . .