Netanyahu and Milei endorse Jair Bolsonaro’s son for President at election launch

Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of far-right former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, celebrated the official launch of his presidential campaign with an event in Sao Paulo Sunday night.

He will be challenging current left-wing president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in elections in October.

The event featured endorsements from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Argentinian President Javier Milei. Milei sparked an international incident when he referred to current president Lula as a “thief” and a “convict,” causing Brazil to withdraw its ambassadors in Buenos Aires.

Flavio currently trails Lula in polls as he continues to fight back scandals in the country.

Flavio’s father – currently serving a 27-year prison sentence for a coup attempt following his loss to Lula in 2022 – was present at the convention only in the form of a video made with AI.

US President Donald Trump, long an ally of the Bolsonaro family, is also expected to endorse Flavio. In recent days, US officials have cast doubts on the legitimacy of Brazilian elections, repeating false accusations made by both Jair and Flavio Bolsonaro.

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Colombian President-elect Espriella will join “the Shield of the Americas”

Ultra-right wing Abelardo de la Espriella has announced Medellin as the headquarters for Colombian membership in the US-led Shield of the Americas — a security and political alliance launched by U.S. President Donald Trump in March.

The initiative, formed exclusively of right-wing governments, includes initiatives to encourage sharing intelligence, coordinating of law enforcement, and using joint military force against drug cartels and transnational crime.

The announcement followed calls between De la Espriella, US President Donald Trump and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump endorsed de la Espriella in elections that he won by less than 1%.

De la Espriella also announced a “Plan Patriota 2.0”, a military crackdown on non-state armed groups and organized crime modelled after an identically named US-backed military strategy that was implemented by former President Alvaro Uribe between 2003 and 2006.

De la Espriella’s “iron fist” policies will be a big story to watch in coming months and years. The president-elect assumes leadership of Colombia in August.

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JOH back in Honduras after Trump pardon

Former President Juan Orlando Hernandez returned to Honduras this week after being pardoned by Donald Trump after being convicted of narco-trafficking and sentenced to 45 years in a US prison.

He was extradited for his role in cocaine smuggling during his time as president, and was extradited to the US four years ago. He is also accused in Honduras of fraud and money-laundering.

Trump claims that Hernandez did not receive a fair trial under former US President Joe Biden. Hernandez claims Biden “fabricated” the charges that got him convicted in a federal court in New York City.

Hernandez is expected to appear in court on August 3 to face the Honduran charges

But most analysts expect the charges to be dropped due to his powerful allies in Honduras

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The other big stories in LATAM

• Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel has accused the United States of carrying out a “political genocide” against his people and seeking to seize the Caribbean island nation. The US has imposed an oil embargo that has produced regular blackouts and economic hardship: including in hospitals.

• Former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro will finally face trial in the US next June on charges of weapon and drug sales along with his wife. Both deny the charges. Maduro's attorney argues that the couple have sovereign immunity, which makes any actions they undertook as part of governing Venezuela irrelevant to US criminal law.

• Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega promised last week to ban all opposition parties from elections in the country. This week, lawmakers will debate the initiative, but Nicaragua's National Assembly is dominated by Ortega’s party, and largely rubber-stamps his decrees.

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Officials in the United States seem to be worried that widespread human rights violations, likely illegal under both US and international law, may eventually catch up to them.

The US State Department called for the abolition of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on July 13. In the days that followed, US diplomatic missions in multiple countries also called on US allies to withdraw from the international court.

​The statement explained US reasoning in attacking the court as rejecting the possibility that “U.S. soldiers, police officers, Border Patrol agents and elected leaders could be dragged before an international court, tried by judges from random countries across the globe, found guilty under international laws we neither consent to nor control, and then imprisoned thousands of miles from America.”

​Many experts have posited that the move is preemptive to avoid investigations into severe human rights violations that are being carried out by the administration of US President Donald Trump across the world, many of which are likely illegal under both US and international law.

Nowhere have those actions been more prevalent than in Latin America, where the US is carrying out bombings as well as supporting states that enforce repressive measures on their populations, including allies veering strongly towards authoritarianism.

​As part of his “Donroe Doctrine,” designed to project US power in Latin America, US President Donald Trump is actively abetting authoritarian drift across the region. But unlike previous US efforts in the region, Trump has illustrated through his actions that he doesn’t care about international law, or left/right political ideologies.

​His main concerns seem to be only submission and acquiescence to US interests.

​Although legislators in the Republican Party have leaned heavily into anti-communist rhetoric ahead of elections in November (a ‘golden oldie’ of classic US political rhetoric), Trump has shown that he is willing to work with, and protect, both right, and left-wing autocratic states as long as they prioritize US interests.

​In sharp contrast to a recent report from the US State Department criticizing leftist influences in the US, Trump’s actions show what matters to him aren’t the ‘evils of socialism’, but rather installing a system of vassals, fiefdoms, and protectorates that will be subordinate to US goals in the region the US considers its backyard.

​Throughout much of the 20th century, the US supported anti-democratic and even outright authoritarian movements and governments in Latin America. Multiple times the US lent military aid, or even outright attacked other countries in the Americas in actions that many of its own laws consider illegal. Many of the seeds that led to the Trump administration’s support for democratic backsliding were sown decades before by politicians from both political parties.

​But unlike previous efforts, the US is no longer interested in killing communists. Instead, like the current government in Venezuela, it is offering them backing, and even acting to protect them from ongoing ICC investigations.

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‘Operation Albatross’ in LATAM

In the poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, an albatross appears to a ship stuck in Antarctic ice. The bird leads them on a course that frees their ship.

However, the narrator shoots the albatross with a crossbow. The seemingly meaningless action curses the ship and its crew, who are forced to endure a series of catastrophic events that kill many and nearly cause the rest to perish of thirst.

The surviving crew forces the narrator to wear the dead albatross around his neck for the rest of the journey as a constant reminder of the malice and violence that cursed them.

The US is currently aiming the crossbow at the same metaphorical bird in Latin America, an action that is certain to lead to grave consequences in the months, years, and even decades to come.

Some US violence in the region is direct: the US military has killed at least 221 people in Latin America and the Caribbean as part of strikes on what they claim, without proof, are drug traffickers.

​US military forces invaded Venezuela in January and captured then-president Nicolas Maduro to install a more US-friendly puppet regime.

Other efforts have been more about supporting the anti-democratic efforts of populist strongmen in the region, as in the case of the Trump-friendly (and hopeful president-for-life) Nayib Bukele. Bukele has all but dismantled checks and balances against his growing power, and arrested thousands without trials as part of a “temporary” state of exception that has now stretched into its 5th year.

​The US gives material and intelligence support to Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa. Noboa’s “iron fist” security policies emulate the “Bukele model” of crackdowns, mass incarceration, dismantling of judicial powers in the country, and dismantling election institutions that allow opposition parties to run for office. Despite findings of arbitrary detentions, torture, and extrajudicial killings by Ecuadorian security forces, the US has even collaborated in bombings in Ecuador.

​In one infamous case, trumpeted at the time on social media by US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, the US targeted an alleged “narco-facility.” Follow-up by journalists on the ground later revealed the location to be a dairy farm.

​The US has unleashed the CIA in Mexico and Venezuela, coordinating with state intelligence organizations in both countries to kill criminal suspects in military strikes. The Trump administration endorsed Trump-friendly candidates in elections in Honduras, Brazil and Colombia, in efforts that opposition parties have described as election interference.

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The new American feudalism

Critics have described US actions in LATAM as “neo-colonialism,” but it may be more accurate to describe them as modern feudalism, at least in the sense of power dynamics.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio continues trying to keep up the appearance that the US cares about human rights via his long-time and very personal obsession with Cuba. But even a glance at the level of support for US allies that commit similar (or in some cases much worse) human rights abuses dispels the illusion that democracy or civil rights are at all a priority.

Rather, the opposite. US statements defending their allies in Venezuela from ICC illustrate that, if anything, human and civil rights are often viewed as an obstacle by the Trump administration.

Even longtime targets of US ire seem to have been given a relative carte blanche. When Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega last week announced his country would no longer bother to hold elections, the statement from US lawmakers amounted to finger-wagging and tut-tutting.

Interestingly, when Salvadoran President Bukele abolished term-limits, his arguments justifying the decision were almost word-for-word what Ortega supporters said when the Nicaraguan strongman did the same in 2014.

In statements on social media, Bukele compared himself to leaders of countries with Parliamentary systems, who served for years in the UK and Germany, saying “the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Italy…and Japan, among many other countries, also have” no term-limits.

A parliamentary leader can be removed at any time, instantly, by lawmakers in a simple vote of no confidence, unlike the leader of a Presidential system, which El Salvador employs.

Bukele, Noboa, and Trump are all attempting to stack the judiciary with appointments who will support their interests, while their prosecuting political enemies, and setting up election obstacles for opposition parties.

The US is also trying to cast doubts on the integrity of Brazilian elections. Trump has long feuded with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula, imposing tariffs on the country and even threatening Brazilian judges who are investigating ultra-right former President Jair Bolsonaro.

Trump administration officials are pushing Latin American countries to use their militaries to conduct police actions as part of the US-led ‘War on Drugs’ — a dynamic that in the past has led to severe human rights abuses in the region.

At the recent The Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas, in Peru, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby pushed for Latin American governments to increase their defense spending and to use military forces “to recover control over your territory, secure your borders” and “defeat the narco-terrorists who terrorize all of our people.”

The ‘narco-terrorism’ label has been used by the White House to justify military actions abroad, such as the strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific oceans.

It is a label that has also been embraced by Noboa in Ecuador, and President-elect Abelardo De La Espriella in Colombia — whom Trump roundly endorsed in recent Colombian elections.

The US’s feudalistic approach to Latin America, in which minor lords run fiefdoms that pay tribute to, and depend on, the Trump White House for protection and aid, even has a fittingly named organization to aid in autocratic unity.

The administration launched the“Shield of the Americas,” a coalition of Trumpista governments in Latin America, in March. In the words of the State Department, the organization seeks to battle cartels and “expand multilateral and bilateral cooperation to enhance security’; cooperate in ‘whole of government’ efforts regarding ‘border security, countering narco-terrorism and trafficking, securing critical infrastructure, and ‘advance peace through strength.’”

De La Espriella has requested Colombia be included in the organization as well. Current President Gustavo Petro, who leaves office in August, has strongly opposed to initiative, which he has described as “inherently fascist.”

So far, US violence in Latin America has failed to reduce drug flows to the US, or seriously damage the operational capabilities of any organized crime groups.

But the US power projection has allowed Trump to project US interests in the region, and is widely considered to be a region of great success by the White House.

However, shooting the albatross brought about grave consequences in the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and it very may as well for long-term US prospects in Latin America.

After the Cold War ended, Latin America underwent a series of pro-democracy reforms, and the history of US imperialism in the 20th century gave rise to populist opposition to US policy in the region. That sentiment was in part responsible for the “Pink Wave,” a series of progressive and leftist president in Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, and Brazil, who loudly opposed US interests in the region.

Similar US actions may result in the same again, though this time not organized along right/left political alignments, but rather anti US sentiment more broadly. In addition, US officials claim that one of their prime goals currently is to reduce Chinese influence in LATAM, but their actions may be driving some governments towards closer relations instead.

Beyond geopolitics, however, US support for autocracy in the region is already having dire consequences for the people in affected countries, who face reduced civil rights in the best of cases, or worse: state violence and political persecution.

Just as was the case under ancient feudalism, it is the people who pay the price when the lords and ladies exert a brutal rule.

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Lord Marco Rubio, Viceroy of Venezuela

​A story this week by the New York Times divulged details about the relationship between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Venezuelan Interim President Delcy Rodriguez. Rubio controls all money dispensed by the US to Venezuela, a leverage he uses, along with the implicit threat that the US removed her predecessor, Nicolas Maduro, to control even minor decisions made by the government there.

​Details of their communications include Rodriguez asking for Rubio’s approval on even routine official statements, such as praising US President Donald Trump for US rescue efforts following twin earthquakes in the city.

​The report also offers further evidence that Rodriguez was aware of US plans to capture Nicolas Maduro before they were carried out, and promised full cooperation with US rule.

​In Washington, senior officials in the Trump administration jokingly refer to Rubio as the “viceroy” of Venezuela — a term used by governors in Latin America who represented the interests of Spain when the region was largely Spanish colonies.

​The nickname may have been given in jest, but Venezuela is indeed now the protectorate nation of the United States, as the US demonstrates that modern colonialism is alive and well.

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Criminal Armed groups push into protected state parks in Ecuador

​Illegal mining has soared in Ecuador in recent years, especially in Amazonian regions in the country’s interior. Criminal armed groups have increasingly turned to mining to diversify their income streams in the country, which previously relied completely on extortion and cocaine smuggling.

​The illegal mining has even pushed into protected state parks and wilderness reserves. Park rangers find themselves unable to enter vast regions of the country they used to protect, and sometimes even detained by criminal groups Los Lobos, Los Choneros, Los Galarza and Los Sao Box —  a former faction of Los Lobos.

​“Iron fist” security policies imposed by Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa have failed to stem the growth of criminality in the country, though they have resulted in numerous human rights violations against the civilian population.

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Mexico demands criminal investigations into DHS personnel

Mexican Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco announced on Thursday that they will request a formal investigation into the cases of 14 Mexicans who have died while in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and another three during ICE “arrest operations”.

The demand carries no legal weight. It will be submitted to the US Department of Justice, which is controlled by the Trump administration.

Mexico seeks criminal charges for the deaths, especially the recent high-profile shooting of Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by DHS officials in Houston.

Mexico has sent similar requests before through diplomatic channels. The formal request to the US Department of Justice marks an escalation.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday criticized “the human rights violations” of Mexican citizens in the US.

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The story of the man killed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national, in Houston, last week has dominated headlines and inspired protests since the shooting occurred. Like many people killed by DHS in recent years, Araujo was not the migrant being sought by migration authorities during the traffic stop in which officers shot him to death.

According to statements by DHS, authorities were looking for two Guatemalan men. Araujo was on his way to work, driving two other men, when officers stopped his van. Accounts at that point of the story vary.

DHS officers claim Araujo disobeyed orders and tried to strike them with his vehicle — a claim DHS personnel have often falsely used to justify police murders — forcing officers to kill Araujo. DHS claims it is unable to provide proof because the officers were not wearing body cameras.

They have provided no evidence to support their claims. In at least four previous cases, independent video showed that DHS was lying about the circumstances of the killing. DHS has killed at least 10 people during migration operations since US President Donald Trump assumed office.

Of the other two men in the van, one has been identified as Victor Hugo Salgado Araujo, and is the victim’s brother. He is in migration custody and awaiting deportation, according to statements DHS made to the New York Times.

All three passengers say DHS is lying and that officers were never in any danger.

Araujo’s family says he has lived in the US for 35 years and would never have attempted to assault officers or disobey orders. His family members and local Houston officials have demanded a full investigation.

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Local authorities say they have been blocked by federal investigators, who have taken jurisdiction of the case.

Araujo’s son, Ronaldo Araujo, in statements to the media, says his father was in the process of taking steps to regularize his status and worked constantly to put his 3 children through college.

“For the better part of the last 35 years, we were his priority,” Ronaldo told ABC News. “He got the American dream for us, and he was on his way to obtaining his American dream through the work permit.”

In related news, the Mexican government is demanding criminal charges against DHS personnel due to 17 Mexicans who died in ICE custody or during immigration enforcement operations by the Trump administration, Mexican officials said Thursday.

“We’re filthy rich, how bout you work for $1 a day”

Last month DHS was budgeted an additional $70 billion dollars for migration enforcement. That’s on top of the $100 billion they got last year, and the special budget allocation of $400 billion over ten years as part of the “Big Beautiful Bill” proposed by US President Donald Trump.

In fact, they’ve got so much money they’re not even sure how to spend it all. For example, DHS is launching their own private airline company to handle deportations and spending $1.5 billion just to avoid oversight of detention centers run by the private sector.

They’re buying up real-estate that they plan to house detainees in and logistical hubs to coordinate transport.

As we’ve reported before, they are also investing in spyware, surveillance technology, and assembling databases of protesters and critics.

DHS is spending more on migration enforcement than Honduras and Guatemala combined spend on their national militaries.

Nonetheless, instead of paying cleaners at detention centers they have contracted out to private companies, those companies are instead paying migrants they kidnapped off the streets as little as $1/day to work as janitorial staff, according to multiple deportees who spoke with Spanish newspaper El Pais.

Jose Luis was one of multiple migrant who spoke to the media company about their experience as cleaners in their own prisons.

“It was the only way to earn some money to buy what I needed in there,” he Luis told El Pais. He needed basics for the dispensary while he was held, such as, “soup, toiletries a toothbrush. I knew my family couldn’t deposit money into my account,”

Luis was detained by ICE, then held at a detention center run by The GEO Group, a private prison company which holds a multimillion-dollar contract with DHS.

Luis was held for months in southern California before being deported to Mexico. He had no access to money he had saved working in the US, and often went long periods without speaking to his family.

“I put up with it because I thought, ‘I need the dollar they’re going to pay me today to buy food.”

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The Roundup

• DHS private server, which contains sensitive though not classified information, was hacked and the data likely breached, according to statements by the organization last week. You’d think with a pile of money the size of a large lake in Siberia they could afford some decent digital security. Guess not. Don’t worry. They’re investigating. Their track record at investigating is geat. Wait. No. It isn’t.

• Three protesters who were assaulted by ICE at protests in Chicago are suing DHS. The three Illinois residents all claim they suffered permanent damage after being assaulted: one shot in the face with pepper balls at close range, one from repeated lung exposure to chemical agents, and one who was forcibly thrown down onto pavement by jack-booted thugs.

• In recent weeks, as part of plans to try to keep a lower public profile, DHS has been cancelling bids to buy warehouses and turn them into detention centers. Now instead, the organization is buying facilities currently being leased by private prison companies. We aren’t sure why they think that is better PR. But again, pile of money.

• DHS sent armed agents to the house of a man who wrote an angry email criticizing DHS. He is also suing them, saying the visit amounted to intimidation and violated his 1st amendment rights. We’re pretty sure DHS has money to pay lawyers though, so we’ll see what happens.

• A Conservative think tank says DHS’s deportation numbers are made-up and they want concrete and timely information. They are also suing DHS, demanding they turn over internal data.

A quick word to our readers about the DHS diaries:

We published weekly updates about ICE and DHS for more than a year because we think it is crucial to the public interest. But in 2026, they became, by far, our least read content.

That’s a LOT of work for something few people were reading. We understand that no single news story can stay in the headlines for years and that people’s attention drifts elsewhere, like the proverbial frogs in slow-boiling water, and that fatigue of a subject happens to all of us.

But we felt we needed to rethink our approach, for ourselves, and our readers. So we’ve decided to do one really big update a month instead of the weeklies.

We’ll still be covering individual stories related to migration as part of our regular coverage, of course. But the DHS Diaries are going to be monthly installments while we re-test how that works for you, our readers.

We would love any feedback you have on that. It helps us immensely in making decisions. After all, Pirate Wire Services is here for you!

Thanks again.

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As Colombia’s ultra-right President-elect prepares to take power, details about his agenda are finally emerging

As Colombia prepares to transfer presidential powers to President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella, the ultra-right-wing populist is finally starting to release details of campaign promises that were often so vague as to be almost meaningless.

​In recent days, he has promised an expansion of military numbers, which, as PWS has reported before, are stretched to their limits, currently carrying out operations against non-state armed groups (NSAGs).

​To that end, de la Espriella has promised to reinstate mandatory military service in the country. “Here we need committed people, people of conviction. When the homeland calls upon its good children, we must step forward,” said De La Espriella in recent public comments.

​He offered an ultimatum to criminal groups in the country to stand down or be “crushed.” None have taken him up on his offer. The aggressive military strategies de la Espriella wants to implement have failed for decades, and NSAGs seem to be betting that they can outlast his presidency.

​He also plans to ramp up oil production via cooperation with US companies and by permitting fracking in the country.

​Current leftist President Gustavo Petro has sharply criticized the move, which runs contrary to his vision of the country as a potential bastion of clean energy. Petro is cooperating with the transition of power, but has publicly stated that he will not recognize de la Espriella as president.

​Following the elections, which de la Espriella won by less than 1%, Petro alleged fraud in the process. He offered no proof of his claims, and the accusation was not repeated by leftist candidate Ivan Cepeda.

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As the US continues to throttle Cuba, blackouts worsen

Cuba suffered another island-wide blackout this week, the third since 2026 began. The country continues to struggle with fuel shortages as a result of the naval blockade imposed by the US.

By Monday evening, despite attempts by the state-owned energy company to continue providing electricity at least to hospitals, only 1% of the capital had power on Monday evening.

The fuel shortages have created a humanitarian emergency in the country as well as an economic one. Rolling blackouts have decimated tourism and made even food production impossible.

Trump has pointed to the invasion of Venezuela and the removal of its then-president Nicolas Maduro, as a possible blueprint for Cuba. He has sometimes contradicted himself on this count as well, however, and suggested that there may be room for negotiation.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel accused the US of trying to “incite social unrest by strangling Cuba’s fuel supply”.

International rescue teams have left Venezuela, now comes the aftermath

The confirmed death toll continues to rise in Venezuela as residents dig through rubble searching for loved ones, friends, and neighbors. International rescue teams have left the country, with few expected survivors so long after the initial disaster.

But humanitarian needs continue. Tens of thousands of Venezuelans are sleeping in parks and public spaces and large portions of affected areas still lack water and electricity.

The United Nations now estimates $37 billion in direct property damage. UNICEF warns that the full fallout from the crisis has yet to reveal itself, and estimates that more than a quarter of a million children will be in need in coming months.

The US has promised more aid, following $300 million it has promised to pay for immediate rescue relief. That number is a drop in the bucket.

Whether US President Trump, who has often bragged about how much money the US is earning in Venezuela, is willing to fund a true reconstruction in the country remains to be seen.

But the US has made it clear they back current interim-president Delcy Rodriguez, who the US installed after capturing Maduro.

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Venezuela’s Interim President Delcy Rodríguez was visibly irritated during a live press conference in Caracas. Her voice quavered at times as she pushed back on journalist after journalist from the international community who disputed her claims that response efforts by state forces were immediate and organized after twin earthquakes rocked the country on June 24.

​“We can verify ourselves from reporting in the field,” said one journalist from Spanish newspaper El País, “that in those first hours it was very difficult to find any officials in affected areas. Not only was there a complete lack of journalists, but there was also no heavy machinery. We spoke to one official who said he couldn’t even find a pen to make a list of the dead.”

​Rodriguez was visibly angry as she responded, almost yelling, “It is absolutely disgusting that elements of the press have created this narrative to harass, generate chaos, and interfere with rescue efforts!”

​“This is why we militarized the zone!” she continued, even blaming journalists for blocking highways along rescue routes, “Disgusting!”

​There is no evidence for Rodriguez’s claims about journalists blocking rescue efforts.

​But journalist after journalist continued to push back, often sharing firsthand accounts that were confirmed by hundreds of videos on social media in the early hours after the earthquakes, showing that official information was lacking and that many affected areas received no help at all.

​In response, Rodriguez also cited people in hospitals who are “alive only because they were rescued by Bolivarian forces,” she said, referring to the National Guard. “I invite you to visit and speak with them.”

​It was a far cry from the press conferences that Rodriguez is used to, which are often attended only by state and friendly media companies, where stenography rather than journalism is the goal, and no journalist dares speak ill of the state.

​But as criticism of the government disaster response mounts, both domestically and internationally, Rodriguez is showing she has many unlikely allies in Washington, D.C.

​The U.S State Department’s Bureau of Western Affairs on Monday congratulated the Venezuelan government on “completely fulfilling” its responsibilities during rescue efforts, saying, “We remain steadfast in our commitment to stand with the Venezuelan people.”

​Shortly after the disaster, Trump falsely claimed that Venezuelans were “dancing in the streets,” because of U.S rule over the country since January, when U.S forces attacked Caracas and captured then-president Nicolas Maduro.

​“Venezuela has been fantastic. We have a great relationship,” Trump continued. “It was a one-day war. We struck them once, and now we’re taking millions of barrels of oil.”

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​Trump has reportedly even gone so far as to block opposition leader Maria Corina Machado from returning to the country. The two leaders have had a strained relationship for months, despite Machado offering him her Nobel Peace Prize last year.

​Other officials in the Trump administration called Machado’s bid to return to the country “grotesque political opportunism,” claiming the opposition leader only “wants a photo op of her passing out our aid,” according to reporting from Axios and the New York Times.

​Even Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has long been a staunch ally of Machado, is losing patience, according to reporting by the Times.

​Rodriguez was hand-picked by the administration to run Venezuela by the U.S, which has often seemed far more interested in exploiting oil, gold, and rare-earth minerals in the country than political reform.

​She was reportedly in communication with U.S. officials before Maduro was captured and aware of their plans. And she has since been often congratulated by Trump as “doing a great job.”

​It is a dramatic reversal for both the Republican party and Chavista leaders, the name of the socialist movement created by former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Senior Chavista leaders, who for years have criticized the U.S as imperialists, opportunists, colonizers, and vultures, have had only glowing things to say about Trump since January.

​Similarly, administration officials in the U.S, who only months ago were claiming that leadership in Venezuela were “drug traffickers,” “terrorists,” and “criminals,” in statements that often criticized socialism and human rights violations in the country, have become seemingly staunch allies.

​Two disparate camps have been only too happy to plan lucrative business deals together, even if the U.S is keeping the lion’s share of profits. MAGA-Chavismo is in ascendancy, and it has thrown traditional campists from all sides into disarray.

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​Rodriguez supporters within her party make a strong point when they point out that the leader is effectively negotiating with a gun to her head, but it’s clear the relationship isn’t as simple as that.

​On the contrary, Rodriguez has often appeared eager to open up mineral reserves to foreign investors, often thanking Washington profusely for one-sided business deals, and even working directly with the US military and the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to carry out strikes on criminal leaders in the country.

​Combined with her talks with the CIA before Maduro’s capture, some former supporters even refer to Rodriguez as “Del-CIA.”

​Meanwhile, the top U.S. diplomat in Venezuela, John Barret, has had nothing but support for the Rodriguez administration. He has credited Rodriguez with “lowering inflation” and often bragged about growing oil exports to the U.S.

As they say in the Andes, plata es plata, mijo: money is money, sweetheart. And that money seems to have made close friends of two groups who, at least on paper, claim to be staunchly ideologically opposed.

​Washington clearly determined that they wanted to avoid “nation-building” —as the U.S tried and failed in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan— in Venezuela, and that Rodriguez represented the most stable (and cheapest) route to profits.

​As one Venezuelan journalist pointed out to PWS in January in a conversation about how Chavista leaders were going to respond to effectively becoming a U.S client state, “There are, of course, some ideological reasons to resist US actions, but ultimately the bureaucracy in Venezuela is motivated by financial interests rather than political ones.”

Further reporting since those comments has shown his words to be prescient. Trump, Rubio, Rodriguez, the Venezuelan military, and even the CIA were all on the same page.

​They wanted Chavistas to remain in power. It was both cheaper and more efficient for Washington.

​The twin earthquakes have, quite literally, ground that strategy into dust. Venezuela does not have the money for reconstruction, and it will not be able to secure that money in the medium term. (I wrote an article about that this week for a US Latino media company if you’re interested in the details.)

​If the U.S wants its client state to function, it is going to have to help rebuild it. And this week, Washington has signaled strongly that despite growing criticism, they believe Rodriguez is still the woman for the job.

​And so we find ourselves in a strange reversal of traditional roles. Venezuelan Trump supporters in Miami are livid that the Trump administration is publicly backing the Chavista government while Chavistas in Latin America make statements that sound curiously similar to those made by the Trump administration.

​And all of this is occurring as U.S soldiers ride around in Venezuelan military vehicles that have “anti-imperialist” written on the side of them.

​It would seem that disasters and business opportunities both make for interesting bedfellows.

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Venezuela

Double earthquakes in Venezuela have dominated headlines in Latin America since the tragedy struck on June 24. Venezuelan officials now put the number of confirmed deaths above 1,700. Anger is mounting among civil society over a slow state disaster response and even overt interference in rescue efforts.

​Things are unlikely to get better in the short term as 1000’s of people left without homes sleep in public spaces and streets near Caracas. I wrote about some of the possible next steps at America Community Media. Will the Rodriguez government withstand growing pressure? And will the US aid in reconstruction efforts or simply continue plundering Venezuela?

​Among the developing stories, 146 Venezuelans, including 19 women and children, who were deported from the U.S on the day of the quakes, remain missing. The hotel where they were being temporarily held collapsed in La Guaira during the first earthquake.

Families have spent almost a week desperately searching for loved ones they expected, shortly before, to be reunited with.

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Peru finally has another president, again

Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori has formally been declared the victor in presidential elections after weeks of recounts and disputes. Fujimori won the second round on June 7 by a razor-thin margin of 50,000 votes out of 18 million ballots.

​Her rival, the left-wing Roberto Sanchez, has previously stated that he would not recognize the result of elections, citing issues with overseas voting and claims of irregular ballots.

​Fujimori takes power amidst security concerns and a deeply divided electorate. Peru has had 8 presidents in less than a decade, but counter-intuitively, Fujimori may be the president who breaks that streak. Her party is the largest coalition in Congress, which has been responsible for removing 6 of the 8 previous heads of state.

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Milei’s top aide, and Cabinet Chief resigns over growing scandals

Argentine President Javier Milei’s Cabinet chief and close ally, Manuel Adorni, who has been the face of anti-corruption and austerity efforts by the Libertarian government, has dominated headlines for months over his extravagant spending and jet-setting lifestyle.

Adorni is being investigated for corruption charges. He denies the accusations, explaining his apparent overnight transformation into a well-heeled big spender as the result of “careful saving” and “finding a thumb drive filled with Bitcoin” that he had forgotten he purchased.

The scandal presents a sharp contrast to drastic cuts in public services and programs for the poor in Argentina as part of Milei’s efforts to reduce state spending.

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In mid-June 2026, as the second round of Colombia’s presidential election approached, a team of reporters from Reuters traveled deep into the jungles of Colombia’s Choco department to speak with members of the ELN’s Western War Front and their leader, an individual known as Yerson.

Seated on a fallen tree trunk, his rifle resting across his legs, and clad in an ELN ​scarf and balaclava, Yerson spoke about Abelardo de la Espriella, the far-right presidential candidate who had vowed to cease all negotiations with armed groups and unleash the full might of Colombia’s security forces against them. While acknowledging that ELN fighters would probably “suffer” if military operations increased, Yerson expressed confidence that the ELN would survive. “The ELN will not disappear because of a strong offensive,” he said, “you can be completely sure of that.”

Yerson is almost certainly correct. The ELN is already actively at war with the Colombian state. Furthermore, de la Espriella’s ability to actually increase military pressure against it is quite limited.

While de la Espriella’s predecessor, Gustavo Petro, did announce a ceasefire with the ELN in 2023, he rescinded it two years later when the ELN launched a violent war against FARC remnants in Colombia’s Catatumbo region.

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In addition, Petro deployed more than 10,000 troops specifically to fight the ELN, declaring at the time, “The ELN has chosen the path of war, and war it shall have.”

The ELN has decades of experience resisting a very capable military in Colombia, in multiple areas of the country.

Top-level leaders have never been killed, even by former presidents like Ivan Duque, who employed aggressive measures against the group for the duration of his administration.

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Today, Colombia’s security forces are “already operating on all cylinders,” and “stretched to their limit,” according to an official from the International Crisis Group. In other words, de la Espriella cannot meaningfully strengthen military operations against the ELN without weakening them against other active threats, such as the FARC-EMC. De la Espriella has also vowed to designate additional armed groups such as the FARC-EMBF as military targets, spreading Colombia’s forces even thinner.

However, even in a hypothetical scenario where Colombia’s military capacity was limitless, the ELN would still be a difficult group to dismantle. This is, in part, because the ELN is bolstered by its strong presence in neighboring Venezuela, where it operates with the implicit support of the Venezuelan government and military.

This allows it to replace killed or captured fighters with Venezuelan recruits and to fund its operations through drug trafficking and gold mining in Venezuelan territory. Much of the ELN’s leadership is also reportedly based in Venezuela, putting top ELN commanders out of de la Espriella’s reach without risking a major international incident.

While the January 2026 capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro raised hopes that his replacement, Delcy Rodriguez, would sever ties with the ELN, she has quietly resisted doing so. By some accounts, Rodriguez is facing growing dissent from Chavista hardliners in Venezuela, many of whom could see the ELN as an ideological ally. Additionally, Venezuela’s security forces are both less military capable than the ELN and financially benefit from its illicit activities.

Because of this, it’s little surprise that Rodriguez’s government denied Colombian claims that Venezuela participated in an attack against the ELN leadership’s security detail in May 2026. Later, in June, Venezuelan security forces conspicuously left ELN positions untouched during operations against criminal gangs in the country’s Orinoco region.

So long as the ELN maintains its Venezuelan safehaven, de la Espriella can neither weaken nor destroy it. No matter how many ELN fighters he kills or captures, they can be replaced. No matter how many coca plots he destroys or labs he dismantles, the ELN will continue to generate illicit profits.

Owing to these factors, ELN commanders like Yerson will continue to menace Colombia long after de la Espriella’s four year presidency has come to an end.

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The four members of punk band “Vanderis” were rehearsing inside of a studio apartment in a multi-story building in Caracas at 6:04 p.m on Wednesday. Three of them were killed instantly when the first of two massive earthquakes struck, collapsing the building entirely.

One of them was recovered alive from the resulting rubble hours later by rescuers, but succumbed to his wounds in the hospital.

“It’s been very difficult,” Miguel Rodriguez, a Caracas resident told PWS. He said he has had “a constant pain in my stomach,” since the earthquake from the stress and anxiety. Vanderis were his friends. And they were only some of those missing on the first night after the earthquake hit, when information was in short supply, official announcements infrequent, and much of the region still suffered from internet and electricity blackouts.

More than 24 hours after two devastating earthquakes rocked coastal Venezuela — the worst tremors in more than 100 years — the first international aid began to trickle in. First from the Dominican Republic, then Ecuador. Other countries, such as Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Brazil had teams inbound.

Despite myriad statements from US officials, no rescue response had reached affected areas from the government of Donald Trump as of Thursday night, but SOUTHCOM continued to assure it was inbound.

Official government statistics now put the number of confirmed deaths at 235, but it is certainly much higher.

Wednesday was a religious holiday in Venezuela, the festivo of San Juan. It is a holiday celebrated particularly in coastal areas, and rooted in African-Venezuelan traditions honoring John the Baptist.

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In fact, Miguel Rodriguez was preparing a ritual to honor San Juan in his living room when the earthquake hit. “I can’t describe the noise,” he said. “It was terrifying.” His mother, who happened to be visiting, was “frozen in place in terror. We couldn’t even flee the apartment.”

In the hours that followed, community organization played a key role in rescue and local aid coordination efforts. Though government rescue workers and firemen deployed for rescue attempts, the state struggled with rescue efforts, in some cases lacking even basic tools, such as heavy machinery to lift rubble from those trapped.

Many efforts were led and organized by the communities themselves.

With many social media platforms blocked, and a media structure stripped hollow from years of state censorship, communication at first fared little better. Basic information about road closures, which neighborhoods lacked power, and where damage was most critical was lacking.

Street journalists that operate via Whatsapp groups often helped coordinate and compilate needs and donations, getting critical food and supplies to rescue workers as well as people in need.

“Mel,” who asked that their real name not be printed, spoke with PWS as she travelled from Maracaibo to La Guaira as part of a convoy carrying food and basic first-aid supplies. They plan to volunteer in whatever manner is needed to help with the disaster response.

“There is so much bad information,” she said via phone. “We hear the highway is shut down,” to reach La Guaira. “Then 20 minutes later we confirm it is open. No one knows what’s real and what isn’t. What’s confirmed and what isn’t.”

She says some people, though they are trying to help, are inadvertently spreading false rumors that have slowed organization efforts. But her group is determined to help.

“It doesn’t matter,” she said. “We’re Venezuelans. This is how we are as a people. We’ve been through this before. The only thing that can save a community is community.”

She has little faith in state information or statistics. “We likely will never know the true number of deaths,” she said. “But that also doesn’t matter right now. We know we need to help who we can. That is all that matters.”

By all accounts, hundreds if not thousands of people remained trapped under rubble Thursday evening. The longer they stay that way, the less likely they are to survive.

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Venezuela was rocked by two earthquakes in quick succession early Wednesday evening, destroying hundreds of structures and causing an unknown number of casualties.

​The first earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.2, struck off the central coast of Venezuela at 6:04 p.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Its epicenter was near the city of San Felipe, in Yaracuy state, about 280 km west of Caracas.

​Almost immediately afterward, a second, even more powerful earthquake struck the same area. The epicenter was located near the municipality of Yumare, a little further north, and had a magnitude of 7.5.

​Multiple states were strongly affected, as was the capital of Caracas. Due to censorship and a lack of independent media in the country, as well as a lack of statements by the Venezuelan government, and widespread blackouts in affected areas, it was not immediately clear how grave the natural disaster really was.

​But as images and videos began to emerge through social media, in WhatsApp channels, and by independent reporters in the country over the following hours, it became clear that the damage was catastrophic, particularly in areas near the epicenters of the twin earthquakes.

​In her first public statement after the earthquakes, just after 10 p.m, Acting President Delcy Rogriguez declared a national emergency and asked the international community for humanitarian aid.

​Almost every country in the immediate region quickly announced a willingness to send aid or help in rescue efforts, as did the United States and China.

​Multiple residents of Venezuela who spoke with PWS by phone expressed frustration at a lack of information as state-owned channels continued with regular programming, and official statements were both vague and infrequent.

​“We’re organizing information networks among ourselves,” said ‘Miguel’, who asked that his real name be withheld. “We’re trying to get potable water to neighbors, especially elderly neighbors. Luckily, the structural damage in the area where I live isn’t life-threatening, but we have no information at all from official sources. We are organizing ourselves. It’s like we are blind here.”

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​Other areas near Caracas were not so lucky. The state of La Guaira, northeast of Caracas, seemed particularly hard hit. Rodriguez confirmed “hundreds” of collapsed buildings and “ongoing rescue efforts.”

​Images from social media and independent reporters showed devastation: collapsed buildings, impassable roads, and medical personnel working in the parking lot of a hospital, presumably because of structural damage to the hospital.

​Large areas of La Guaira remained without power, internet, or phone signal as of the filing of this report. Thousands of people began to appear on websites hastily constructed to aid relatives in finding their loved ones. The number of those reported as disappeared does not necessarily reflect casualties, as many people remained unable to connect to digital or phone communication networks.

​Rodriguez, in later statements, said Venezuela had confirmed more than 30 deaths, but the number is almost certainly much higher.

​USGS estimated numbers possibly as high as 10 thousand, but stressed that it was a projection based on the strength of the quake and remained unconfirmed.

​Venezuela’s Interior Minister, Diosdado Cabello, the first high-level official to speak after the earthquake, said that “all security and emergency response agencies, civil protection, volunteers, firefighters, and police” had been deployed to respond to the emergency.

​Cabello urged citizens to evacuate any buildings that had sustained damage and spoke of “alarming situations” in areas of Caracas such as Los Palos Grandes and Altamira.

​Rodriguez stated that hotels deemed to be safe had been opened to shelter those whose homes had been damaged or destroyed.

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​Thousands of people left without shelter affected areas slept on the streets and in parking lots.

​Airports remained closed, and airplane tracking websites showed no air traffic in the airspace in the country, despite unconfirmed reports that some countries had sent aid by air, including rescue crews.

​Venezuela was rocked by two earthquakes in quick succession early Wednesday evening, destroying hundreds of structures and causing an unknown number of casualties.

​The first earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.2, struck off the central coast of Venezuela at 6:04 p.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Its epicenter was near the city of San Felipe, in Yaracuy state, about 280 km west of Caracas.

​Almost immediately afterward, a second, even more powerful earthquake struck the same area. The epicenter was located near the municipality of Yumare, a little further north, and had a magnitude of 7.5.

​Multiple states were strongly affected, as was the capital of Caracas. Due to censorship and a lack of independent media in the country, as well as a lack of statements by the Venezuelan government, and widespread blackouts in affected areas, it was not immediately clear how grave the natural disaster really was.

​But as images and videos began to emerge through social media, in WhatsApp channels, and by independent reporters in the country over the following hours, it became clear that the damage was catastrophic, particularly in areas near the epicentres of the twin earthquakes.

​In her first public statement after the earthquakes, just after 10 p.m, Acting President Delcy Rogriguez declared a national emergency and asked the international community for humanitarian aid.

​Almost every country in the immediate region quickly announced a willingness to send aid or help in rescue efforts, as did the United States and China.

​Multiple residents of Venezuela who spoke with PWS by phone expressed frustration at a lack of information as state-owned channels continued with regular programming, and official statements were both vague and infrequent.

​“We’re organizing information networks among ourselves,” said ‘Miguel’, who asked that his real name be withheld. “We’re trying to get potable water to neighbors, especially elderly neighbors. Luckily, the structural damage in the area where I live isn’t life-threatening, but we have no information at all from official sources. We are organizing ourselves. It’s like we are blind here.”

​Other areas near Caracas were not so lucky. The state of La Guaira, northeast of Caracas, seemed particularly hard hit. Rodriguez confirmed “hundreds” of collapsed buildings and “ongoing rescue efforts.”

​Images from social media and independent reporters showed devastation: collapsed buildings, impassable roads, and medical personnel working in the parking lot of a hospital, presumably because of structural damage to the hospital.

​Large areas of La Guaira remained without power, internet, or phone signal as of the filing of this report. Thousands of people began to appear on websites hastily constructed to aid relatives in finding their loved ones. The number of those reported as disappeared does not necessarily reflect casualties, as many people remained unable to connect to digital or phone communication networks.

​Rodriguez, in later statements, said Venezuela had confirmed more than 30 deaths, but the number is almost certainly much higher.

​USGS estimated numbers possibly as high as 10 thousand, but stressed that it was a projection based on the strength of the quake and remained unconfirmed.

​Venezuela’s Interior Minister, Diosdado Cabello, the first high-level official to speak after the earthquake, said that “all security and emergency response agencies, civil protection, volunteers, firefighters, and police” had been deployed to respond to the emergency.

​Cabello urged citizens to evacuate any buildings that had sustained damage and spoke of “alarming situations” in areas of Caracas such as Los Palos Grandes and Altamira.

​Rodriguez stated that hotels deemed to be safe had been opened to shelter those whose homes had been damaged or destroyed.

​Thousands of people in affected areas are sleeping on the streets and in parking lots, left without shelter.

​Airports remained closed, and airplane tracking websites showed no air traffic in the airspace in the country, despite unconfirmed reports that some countries had sent aid by air, including rescue crews.

​

This piece is by Adriaan Alsema, from our sister-org Colombia Reports

The leftist candidate Ivan Cepeda conceded defeat in Colombia’s presidential election ahead of the end of the formal vote count.

At a press conference, Cepeda said he accepted the results of the formal count that changed little to the preliminary count that was announced on Sunday.

I have decided to accept the result of that process, which designates Abelardo de la Espriella as the new president of the Republic.

Ivan Cepeda

Cepeda, who will be granted a Senate seat, confirmed that he will lead the opposition to De la Espriella from congress.

“I am doing this as an act of democratic responsibility. I am doing this to contribute to harmony, peace, and dialogue among Colombians,” said the former candidate.

Cepeda denounced the “open and undue foreign interference” in the election process, “particularly the actions taken by the U.S. government, and in particular those of President Donald Trump.”

The former candidate also confirmed accusation made by his allies about the “massive vote-buying operation intended to undermine the free expression of the will of the people” and De la Espriella’s employment of “sophisticated manipulation strategies using artificial intelligence technologies.”

We do not accept these practices that have undermined the transparency of this process and call into question the legitimacy of the new government. We will, of course, continue to shed light on these events.

Ivan Cepeda

According to Cepeda, his own campaign had been “totally clean, transparent and respectful” and “made no concessions to politics turned into a spectacle, nor to unscrupulous alliances, nor to the buying of votes, nor to practices that undermine democracy and debase the will of the people.”

The left will take a lead in the congressional opposition and “if necessary, resistance and peaceful civil disobedience” against the counter revolution announced by the far-right president-elect.

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Ultra-right, Trump-endorsed candidate headed for likely win in Colombia

Abelardo de la Espriella, who has promised “Total War” against criminal groups in the country, won the quick count in Colombian elections on Sunday by a razor-thin margin.

With a mandate of less than 1%, de la Espriella takes office after a campaign filled with violent rhetoric towards his critics, and promises to greatly expand the power of the presidency.

Whether he will be successful or not is another question. If his victory is confirmed by the slower official count in coming days, he will lack a coalition in Congress, and any clear election mandate.

Protests have already developed spontaneously in Bogota and Cali. De la Espriella’s campaign promises to invite US military actions into the country as part of “Plan Colombia 2.0” is also highly likely to face domestic pushback.

No matter what happens next, Colombia is headed for a rough period.

has a great breakdown of non-state armed groups at his Substack this week that is highly relevant in coming days and weeks. “The Colombian Armed Groups Catalogue” breaks down the largest NSAGs currently operating in the country, describes their origins, and their goals.

We highly recommend it.

”State of Exception” in Bolivia

President Paz declared a “State of Exception” in Bolivia. The decree grants broad powers to the military to dismantle blockades in the country which have stretched in their third month.

The decision has been publicly considered by the government for weeks, and now occurs after most of the social groups protesting have agreed to negotiations with the Paz government in return for standing down.

Some hard-line groups declared a “pause” to blockades shortly after the government announcement. Protests in Bolivia are likely effectively over, with only a few holdouts facing a military that has been known for its brutality towards protesters historically.

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Far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella has won the quick count in Colombia’s presidential elections.

​With 99.22% of the vote counted, de la Espriella led with 49.7% over his left-wing opponent, Ivan Cepeda, who captured 48.5%. The razor-thin margin, roughly 275,000 votes, likely means we won’t have official results immediately, but will have to wait for the slower manual count in the coming days.

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The final weeks of the election were tense as de la Espriella personally threatened journalists, critics, and leftists more broadly.

​De la Espriella has promised to dismantle key aspects of the 2016 Peace Accord with left-wing rebel group FARC, “iron fist” security crackdowns on crime, and aggressive military operations against non-state armed groups in the country.

​The Trump-endorsed candidate has also promised to remove Colombia from the United Nations and build 10 “mega-prisons,” modelled after the infamous CECOT detention center in El Salvador.

​He has almost promised a “Plan Colombia 2.0,” presumably inviting joint US-Colombian military operations in the country.

​Some in Colombia have accused the US of election manipulation, not only endorsing a right-wing candidate in the country, but even arresting critics of de la Espriella in the US.

​The result is almost certain to inspire protests from leftist sectors in the country.

​After the first round, which was led by de la Espriella, current president Gustavo Petro charged fraud in the process. He did not produce evidence to support his claims, and the accusations were rejected by Cepeda.

In remarks a few hours after the quick count, Cepeda struck a calm tone, calling on supporters to await the official vote scrutiny process, and saying quick count results are not legally binding.

US President Donald Trump, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio both publicly congratulated de le Espriella on his win.

​This story is being updated throughout the evening.

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Election campaigns in Colombia have come to a close ahead of Sunday’s presidential elections. The last few weeks of the campaign have been tense, with ultra-right, Trump-endorsed candidate Abelardo de la Espriella personally attacking journalists and even threatening to “disembowel” leftists who try to block his agenda.

​The final polls show de la Espriella leading over his leftist opponent, Senator Ivan Cepeda, who last week filed new evidence with the Prosecutor’s Office accusing de la Espriella of deeper ties to right-wing paramilitary structures than he publicly admits.

​Those charges won’t matter, however, if de la Espriella wins. Meanwhile, some Cepeda supporters have promised to take to the streets in the event of an election win by the far-right candidate.

De la Espriella, best known as a high-profile defense attorney, is running a populist campaign inspired by Bukele in El Salvador and Milei in Argentina. Calling himself “the Tiger,” he has promised “iron fist” crackdowns on criminal armed groups and corruption, as well as economic austerity programs in the country.

Security has been one of the central themes of the run-up to elections. Current President Gustavo Petro’s “Total Peace” plan, which involved negotiating with non-state armed actors in return for their disarmament, has had mixed results — and some serious setbacks.

Criminal groups have continued to expand in both numbers and territory, a trend that began under Petro’s predecessor, Ivan Duque.

“The insecurity is why I’m voting for Abelardo,” Angela Diaz, a de la Espriella supporter, told PWS in Medellin. “Petro has been a disaster in dealing with the guerrillas,” she said. Diaz opposes Colombia’s 2016 peace deal with rebel group the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Following the deal, as FARC fighters disarmed en masse, Colombia experienced the sharpest drop in violence in the history of the country. Since then, however, conflict has again been slowly expanding as other non-state armed groups have stepped into the vacuum that the government — then under the control of former president Duque — failed to fill.

De la Espriella has promised to eliminate key elements of the peace deal, including Colombia’s Peace Court (JEP), which has conducted widespread investigations into human rights violations by all involved parties as part of its Truth Commission efforts.

He has also promised that under his control, Colombia would leave the United Nations and invite joint US-Colombian military actions against armed groups.

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During the last two weeks of the campaign, de la Espriella has lurched from one scandal to another. He released a video falsely claiming that Cepeda was “months away from dying” from a rare medical condition. His campaign removed the claims from their social media accounts after widespread condemnation.

De la Espriella also falsely accused journalist Daniel Coronel of accepting bribes — and luxury cars — in Miami in return for critical coverage of the ultra-right candidate. His campaign presented no evidence of the accusations. Coronel responded that the claim is “absurd,” responding that de la Espriella is trying to intimidate him through character assassination.

De la Espriella has a long history of publicly going after journalists who have criticized him or investigated his past. In addition to personal attacks and wild accusations, he has also launched more than 100 lawsuits against his critics in the media.

Some de la Espriella supporters are stoking fear of violent riots by Cepeda supporters in the event of a loss. The candidate has promised to crush them, claiming they would be organized by Petro and Cepeda. There is no evidence that this claim, or any of his other claims, have any merit whatsoever.

The right-wing firebrand has promised to build 10 “mega jails,” and increase punitive sentencing guidelines for criminals, including life sentences. Life sentences are not allowed under the Colombian constitution. De la Espriella has vowed not to let that stop him.

“He is a fascist,” said Susana Garcia in Bogota. “It’s astonishing to me that after decades of these failed ‘iron fist’ policies have failed to stop the growth of armed groups, some voters think this time will be different.”

Garcia fears de la Espriella’s promises to ignore human rights protections guaranteed under both international and Colombian law. “I keep reading from centrists that both candidates are ‘extremists’,” she told PWS. “It’s a ridiculous framing. Only one candidate in this election has promised to disembowel me and take away my rights.”

​De la Espriella is promising big change, though most of his policies are a throwback to the right-wing goverments that ruled Colombia during its 53-year civil war. He even describes his security plan as based on that of former right-wing President Alvaro Uribe, who he considers a mentor.

If the polls are correct, and de la Espriella does win, he will be very unlikely to build a majority coalition in Congress, which is dominated by the more traditional political parties he eschews.

When Petro won in 2022, becoming the first leftist president in the country in modern history, it was in no small part due to the disaster that was the administration of Ivan Duque before him, who left office the least popular president Colombia has ever had.

He dismantled or stonewalled large parts of the 2016 Peace Deal, emphasized aggressive military strategies against armed groups, ushered in market-friendly austerity reforms, and when his policies led to a national rebellion in the form of a mass general strike, cracked down on protesters violently, killing dozens.

Populist slogans aside, de la Espriella’s platform represents more of the same rather than the radical departure he claims.

Duque publicly endorsed de la Espriella on Thursday from his home in Miami. It seems he too sees the similarities.

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Hasta pronto, piratas!

Officials from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) arrested 13 activists, trade unionists, and teachers in Minneapolis on June 16. They pulled teachers from classrooms in front of their students, and others from their homes, charging some of the union leaders and activists with “criminal conspiracy,” and all for “conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer.”

The charges stem from the unionists and teachers’ efforts in organizing popular resistance against US President Donald Trump’s “Operation Metro Surge,” in which DHS personnel flooded the streets of Minneapolis in an aggressive migrant roundup that also killed two US citizens, and at least one legal migrant.

It is part of a larger crackdown in which the US justice system is being used to criminalize dissent, and perhaps more importantly, enact revenge on those who have defeated or embarrassed Trump.

Minneapolis committed the cardinal sin of achieving both, and very publicly. Popular networks in the city organized aid for migrant workers in hiding, sustained and constant protests that slowed down DHS activities in the city, and publicly turned the tide against Trump’s most aggressive and public migration crackdown policies.

And the people of Minneapolis’ resistance inspired similar efforts to pop up across the US. Republicans facing tough midterm elections began criticizing draconian anti-migration strategies. Trump was forced to retreat.

Then-chief of DHS field operations, Greg Bovino, was promptly fired, and new leadership promised to take a softer tack. Gone were the massive public deployments, the deployment of the National Guard to cities that resisted his fascist policies, and the slick videos of ICE ripping people from their beds decked out in military kit.

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin has since frequently stated that his primary goal is to keep his department and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) out of the daily news headlines.

Trump has tried since he came to office to demonize dissent to his policies, including designating “antifa” a domestic terrorist group — a designation that does not exist and which the White House has no legal power to enforce.

Minneapolis was not the first to mount a massive popular resistance to ICE/DHS kidnapping operations, but it was by far the most organized. Thousands of observers collaborated with any civic organization interested—from church groups to unions to direct action networks on the ground to reading groups composed of middle-aged participants—to use every path of resistance available to them.

They stopped the behemoth in its tracks. Trump never got over it.

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Since then, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) has been trying to set a precedent that allows them to prosecute critics. They have been focused on leftists generally, but hold a particular ire for those who resist fascism.

That’s exactly why the DOJ and DHS are going after the activists who organized grocery deliveries for migrants afraid to leave their houses during the DHS crackdown in Minneapolis, created open-source software that allowed any citizen to report ICE activity, organized marches, and protested outside of detention facilities.

DHS strategy to criminalize dissent under an overarching charge of “criminal conspiracy “ has precedent, set by DHS last year. Prosecutors successfully used the legal strategy to convict protesters who demonstrated outside the Prairieland detention facility in Alvarado, Texas, convicting defendants of “terrorism” charges.

One of the convicted defendants was jailed for moving “zines,” pamphlets criticizing DHS and offering tips on resistance.

The 13 arrested in Minneapolis are part of charges the DHS has launched against 15 activists in the city.

“As alleged, these defendants, which included members of Antifa groups, engaged in an unrelenting campaign of harassment and violence targeting federal and local law enforcement,” stated Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, in a DHS press release.

The union members, teachers, and activists sometimes organized under the name Direct Action Minnesota, which the DOJ describes as a terrorist organization.

The DOJ seems particularly offended that one of the associated working groups, the Black Cat Workers’ Union, has a graphic of the burning of the Minneapolis Third Precinct Building on the Facebook page.

The burning happened in response to the killing of George Floyd, and had a higher approval rating than Trump did at the time.

The DOJ describes those accused of “coordinated violence targeting federal law enforcement officers in an effort to cause chaos and impede law enforcement operations.”

Union representatives in Minneapolis reject the accusation as “absurd.”

Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, president of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, told Workday Magazine, “Working people from all walks of life across Minneapolis and its suburbs stepped up for their neighbors throughout Trump’s Operation Metro Surge. Tens of thousands of Minnesotans exercised their constitutional rights throughout this past winter — foundational American freedoms such as the rights to peaceably assemble and advocate for change. Today’s federal indictments impacted several of our union members who used their voices alongside many other workers to call for an end to ICE’s so-far unaccountable violence.”

Gabiou described widespread and clearly legal coordination among hundreds of civil groups, and accused the DOJ of criminalizing 1st Amendment-protected speech.

Trump has lost the political and moral debates over his draconian and fascist migration policies. Left without recourse, he has turned to criminalizing dissent — and most especially effective resistance. Organizers in Minneapolis won by every measurable metric, strategically, tactically, politically, and in terms of optics.

Trump wants to make sure no one achieves a victory like that against him again.

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World Cup! World Cup! World Cup! Whenever the World Cup is happening LATAM is an amazing place to be. And all the football drama is currently capturing headlines, but there are still some crucial stories happening in the region worth keeping track of.

Bolivia considers negotiation or Martial Law as protests continue

Protests in Bolivia show no signs of losing momentum as protesters continue to man blockades across the country while demanding the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz.

Some unions in the country have called for a formal negotiation process with the government. However, they do not have universal support and some hard-line social organizations reject the idea of any compromise short of a new government.

Meanwhile, legislation allowing the government the option to declare a “state of emergency” has passed, and the government is using the threat of effectively declaring martial law to bring those in the streets to the negotiating table.

Chile sent six metric tons of humanitarian aid as urban areas in Bolivia continue to suffer both food and medical shortages.

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Venezuelan goes after illegal mining in Orinoco

The Venezuelan military conducted an operation against criminal groups engaged in illegal mining in the Orinoco region, in the south of the state of Bolivar, on June 9. The targeted operations encountered armed resistance near the Las Brisas-Las Cristinas mining complex in Las Claritas, an area that is controlled by non-state armed actors.

The military operation by the Venezuelan government represents a symbolic milestone for the Venezuelan government to demonstrate security gains as they face considerable pressure from the United States to exert control of copper,gold and rare earth mineral reserves in the country. The deployment was carried out just days after a group of international investors visited the region.

The deployment is even more curious on the news that a joint Venezuelan-US operation killed the leader of the Tren de Aragua in the same region at roughly the same time.

Is Venezuela bowing to US pressure to secure valuable mining resources for foreign investors? Yes. Will they follow through? We have no idea. It very much bears watching. Notable, however, is that Venezuela has so far not gone after Colombian rebel groups ELN or Segunda Marquetalia in the region, who have tenuous alliances with Caracas and far more capable militarily than Venezuelan prison gangs.

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Ultra-right Trump endorsed Colombian Presidential candidate faces investigation into his paramilitary ties

The leftist candidate in Colombia’s election race, Senator Ivan Cepeda, announced a criminal complaint against his far-right opponent, Abelardo de la Espriella, for allegedly belonging to the now-defunct paramilitary organization AUC.

In a press conference, Cepeda said that his team filed a criminal complaint before the Prosecutor General’s Office and the International Criminal Court to investigate whether De la Espriella “directly belonged to and acted as part of the AUC” as the then-director of FIPAZ.

FIPAZ was an NGO that was created by the AUC commanders “to expand their social influence and by utilizing the organization’s resources” while they were negotiating their demobilization with the government of former President Alvaro Uribe.

De la Espriella’s history as a representative and founder of FIPAZ is public knowledge, but he claims he only advocated for them and was never a member. Cepeda’s formal accusation goes further, saying that he was an active beneficiary and member of one of Latin America’s most infamous death squads.

De la Espriella is currently leading in polls for elections to be held June 21.

reporting from our sister organization Colombia Reports

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The Other Big Stories in LATAM

• US musician Oliver Tree died in a helicopter collision in Brazil. The alt-pop US musician and internet personality Oliver Tree was among six people who died when the helicopter he was travelling in collided with another in Brazil. (BBC)

• Colombia has become the first Latin American country to ban female genital mutilation. The indigenous-led movement has a fascinating history, and Al Jazeera has a great feature on how, among the Embera people especially, this has been a years-long feminist struggle.

• Milei’s Chief of Staff Manuel Adorni is embroiled in a massive scandal due to investigations into his lavish lifestyle in Argentina. Former aides describe a life of relative poverty that changed radically once he entered government. He claims he found a bunch of bitcoin on a flash drive that he forgot he bought (haha.)

​The US and Venezuela conducted a joint military operation in Venezuelan territory that killed Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, better known as “Niño Guerrero”, the leader of Tren de Aragua.

US President Donald Trump announced the killing on Friday afternoon on his social media website Truth Social, accompanied with xenophobic and bigoted statements about migrants, and a video he claimed showed the assasination.

At my direction, the United States Southern Command delivered a swift and lethal kinetic strike to successfully execute Niño Guerrero, the infamous leader of Tren De Aragua, one of the most bloodthirsty Terrorist Organizations on Planet Earth. Before I returned to office, Joe Biden opened our Southern Border to millions of Illegal Criminals, and allowed this foreign army to rape, maim, and murder American Citizens with total impunity. During my Campaign, I pledged to expel these monsters from our Country, and bring Justice to the families of those they slaughtered

-US President Donald Trump

Donald Trump has often exaggerated the power of the Tren de Aragua as a rationalization for migration crackdowns, and as a justification for the US attack on Caracas that captured former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January.

Venezuela confirmed the operation shortly afterwards in a statement by the Ministry of Popular Power, saying the mission was “a joint operation between Venezuelan and U.S. security agencies in the southeastern part of Bolívar State.”

“We commend the work of all the officials, security agencies, and institutions that participated in this successful operation,” continued the public statement.

The operation represents a dramatic shift in relations between the Venezuelan and US governments. Since current interim President Delcy Rodriguez was installed by the US, she has taken a submissive attitude to US demands, unlike her predecessor.

Venezuelan security forces also undertook a special operation targeting illegal mining in the Orinoco region of Bolivar State this week ahead of a visit by potential US investors who want to exploit mineral reserves in the region.

​Most of the region is currently controlled by non-state armed actors, including Colombian rebel groups. The Venezuelan operation did not target rebel groups, however, rather a Venezuelan prison gang that exerted effective control over the Las Claritas Mine in the south of the country.

​Rodriguez seems eager to please Washington DC. But there is a large difference between prison gangs like the Tren de Aragua, and ELN and FARC dissident rebels, who have decades of experience waging asymmetrical warfare against capable military forces and relatively good relations with the Venezuelan government.

​Nonetheless, the killing is a symbolic victory for the Trump administration as well as a powerful example of the attitude the new Venezuelan client state is taking towards US policy.

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The administration of Donald Trump has rolled the “Wars” on terrorism, drugs, and migration into one. And the US using the resulting “omniwar” as a justification for a massive increase in US power projection across the Western Hemisphere.

​The North American country is imposing a level of aggressiveness and direct intervention in the region not seen since the height of the Cold War. Through military strikes, economic threats, naval blockades, drone strikes, election interference, and favors to Latin American leaders who subordinate themselves to US interests, Trump has employed strongman tactics to get what he wants in Latin America.

​The tactics have not achieved a reduction in drug flows to the US, increased security, or a reduction in power of the groups the US considers “terrorists,” but members of the administration have made it increasingly clear that those were never the underlying motives for US actions.

​Trump spokespeople have adopted the portmanteau “Donroe Doctrine,” to describe US plans to “reassert and enforce the Monroe Doctrine to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere,” according to the 2025 US National Security Strategy.

​The nickname is a variation of the Monroe Doctrine —a legal argument that was invoked to justify US assassinations, invasions, blockades, the financing of death squads, and the installation of dictatorships across the Americas, primarily but not exclusively, in the 20th century.

​The Monroe Doctrine led to egregious human rights violations across the Americas and a history of covert as well as open US interference and intervention in the region that most people today strongly reject.

However, it did largely achieve the goals of its proponents. US expansionism created an effective “Empire” in the vast majority of Latin America. States in the region either became clients or subordinates, or they risked becoming active enemies of the US.

​Under Trump, however, US actions have been chaotic, self-contradicting, and at times even counterproductive (even from the point of view of those who espouse a return to some of the darkest days of Latin American history)

Under Trump, however, US actions have been chaotic, self-contradicting, and at times even counterproductive (even from the point of view of those who espouse a return to some of the darkest days of Latin American history)

Military actions have yielded mixed results and have failed to achieve either increases in security in the regions where the US military is operating or the flow of drugs.

The invasion of Venezuela and capture of then-President Nicolas Maduro was widely viewed as a stunning tactical victory by hawkish members of the Trump administration. Less trumpeted by his advisors and cabinet members, however, are security losses in Ecuador, the adpatation of drug flows through commercial ports, and increasing conflict in countries where non-state armed actors and organized crime networks have sophisticated income and logistical operations.

​Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, in a March press conference with right-wing Latin American leaders as part of a “Counter Cartel Conference”, underlined that US efforts are not motivated by drug flows, security, or migration at all, but rather establishing US dominance in the region.

In comments to the press, Hegseth claimed the US has a “new strategic map” of LATAM, which he described as a “greater North America.” Administration officials have since made very clear, in public comments, that the US intends to assert American dominance over what it considers its half of the planet.

Trump’s “Mr Bean Security Strategy”

To further those efforts, the US has tapped allies that endorse strongman tactics (and committed human rights violations), such as Nayib Bukele in El Salvador and Daniel Noboa in Ecuador, as well as installed President Delcy Rodríguez in Venezuela, who has assumed a submissive stance towards US interests after the removal of then-President Nicolas Maduro in a US attack on the country in January.

​The US has used tariff threats to push Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum into cooperating with US military inside the country, even deploying the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to aid in operations, and the assassinations of narcos in the country.

​Dozens of extrajudicial drone strikes in the Caribbean and Pacific Oceans have killed more than 200 people, and have become largely normalized in news cycles. Officials claim the boats were transporting drugs, but have offered no proof, and in at least two cases, the vessels struck later proved to be carrying only local fishermen.

​Members of the administration have also admitted that some of those killed may have been migrants, or even victims of human trafficking.

​As part of assembling a dream team of LATAM lackeys, in March, Trump brought together 13 right-wing heads of state from the region to form what he is calling the “Shield of the Americas Coalition.”

​Those attending included the presidents of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama and Paraguay, as well as the prime ministers of Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica.

​The alliance was formed with the goal of improving security and combatting cartels. “The heart of our agreement,’ said President Trump at the time, “is a commitment to using lethal military force to destroy the sinister cartels and terrorist networks.”

But if improving security or combating organized crime is the goal of Trump’s foreign policy in LATAM, those efforts have summarily failed. ACLED (the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project), a non-partisan think tank that studies conflict in the Americas, released a report in May that showed exactly how badly.

In Ecuador, where the US is conducting joint missions with the Ecuadorian military, crackdowns by security forces have resulted in the torture and killing of civilians and gross civil rights violations, but have failed to stem either the growth of armed groups or homicides.

Mexico has seen a drop in homicides over the last year, but ACLED suggests this isn’t the entire story, in part because groups may be hiding the bodies. Forced disappearances in the country have long been an endemic problem, and the number continues to grow.

In addition, the think tank suggests that non-state armed actors may be lowering their visibility and diversifying into new income streams, a practice that has included their infiltration of state security forces.

Meanwhile, deaths as a result of confrontations between organized crime groups and state security forces in the region are growing ever more common. Organized crime has not been weakened in the country. Cartels instead are adeptly adapting to new security conditions.

Boat strikes may have disrupted some small drug routes, but in every country between Ecuador and Mexico drug smuggling through official ports has increased, and new maritime routes have developed.

US security efforts under Trump increasingly resemble the improvised flailings of comic personality Mr Bean as he finds himself in ever more chaotic circumstances.

The strategy, or rather the random assortment of tactics, because it is certainly not a strategy in any security sense, only begins to seem rational when we realize that security improvements are not the true motive at all.

“Twitter Diplomacy” as blunt force object

Since Trump came into office, his administration has shown disdain for traditional channels. Ambassadors not only aren’t often, they are often never even appointed. The American Foreign Service Association reports 115 out of 195 positions sitting vacant — an all-time high for the US.

Instead, Trump prefers to speak through strong statements on social media or through his cabinet. The statements often present the US in maximalist rhetoric and often contain threats to states that Trump is unhappy with.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Hegseth often issue threats via Twitter while Trump prefers the social media site he owns, Truth Social, but the effect is the same. Leaders in Latin America don’t receive ultimatums via ambassadors in private meetings where negotiation is possible, but rather from public statements, with the Trump team offering little opportunity for dialogue.

The administration has used public threats to impose itself in elections in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Honduras: each time threatening sanctions (or in the case of Argentina, withholding loans) or a hostile relationship with Washington D.C if their preferred candidate did not win.

​Trump also applied retaliatory tariffs on Brazil in an attempt to blackmail their judicial branch and defend his ally Jair Bolsonaro.

​In each case, the motives of the US have been the same: the threats or bribes are attempts to install leaders who will be subordinate to US interests.

The lack of appointments is intentional. Trump holds disdain for traditional diplomacy, claiming their process has “strengthened US diplomacy and streamlined decision-making.”

Critics, however, say the social media approach to foreign relations has fundamentally damaged the US ability to understand the world, and is causing global instability.

Conclusion

Cuba, which has been a personal obsession of Marco Rubio for decades, is suffering a humanitarian disaster due to US naval blockades which have led to shortages of fuel and chronic power shortages.

In Colombia, the administration has endorsed an ultra-right wing firebrand with ties to paramilitary death squads who has promised to “disembowel” leftists who attempt to undermine his agenda and promised criminal investigations into current President Gustavo Petro.

Ecuador teeters ever-closer towards a dictatorship as President Daniel Noboa consolidates power via dismantling of the judiciary and “states of exception” modeled after Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele.

The US State Department has authorized Blackwater to carry out extrajudicial drone assassinations in Haiti, openly admitted to CIA-planned killings in Mexico, and threatened military strikes within Colombia.

The US strove for more than a century to become the hegemon in Latin America, and was willing to pay a heavy price in both blood and treasure to do so, but those were often the unspoken motives.

In public, US officials spoke of “strategic partnerships,” “fortifying democracy,”or “investments.” Trump has stripped away all veneer. He plans to force Latin America into subservience, using all tools at his disposal.

His efforts have often enlisted the private sector, promising a share of the loot in return for their political support, and enlisted the billionaires who control modern media to help him normalize it all.

Though none of these actions are completely novel in regards to US foreign policy in Latin America, the complete lack of pretense is.

For leaders in the region, the message could not be more clear. “Submit. Or become our enemies.”

Peruvian elections go to a recount

The final round of Peruvian elections is almost certain to go to a recount that could last days or even weeks. After the initial “fast-count” showed leftist candidate Roberto Sánchez with a narrow lead over his right-wing opponent, Keiko Fujimori.

​The official “slow-count,” as of 5:42 a.m. Peruvian time, showed Fujimori with a less than 1-point lead, with 90% of the vote counted (50.3% for Fujimori, 49.8% for Sánchez).

​Keiko Fujimori is the daughter of controversial strongman President Alberto Fujimori, who was jailed for crimes against humanity. She has run on a platform of security crackdowns on organized crime and extortion, as well as

​Early voting data showed Fujimori dominating the capital, Lima, carrying the urban vote and the coast, while Sánchez swept the rural vote and the mountainous Andes.

Following the completion of the fast-count, Sánchez told supporters Sunday afternoon that he maintained an “important lead that reaffirms the will of the people, who want democracy and justice.”

Fujimori described the initial results as a “technical tie.” She did not claim victory, instead telling supporters, “Every single tally sheet must be counted.”

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Bolivia passes law allowing use of military against protesters

Bolivia’s legislature has passed a law granting President Rodrigo Paz the authority to use the military to clear roadblocks set up by antigovernment protesters.

Protests, which have now stretched into their second month, have erected 100’s of roadblocks, which authorities claim is causing food and fuel shortages in the interior of the country.

The law also grants broad powers to military forces, and “presumed legality” for their actions, including utilizing violence against protesters.

The US has expressed strong support for Bolivian protesters, falsely accusing them of links to narco-traffickers in the country.

Election board rules out any possibility of fraud in first round of Colombian elections

Colombia’s top electoral authority, the National Electoral Council (CNE), confirmed the outcome of the presidential election’s first round after finding no evidence of the fraud alleged by outgoing President Gustavo Petro.

In a ruling that followed the scrutiny of votes, the CNE confirmed that far-right lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella and leftist Senator Ivan Cepeda were elected to the second round of the election.

The scrutiny, which corrects wrongly counted tally sheets, found no evidence of mass fraud that could have changed the outcome.

President Petro Gustavo has accused the electoral board of fraud via voiding the registration of thousands of voters. Leftist presidential candidate Ivan Cepeda initially supported the claims, but quickly abandoned them after a cursory examination by his election campaign.

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Colombia’s leftist presidential candidate, Senator Ivan Cepeda, said Sunday that he does not accept the preliminary results of the first round, which saw far-right attorney Abelardo de la Espriella outperform polls to win.

In a speech before supporters, Cepeda called on electoral authorities to scrutinize the alleged last-minute registry of hundreds of thousands of citizens to the National Registry, which organizes the election rolls.

There is a discrepancy that we want to verify regarding the electoral census. And that is not just any discrepancy. we are talking about 885,000 people or ID cards. We want — because we are serious people — is that to be clarified.

Senator Ivan Cepeda

The leftist candidate, who was considered the frontrunner in the polls, said that his political party was verifying the results in response to “atypical voting” reported by an “indeterminate number of polling stations.”

“Only when the scrutiny commissions leave this matter completely clarified, clearly and rigorously clarified, will we make a statement on tonight’s results,” said Cepeda.

The leftist leader additionally claimed that hundreds of thousands of people were denied the right to vote because polling stations were moved to different locations. He also condemned “undue intervention by foreign governments,” mentioning Ecuador by name.

According to the preliminary count, Cepeda received 41% of the votes against 44% of De la Espriella, who had been trailing the leftist candidate in virtually all the polls.

President Gustavo Petro also refused to accept the results after months of clashing with the National Registry over the outsourcing of the election logistics to a company that is owned by convicted fraudsters.

Human Rights Watch called the rhetoric an “attack” of Colombia’s Registraduría, the body which oversees the National Registry.

Observers and NGOs who monitored elections stated during the pre-count that elections occurred without incident.

De la Espriella condemned Cepeda and Petro for asking that the vote be scrutinized.

“Petro and Cepeda, you two criminals—don't you dare, don't even think about disregarding the will of the people, because there is a people here who will stand up to you and defeat you,” said De la Espriella in a speech from Barranquilla, after the preliminary results of the first round were announced.

He further referred to Cepeda as a “narco-trafficker,” and Petro as a “drug addict.”

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