White House trade adviser Peter Navarro says Mexico exports illegal aliens and it’s time to tax them.
President Trump took a swipe Tuesday night at Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who said he believes Trump ultimately will back down on the threat of tariffs on all goods coming into the U.S. from Mexico.
“Can you imagine Cryin’ Chuck Schumer saying out loud, for all to hear, that I am bluffing with respect to putting Tariffs on Mexico. What a Creep. He would rather have our Country fail with drugs & Immigration than give Republicans a win. But he gave Mexico bad advice, no bluff!” Trump tweeted.
Trump has vowed to impose a 5 percent tariff on Mexican imports next week unless the country does more to stem illegal migration.
The president last week threatened to impose the monthly tariff which would rise to a total of 25 percent by October.
“Frankly, I don’t believe that President Trump will actually go through with the tariffs,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “President Trump has a habit of talking tough and then retreating, because his policies often can’t be implemented or don’t make sense… so I wouldn’t be surprised at all if President Trump doesn’t follow through on these tariffs, either.”
It is unclear what more Mexico could do — and what would be enough — to satisfy Trump on illegal immigration, a signature issue of his presidency.
The United States has not presented concrete benchmarks to assess how sufficient the U.S. ally would be stemming the migrant flow from Central America. Mexican officials have called the potential tariffs hurtful to the economies of both countries and useless to slow the northbound flow of Central American migrants.
Lawmakers and business allies have worried publicly that the tariffs would derail the long-promised United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) — a rewrite of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that Trump had promised to replace.
Trump has indicated he will rely on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a national emergency executive action he can take without congressional approval.
Republican senators are declaring deep opposition.
All sides, including officials from Mexico meeting with Trump negotiators in Washington this week, have remained hopeful that high-level talks would ease the president away from his threat. But, with the tariffs set to start next Monday, some Republicans in Congress have warned the White House they’re ready to stand up to Trump.
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Al empresario se le acusa con quedarse con parte del dinero de las rentas petroleras de Irán.
Es uno de los hombres más ricos de Irán y ha sido condenado a muerte por corrupción. Se trata del empresario Babak Zanjani.
Zanjani fue arrestado en diciembre de 2013 tras ser acusado de quedarse con varios miles de millones de dólares en ingresos por la venta de petróleo estatal que se canalizó a través de sus empresas, acusación que él niega.
Zanjani fue condenado por fraude y crímenes económicos, anunció en la televisión estatal el portavoz de la autoridad judicial iraní, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejehii.
En el juicio, los fiscales le acusaron de deber al gobierno iraní más de US$2.700 millones en renta petrolera.
La sentencia se puede apelar.
“Babak Zanjani es el hombre más rico de Irán. En algún momento hace solo unos años, su renta anual superaba la de Apple”, explica el periodista de servicio iraní de la BBC, Kasra Naji.
Antes de ser encarcelado, poseía empresas en Malasia, Emiratos Árabes Unidos, Turquía y Tayikistán.
“En el momento cumbre de las sanciones internacionales contra Irán, el gobierno del entonces presidente Mahmoud Ahmadineyad confió grandes envíos de crudo a Zanjani para su venta y así evitar las sanciones”, explica Naji.
Zanjani fue entonces puesto en la lista negra por Estados Unidos y la Unión Europa por ayudar a Irán a evadir las sanciones.
El empresario reconoció haber utilizado una red de empresas para vender millones de barriles en nombre del gobierno desde el año 2010.
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Zanjani jugó un papel importante vendiendo crudo bajo el gobierno del ex presidente, Mahmoud Ahmadineyad.
Pero fue detenido en 2013, solo un día después de que el recién elegido presidente, el moderado Hassan Rouhani, ordenase luchar contra “la corrupción financiera”, en especial la de “personas privilegiadas” que se “aprovecharon de las sanciones económicas”.
Estados Unidos, la ONU y la Unión Europea anunciaron a principios de este año el levantamiento de las sanciones después de que el Organismo Internacional de Energía Atómica (OIEA) confirmó que Irán cumplió con los pasos necesarios para poner en marcha el acuerdo nuclear con las grandes potencias firmado en julio de 2015.
“Solo negocios”
Zanjani nació en Teherán y estudió en una universidad en Turquía.
En 1999 se convirtió en el conductor del presidente del banco central iraní.
Yo no hago política, solo negocios (…) Estoy orgulloso de trabajar como empresario para la República Islámica de Irán
Se dice que su fortuna asciende a unos US$13.000 millones, pero también que acumula numerosas deudas.
Hasta que la Unión Europea llamó la atención sobre su figura, pocos iraníes habían oído hablar de Zanjani.
Pero entonces se supo que era uno de los empresarios más importantes del país.
En una entrevista en marzo de 2013 con Fardad Fahrazad, periodista del servicio persa de la BBC, Zanjani restó importancia a sus conexiones políticas en Irán.
“Yo no hago política, solo negocios”, dijo.
“Estoy orgulloso de trabajar como empresario para la República Islámica de Irán”, le dijo a la BBC en esa entrevista.
Con base en Dubai, Zanjani controlaba entonces una red de más de 60 empresas con intereses en muchos sectores, desde la producción de cosméticos al petróleo y la banca.
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Zanjani estuvo en la lista negra de EE.UU. y la Unión Europea.
Entonces, Zanjani protestaba porque las sanciones de la Unión Europea habían tenido un impacto negativo en sus negocios, obligándole a repatriar algunos de sus activos desde su banco en Malasia.
“Debido a los problemas de las sanciones, he tenido que transferir sobre US$5.200 millones de mis recursos extranjeros a Irán”, decía.
Ese mismo año, Zanjani apareció en las noticias después de que diversas fotos controvertidas suyas se publicaran en internet.
En una salía Zanjani en el interior de un avión privado, sentado junto a un oficial de seguridad iraní conocido por su papel en la represión contra manifestantes tras las disputadas elecciones presidenciales de 2009.
En otra aparecía con una pistola.
Preguntado en la entrevista con con la BBC, se rió y dijo que la fotografía era de los días en los que trabajó en Irak y en los que todo el mundo iba armado por razones de seguridad.
“Héroe”
De acuerdo con el periodista del servicio iraní de la BBC Amir Azimi, la historia de Zanjani es calificada por muchos como extraordinaria. “Pasó de ser un comerciante de piel de oveja en la década de los 80 a convertirse en un jugador clave en la venta del petróleo iraní en los años posteriores, cuando las sanciones internacionales le fueron impuestas por su programa nuclear”.
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En esta foto del 1 de noviembre de 2015, se observa el momento en que Babak Zanjani llegaba a un tribunal en Teherán cargando una serie de documentos.
“Se consideraba a sí mismo como un héroe, un soldado económico de la Revolución Islámica que ayudó a rescatar a su país cuando el gobierno no podía vender petróleo o, incluso, si lograba hacerlo, los bancos internacional no estaban de acuerdo con la transferencia de dinero iraní por las sanciones”, indica el periodista.
Fue el creador de una de las más grandes empresas iraníes de la historia contemporánea, un conglomerado que incluía todo, desde transporte hasta construcción, desde clubes de fútbol hasta venta de petróleo.
Llegó a valorar su fortuna en alrededor US$13.500 millones, una cifra extraordinaria para un país en el que el Estado es el propietario de la mayor parte de la economía y en donde el sector privado está restringido, explica Azimi.
Por años la suerte parecía sonreírle. Apareció en fotos con funcionarios de alta jerarquía y no se mostraba tímido a la hora de exhibir su riqueza, como sus aviones privados y sus lujosos automóviles.
Pero cuando los medios de comunicación comenzaron a informar sobre su riqueza, la atención se posó sobre él y con ella, la sospecha.
Comenzaron a surgir preguntas sobre cómo había hecho tanto dinero de manera tan rápida.
Durante el gobierno de Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, fue investigado y meses después de que Hassan Rouhani asumiera el poder, Zanjano fue arrestado y acusado de corrupción y malversación de fondos.
El ministerio de petróleo asegura que el empresario le debe US$1.900 millones.
Su equipo de abogados niega todos los cargos de corrupción y señala que si se le deja salir de prisión y se le permite tener acceso a su red de negocios, devolverá todo el dinero que posee.
It is unclear exactly what effect the ruling will have. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that it will continue to challenge the district court ruling. “As the appeal process continues, however, DHS will comply with the order in good faith,” the statement said. “Alongside interagency partners, DHS has begun to engage with the Government of Mexico in diplomatic discussions surrounding the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP). DHS remains committed to building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system that upholds our laws and values.”
(CNN Español) – La periodista mexicana Carmen Aristeguiy su equipo de Aristegui Noticias fueron galardonados con el premio Knight International Award que otorga el Centro Internacional de periodistas (ICFJ, por sus siglas en inglés) por la calidad en la reportería y el impacto de la investigación sobre la llamada “Casa Blanca”.
El equipo de Aristegui Noticias fue reconocido por descubrir un significativo conflicto de intereses que involucra a la primera dama de México, Angélica Rivera, en la compra de una casa con valor de 7 millones de dólares con un contratista del gobierno, explica ICFJ, que puso en evidencia una presunta red de funcionarios y contratistas. “Sin admitir que obró mal, el gobierno canceló la lucrativa construcción de un tren de alta velocidad con la compañía involucrada”, dice ICFJ.
También fue galardonada Miranda Patrucic de Sarajevo por su trabajo sobre la corrupción entre Azerbaiyán y Uzbekistán.
“Estos periodistas de investigación han cambiado el mundo al revelar los negocios oscuros de altos funcionarios”, dijo Joyce Barnathan, presidente de ICFJ.
La comunicadora es conductora del programa ‘Aristegui’ que se transmite por CNN en Español.
In the days after the attack, Reddit banned a discussion forum dedicated to former President Donald J. Trump, where tens of thousands of Mr. Trump’s supporters regularly convened to express solidarity with him.
On Twitter, many of Mr. Trump’s followers used the site to amplify and spread false allegations of election fraud, while connecting with other Trump supporters and conspiracy theorists using the site. And on YouTube, some users broadcast the events of Jan. 6 using the platform’s video streaming technology.
Representatives for the tech companies have been in discussions with the investigating committee, though how much in the way of evidence or user records the firms have handed over remains unclear.
The committee said letters to the four firms accompanied the subpoenas.
The panel said YouTube served as a platform for “significant communications by its users that were relevant to the planning and execution of Jan. 6 attack on the United States Capitol,” including livestreams of the attack as it was taking place.
“To this day, YouTube is a platform on which user video spread misinformation about the election,” Mr. Thompson wrote.
The panel said Facebook and other Metaplatforms were used to share messages of “hate, violence and incitement; to spread misinformation, disinformation and conspiracy theories around the election; and to coordinate or attempt to coordinate the Stop the Steal movement.”
Public accounts about Facebook’s civic integrity team indicate that Facebook has documents that are critical to the select committee’s investigation, the panel said.
The White House plans to fight a subpoena issued by the House Judiciary Committee for former White House counsel Donald McGahn to testify, according to people familiar with the matter, setting up another showdown in the aftermath of the special counsel report.
The Trump administration also plans to oppose other requests from House committees for the testimony of current and former aides about actions in the White House described in special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report, according to two people familiar with internal thinking who, like others interviewed for this story, spoke of the plans on the condition of anonymity.
White House lawyers plan to tell attorneys for administration witnesses called by the House that they will be asserting executive privilege over their testimony, officials said.
Such a move will intensify a power struggle between the Trump administration and congressional Democrats, potentially setting up a protracted court battle.
McGahn was mentioned more than 150 times in Mueller’s report and told investigators about how the president pressured him to oust the special counsel and then pushed him to publicly deny the episode.
McGahn’s lawyer, William Burck, began discussions with the Judiciary Committee about his potential testimony after the panel issued a subpoena Monday, according to people familiar with the matter.
Securing McGahn’s testimony would be a boon for the committee, which hopes to focus on potential obstruction of justice by Trump in a series of public hearings this spring while exploring other “abuses of power,” Democratic aides said.
Public testimony from McGahn could create a spectacle that would parallel the June 1973 testimony of President Richard Nixon’s former White House counsel, John Dean, whose live televised appearance before a Senate committee painted a vivid portrait for the country of the White House coverup of the Watergate burglary.
People close to McGahn, who were not authorized to speak publicly, said McGahn is “following the process” and working with the White House on his next steps, despite Trump’s public and private anger about his former counsel’s prominence in the Mueller report.
“He’s not eager to testify. He’s not reluctant. He got a subpoena. It compels him to testify. But there are some countervailing legal reasons that might prevent that,” said one person close to McGahn, who described private discussions on the condition of anonymity. “He doesn’t want to be in contempt of Congress; nor does he want to be in contempt of his ethical obligations and legal obligations as a former White House official.”
Trump has told advisers that McGahn was disloyal to him, and he criticized the lawyer for taking extensive notes of meetings that were cited in Mueller’s report. While initially portraying the report as an exoneration, Trump has grown frustrated with its depiction of his White House.
The two men had an adversarial relationship, with McGahn contemplating quitting several times during his tenure. But he was also key to some of the president’s main accomplishments, like the confirmation of two Supreme Court judges and a record number of federal judiciary appointments.
North Korea has fired several unidentified short-range projectiles from its eastern coast, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said Saturday. South Korean and U.S. authorities are “analyzing the details of the missile,” the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff told state-run news site Yonhap.
The firing Saturday comes amid a diplomatic breakdown that has followed the failed summit earlier this year between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un over the North’s pursuit of a nuclear arsenal that can target the U.S. mainland.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the projectiles were fired from Wonsan on the east coast.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement that they are aware of North Korea’s actions and will “continue to monitor as necessary.”
Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have held telephone talks after North Korea launched several unidentified short-range projectiles into the sea, said Japan’s Foreign Ministry.
Kono, who is currently visiting Angola, and Pompeo talked for about 10 minutes Saturday and confirmed the two sides will share information on the development and stay in close contact.
The two ministers also agreed to cooperate with South Korea.
Japan’s Defense Ministry says the projectiles weren’t a security threat and didn’t reach anywhere near the country’s coast.
Thirteen people are dead after a passenger jet burst into flames during an emergency landing.
The plane took off from Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow Sunday evening, but began an emergency landing at the same airport just minutes after taking off. There were 78 passengers on board, and although the extent of the casualties is not yet known, Russian media is reporting that 13 were killed.
The Russian-made Sukhoi Superjet was seen spewing smoke and flames as it made the emergency descent. After it came to stop perpendicular to the runway, passengers were seen running from the burning plane.
The jet was en route to Murmansk, a city in northern Russia. It is not yet clear what prompted the emergency landing or caused the fire.
Flake, in a Washington Post op-ed, warned that regardless of the outcome of the impeachment fight, Republicans will have to decide whether, “given what we now know about the president’s actions and behavior, to support his reelection.”
“Obviously, the answer is no,” Flake added.
“My fellow Republicans, it is time to risk your careers in favor of your principles. Whether you believe the president deserves impeachment, you know he does not deserve reelection,” Flake added in the Post op-ed.
“Trust me when I say that you can go elsewhere for a job. But you cannot go elsewhere for a soul,” Flake continued.
The agency said even more Americans will receive their payments over the next week.
“Additional batches of payments will be sent in the coming weeks by direct deposit and through the mail as a check or debit card.,” the IRS said. “The vast majority of these payments will be by direct deposit.”
The agency said no action needs to be taken by most taxpayers to get the payments.
“The payments will be automatic and, in many cases, similar to how people received the first and second round of Economic Impact Payments in 2020,” it said. “People can check the `Get My Payment’ tool on IRS.gov on Monday to see the payment status of the third stimulus payment.”
IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said in a statement that even though tax season is in full swing, IRS employees are working around the clock to deliver the stimulus payments.
The agency said most people will get $1,400 and $1,400 for each of their qualifying dependents claimed on their tax return.
“Because these payments are automatic for most eligible people, contacting either financial institutions or the IRS on payment timing will not speed up their arrival,” the IRS said. “Social Security and other federal beneficiaries will generally receive this third payment the same way as their regular benefits. A payment date for this group will be announced shortly.”
The payments will be based on either a taxpayer’s 2020 or 2019 tax return, the agency said, and it will include people who used the IRS’ Non-Filers tool for other stimulus payments in 2020.
The IRS noted that the payments cannot be offset to pay various past-due federal debts or back taxes, but they can be garnished for some private debts.
Use our calculator to see how much you may get in this round of stimulus payments.
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El balance oficial es de 26 muertos y 136 heridos.
Bélgica se encuentra en alerta máxima después de que se registraran dos explosiones en el aeropuerto de Zaventem, a 7 kilómetros de Bruselas, a las 07:00 de la mañana (hora local) y otra en la céntrica estación de metro de Maalbeek, también en la capital, una hora después.
Pero el Ministerio de Salud y el operador de trenes subterráneos informaron que por el momento son 26 las víctimas fatales —11 en el aeropuerto y 15 en el metro— y 136 los heridos en los tres incidentes.
Image copyright TWITTER ANTOINE BERTRAND
Image copyright Rozina Sini
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Las imágenes muestran una columna de humo sobre una de las terminales.
El primer ministro dijo que una de las explosiones del aeropuerto fue causada por un atacante suicida.
Y un fiscal federal, Fredere Van Leeuw, confirmó que tanto las explosiones del aeropuerto como la del metro fueron “ataques terroristas”.
Su oficina informó que ha abierto una investigación criminal.
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El primer ministro belga, Charles Michel, llamó a la serenidad y a la solidaridad.
Aunque por el momento nadie se ha atribuido la responsabilidad de las explosiones.
Estas ocurrieron cuatro días después de la captura en Bruselas de Salah Abdeslam, el principal sospechoso de los ataques de París del pasado noviembre.
La policía ha empezado a registrar casas en Bruselas en busca de sospechosos vinculados a los ataques, según informó la cadena de televisión estatal RTBF.
Sin transporte
Los medios belgas informan que una de las explosiones en el aeropuerto ocurrió cerca del mostrador de la compañía American Airlines y otra junto a la cafetería Starbucks.
Imágenes muestran una columna de humo sobre una de las terminales del aeropuerto y a decenas de personas que salen corriendo del lugar.
El aeropuerto ha sido evacuado, los vuelos desviados y el servicio de tren hacia él, cancelado.
La seguridad ha sido reforzada tanto en el aeropuerto de Bruselas como en el de Fráncfort, en Alemania, y los de Heathrow y Gatwick, en Reino Unido.
Image copyright AP
Image copyright PA Wire
Image copyright AP KETEVEN KARDAVA
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Las autoridades han decretado la “máxima alerta terrorista” en todo el país.
Asimismo, las autoridades han ordenado el cierre de la red de metro, así como el de las tres principales estaciones de tren.
Los autobuses y tranvías tampoco están circulando en la ciudad.
Y el centro de crisis, que ha sido creado en respuesta a los ataques, ha pedido a los ciudadanos que se queden en sus casas, a los profesores que permanezcan junto a los niños en las escuelas y a los funcionarios públicos que no abandonen sus oficinas.
También ha sido suspendido el servicio del Eurostar, el tren de alta velocidad que comunica Londres con Bruselas, y el de Thalys, el ferrocarril que opera entre Bélgica, Países Bajos y Luxemburgo.
Las autoridades han decretado la “máxima alerta terrorista”, de nivel 4, en todo el país.
La frontera entre Francia y Bélgica ha sido cerrada.
“Es un ataque a toda Europa”, dijo el presidente de Francia, François Hollande, en rueda de prensa.
“Los ataques en Bruselas son la manifestación de una amenaza global que exige una respuesta global”.
Las autoridades belgas pidieron a los medios no revelar detalles de la investigación en curso.
Los que estuvieron involucrados en los ataques siguen en libertad, explicó el ministro de Relaciones Exteriores belga, Didier Reynders.
Según la policía francesa, los ataques fueron planeados con tiempo en Bruselas por conspiradores relacionados con el grupo autodenominado Estado Islámico.
“Todo el mundo empezó a correr”
“Estaba en el descanso cuando escuché una fuerte explosión. Desde aquí vemos la sala de embarque y ví una columna de humo salir de ella”, le dijo Niels Caignau, un empleado de Swissport, a la cadena de televisión flamenca VRT.
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El techo falso de la sala de embarque del aeropuerto de Bruselas cayó y los cristales quedaron hechos añicos.
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Varios pasajeros del metro utilizaron las vías para salir.
“Las ventanas quedaron hechas añicos. La gente salió en estado de shock. No tiene buen aspecto”, añadió.
Owen Li, un empleado del sector financiero en Londres, le dijo a la BBC que se encontraba en la zona de registro 30 minutos antes de las explosiones.
“Estaba tomando el desayuno y de repente todo el mundo empezó a correr hacia nosotros. La gente no sabía qué hacer. Pensaron que era un simulacro. Algunos se quedaron en el restaurante, pero poco a poco se dieron cuenta que era real”.
Los servicios de emergencia están limpiando el lugar, y el medio belga Het Laatste Niews informó que en ese proceso han sido encontrados más explosivos.
Y, de acuerdo con la cadena estatal de televisión RTBF, se halló un rifle Kalashnikov en la sala de embarque del aeropuerto.
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Los servicios de emergencia siguen trabajando en los lugares en los que ocurrieron las explosiones.
También se halló un paquete “sospechoso” en el palacio real, por lo que las instalaciones también fueron evacuadas.
El rey Felipe y la reina Matilde emitieron después un comunicado en respuesta a las explosiones.
“Consternados por los odiosos ataques del (aeropuerto) internacional de Bruselas y del metro. Nuestros pensamientos están con las víctimas, sus familias y los servicios de emergencia”, señalaron.
Tras la captura de Abdeslam
Las explosiones tienen lugar cuatro días después de la captura en Bruselas de Salah Abdeslam, el principal sospechoso de los ataques yihadistas que dejaron 130 muertos y decenas de heridos en París el pasado noviembre.
El ministro del Interior belga, Jan Jambon, anunció este martes que el país se encuentra en el máximo nivel de alerta ante posibles ataques en venganza por la captura de Abdeslam.
“Sabemos que frenar una célula… pone a otras en marcha. Somos conscientes de ello en este caso”, dijo.
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El metro ha sido cerrado.
Tras la captura, el ministro de Relaciones Exteriores belga, Didier Reynders, informó del descubrimiento de un depósito de armas que “sugeriría que los cómplices de Abdeslam podrían estar preparados para llevar a cabo más ataques”.
“Saben que es cierto. Saben que ellos lo sabían: que esto iba a ocurrir, que esto estaba a punto de ocurrir”, escribió por su parte Beatrice Delvaux, la editora jefe del diario belga Le Soir, en el editorial del medio en internet.
La agencia de noticias belga reportó que además de las explosiones se escucharon disparos en el aeropuerto, así como gritos en árabe.
Sin embargo, no hay evidencia de que el arresto de Abdeslam y las explosiones de este martes estén relacionados.
Por el aeropuerto de Zaventem pasaron el año pasado 23 millones de pasajeros.
Y la explosiones tuvieron lugar en uno de los momentos del día en que el aeropuerto es más concurrido.
Igualmente, en el metro era una hora muy concurrida.
Reacciones
Varios líderes extranjeros han reaccionado ante las explosiones.
El primer ministro sueco, Stefan Lofven, condenó los incidentes y dijo que fueron “un ataque a la democracia europea”.
En la misma línea, el presidente del Parlamento Europeo Martin Schulz rechazó los “atroces ataques” y ofreció condolencias a las víctimas a través de su cuenta en la red social Twitter.
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Los líderes europeos han condenado las explosiones del metro y del aeropuerto de Bruselas.
“Bélgica ha sido de nuevo golpeada por ataques mortíferos y cobardes. Nuestros corazones están con las víctimas y los familiares. Los Países Bajos está dispuesto a ayudar y apoyar a nuestros vecinos del sur de cualquier manera posible, dijo por su parte el primer ministro Mark Rutte.
Y el primer ministro británico, David Cameron, dijo que Reino Unido hará todo para ayudar a Bruselas.
Para ello, convocó al gabinete a una reunión urgente.
Esa medida también la ha aplicado Francia y el presidente François Hollande también convocó a reunión al primer ministro Manuel Valls, al ministro de Defensa Jean-Yves Le Drian y al ministro de Interior Bernard Cazeneuve.
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“Es una amenaza global”, dijo el presidente francés François Hollande en conferencia de prensa.
Tras la reunión, Cazeneuve anunció que en respuesta a las explosiones Francia ha desplegado unos 1.600 policías más en las fronteras, aeropuertos y estaciones de ferrocarril.
“Expreso mi total solidaridad con los belgas. A través de los ataques en Bruselas, es toda Europa la que ha sido golpeada”, escribió Hollande en Twitter.
El presidente de Rusia, Vladimir Putin, también se ha manifestado al respecto.
Tras denominar las explosiones de “bárbaras”, ha expresado sus condolencias a los belgas a través de su secretario de prensa, Dmitry Peskov.
La portavoz del Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores ruso, Maria Zakharova, también ha hecho declaraciones tras las explosiones de Bruselas.
“A medida que se va perdiendo cada vez más tiempo y vidas, la gente está empezando a entender que esta política de doble rasero a la hora de evaluar las actividades terroristas tiene fecha de caducidad”, dijo en vivo en la cadena estatal Rossiya 24.
Federica Mogherini, la alta representante de la Unión para Asuntos Exteriores y Política de Seguridad, dijo que es “un día muy triste para Europa“.
El candidato republicano a la presidencia de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, llamó a Occidente a “responder de una forma más contundente” a la amenaza yihadista.
Por su parte, Al-Azhar de Egipto, considerada la escuela sunita más prestigiosa, dijo que los ataques de Bruselas violan las enseñanzas sobre tolerancia del islam.
Y como otros líderes, llamó a la comunidad internacional a enfrentar la “epidemia de terrorismo” actual.
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A Massachusetts judge and court officer accused of helping an illegal immigrant flee an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent waiting to take him into custody were indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury for obstruction of justice and three other counts, officials said.
Newton District Court Judge Shelley M. Richmond Joseph and the court officer, identified in court documents as Wesley MacGregor, face several charges stemming from an April 2, 2018 incident in which the pair allegedly helped Jose Medina-Perez get out of the courthouse via a back door in order to elude the ICE agent who sought Medina-Perez.
“This case is about the rule of law. The allegations in today’s indictment involve obstruction by a sitting judge, that is intentional interference with the enforcement of federal law, and that is a crime,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Andrew Lelling said Thursday.
Andrew Lelling, U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, announced charges against Newton, Mass., District Court Judge Shelley M. Richmond Joseph and a former court officer on obstruction of justice for allegedly helping a man in the country illegally evade immigration officials as he left the courthouse after a hearing. (AP)
Joseph and MacGregor were both charged with obstruction of justice, aiding and abetting; obstruction of a federal proceeding, aiding and abetting and conspiracy to obstruct justice, Lelling said. MacGregor was also charged with perjury before a federal grand jury.
“As public servants, all of the officers in the court make a promise — a promise to serve the people’s interest above all else. Today we know this promise has been broken,” said Peter Fitzhugh, special agent in charge of the Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, who led the investigation.
Medina-Perez, a twice-deported illegal immigrant with a fugitive warrant for drunken driving in Pennsylvania, had been in Joseph’s courtroom in order to be arraigned on drug charges, the Boston Globe previously reported.
Medina-Perez was the subject of an ICE detainer — a written request to hold an individual wanted for deportation for up to 48 hours — and an ICE agent was waiting in the lobby of the courthouse to detain Medina-Perez after the arraignment, officials said. But during the hearing, Joseph asked Medina-Perez’s attorney “ICE is going to get him?,” according to courtroom recordings obtained by the Boston Globe in December and released in court documents Thursday.
Medina-Perez’s lawyer was also heard telling Joseph “ICE will pick him up if he walks out the front door. But I think the best thing for us to do is clear the fugitive issue and release him on a personal, and hope that he can avoid ICE…That’s the best I can do.”
“What if we detain him?” the judge asked before requesting the clerk to turn off the courtroom’s audio recorder, leaving nearly a minute unrecorded.
Minutes later, Medina-Perez’s attorney said his client “has some property downstairs” and needed to speak to an interpreter, which Joseph allowed.
MacGregor then used his security access card to escort Medina-Perez out of the courthouse without being seen by the ICE agent, officials said.
“With the recorder off, defendant Joseph and the Defense Attorney discussed devising a way to have A.S. [Medina-Perez] avoid being arrested by the ICE officer,” court documents stated.
The ICE agent continued to wait in the lobby not knowing the illegal immigrant already left the building, Lelling said, adding Joseph lied about the incident to her superiors when asked about it.
Peter Fitzhugh, special agent in charge of the Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, who led the investigation. (Fox News)
“The people of this country deserve nothing less than to know that their appointed and elected representatives are working on their behalf, while adhering to and enforcing the rule of law, not a personal agenda,” Fitzhugh said. “The special agents of Homeland Security Investigations remain committed to upholding our promise to the public, without compromise.”
Joseph was appointed Newton District judge by Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker in 2017 after several years serving as a criminal defense attorney and a prosecutor, the Boston Globe reported.
After reports of Joseph’s alleged intervention emerged in December, Baker told reporters he believed Joseph should be benched while the incident was investigated.
“I don’t believe she should be hearing criminal cases until that federal case is resolved,” Baker said about Joseph. “Look, judges are not supposed to be in the business of obstructing justice. And as far as I can tell, based on the facts as they were presented, she clearly violated the court’s own policies with respect to the way they’re supposed to handle continuance and involve federal immigration enforcement.”
Medina-Perez’s freedom was short-lived. He was arrested a month later after the court hearing and again let go, this time by an immigration judge who freed him on bond, the Boston Globe reported. That case is currently pending, officials said. The 38-year-old native of the Dominican Republic had been previously deported in January 2003 and June 2007, ICE said. His real name is Oscar Manuel Peguero, although he goes by several aliases.
VP Mike Pence said that besides making sure border agents have the resources they need, Congress must “close loopholes” driving asylum families here. AP
In his latest attempt to slow the flood of Central American migrants pouring across the southern border, President Donald Trump proposed sweeping new rules for asylum-seekers that would make it more difficult, and more expensive, for them to seek refuge in the U.S.
In a presidential memorandum signed Monday, Trump gave the departments of Justice and Homeland Security 90 days to implement the changes in an effort to stem what he described as an asylum “crisis” that has been plagued by “rampant abuse.”
“This strategic exploitation of our nation’s humanitarian programs undermines our nation’s security and sovereignty,” Trump wrote.
The rules would, for the first time, require asylum-seekers to pay an application fee, deny work permits for asylum-seekers who enter the country illegally and require government officials to fast-track new asylum hearings to complete them within 180 days.
Critics say those changes would unfairly punish the most vulnerable people in the world, those who are fleeing violence, poverty, and food insecurity as Central America is gripped by a widespread, persistent drought.
Rep. Lucille Roybal Allard, D-Calif., the chairwoman of the Homeland Security subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, opened a Tuesday hearing by decrying Trump’s memo as “another tragic step in the wrong direction.”
Whenever the new rules go into effect, they’re sure to face immediate lawsuits, as have other attempts by the White House to get a handle on the southern border.
In December, a federal judge struck down the Department of Justice’s attempt to cut off asylum for victims of domestic abuse and gang violence. In November, another federal judge struck down Justice’s attempts to cut off asylum for people who crossed into the country illegally, which is allowed under U.S. law.
On April 8, yet another federal judge blocked Homeland Security’s plan to require asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico while their asylum cases in the U.S. are decided. But four days later, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit overturned that decision, allowing the administration to continue sending asylum-seekers back to Mexico while the lawsuit proceeds.
Monday’s memo lays out several changes that could have a big impact on people trying to request asylum.
The memo says the application fee required of asylum-seekers would not exceed the cost of processing applications, but officials did not immediately provide an estimate for what that might be. By comparison, the application fee for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is $495, the fee for green card holders to become U.S. citizens is $725, and the fee to apply for a green card can be as high as $1,225, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Trump wrote that the fee is required to add some integrity to an out-of-control system. But critics say alerting criminals throughout Mexico and Central America that asylum-seekers will have to be carrying large amounts of cash will make them walking targets.
“Asylum seekers are fleeing persecution, and have left their families, communities, homes, jobs, and possessions behind in order to save their lives,” read a statement from the Tahirih Justice Center, a group that has been part of lawsuits challenging Trump’s immigration policies. “Instituting a new fee for asylum applications and work permits will simply drive asylum seekers deeper into poverty and leave them more vulnerable to victimization and predation by unscrupulous representatives, traffickers, and abusers.”
Trump also wants to bar anyone who has entered or tried to enter the country illegally from receiving a provisional work permit and is calling on officials to immediately revoke work authorizations when people are denied asylum and ordered removed from the country.
That change is very likely to be challenged in court because it closely mirrors another change Trump tried to implement. In November, his administration published new rules that barred migrant who enter the country illegally from requesting asylum. But that ran afoul of both federal and international law and was blocked by the courts.
The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act states that any foreigner who arrives in the USA, “whether or not at a designated port of arrival,” may apply for asylum. A United Nations treaty signed in 1951 by the United States says “refugees should not be penalized for their illegal entry” because extreme situations sometimes “require refugees to breach immigration rules.”
It’s unclear whether denial of a work permit would be considered an undue punishment against those asylum-seekers, but that will likely be decided in court.
Trump’s memo also calls on Homeland Security to reassign immigration officers and any other staff to speed up asylum applications. But it’s unclear how many officers would be reassigned, and who will do that work.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officers currently conduct interviews of asylum-seekers, since they are trained and experienced at interviewing people in those situations. But the Trump administration has considered granting that power to Border Patrol agents in an effort to speed up the process, a move that has been bashed by immigration advocacy groups since Border Patrol agents are not trained to conduct such sensitive inquiries.
WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department said on Monday that it would not release President Trump’s tax returns to Congress, defying a request from House Democrats and setting up a legal battle likely to be resolved by the Supreme Court.
Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, wrote in a letter to Representative Richard E. Neal, Democrat of Massachusetts and the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, that Mr. Neal’s request for the tax returns “lacks a legitimate legislative purpose” and that he was not authorized to disclose them. The decision came after weeks of delays as Mr. Mnuchin said that his department and the Justice Department needed to study the provision of the tax code that Democrats were using to seek six years’ worth of the president’s personal and business tax returns.
The request for Mr. Trump’s taxes is the latest instance of the Trump administration rebuffing congressional oversight efforts.
“As you have recognized, the committee’s request is unprecedented, and it presents serious constitutional questions, the resolution of which may have lasting consequences for all taxpayers,” Mr. Mnuchin wrote in the one-page letter.
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