El grupo farmacéutico Faes Farma ganó 30,8 millones netos de enero a marzo pasados, un 8,8% más que en el mismo periodo de 2025, y superó por primera vez el nivel de ventas de los 200 millones en un trimestre.
La puesta en marcha de la nueva división de oftalmología, tras la compra de las empresas Edol y Sifi, disparó la facturación un 31%.
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La Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE) ha respondido este miércoles a Estados Unidos que su pedido para detener al gobernador de Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, “no cuenta con elementos de prueba”.
Ha sido la respuesta institucional inmediata de México ante la acusación de la justicia estadounidense contra Rocha Moya y otros nueve funcionarios por sus vínculos con el narcotráfico.
Entre los señalados hay un senador de Morena, el alcalde de Culiacán y varios altos cargos de la seguridad y la policía de Sinaloa.
La cancillería ha dado a conocer que este martes por la tarde recibió el pedido de Estados Unidos para la captura provisional de los 10 acusados con fines de extradición para que puedan responder por cargos que implican condenas desde 40 años de prisión a cadena perpetua.
No obstante, ha matizado que en el requerimiento recibido “no se anexan pruebas”.
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By Staff Reporter | NewsAmericasNow.com News Americas, WASHINGTON, D.C., Weds.
April 29, 2026: The future of more than 350,000 Haitian immigrants in the United States is hanging in the balance as the U.S.
Supreme Court considers a case that could fundamentally reshape Temporary Protected Status protections nationwide – and send shockwaves through Caribbean diaspora communities from South Florida to New York.
At issue is whether the federal government can end TPS without judicial review – a move that could eliminate legal challenges and strip protections from more than one million immigrants currently covered under the humanitarian program.
During oral arguments, several conservative justices signaled support for the administration’s position, raising serious concerns among advocates that long-standing protections could be weakened or eliminated entirely before a decision expected by June.
“We are here because we know what is at stake,” said Viles Dorsainvil, a Haitian TPS holder and community advocate quoted by the Haitian Bridge Alliance.
“The question before the court is not only legal, but moral.” What’s At Stake For The Caribbean Diaspora For South Florida – home to the largest Haitian diaspora community in the United States – the ruling carries enormous personal and economic consequences.
Many Haitian TPS holders have lived and worked legally in the US for more than a decade, building businesses, raising American-born children, and sending critical remittances back to Haiti.
Haitian immigrants and supporters gathered outside the court during arguments, warning that the stakes extend far beyond legal technicalities.
Advocates pointed to worsening conditions in Haiti – including escalating gang violence, political instability, and mass displacement – as evidence that returning TPS holders would face immediate danger.
The case also has implications for Caribbean nationals beyond Haiti.
TPS protections currently cover immigrants from Venezuela, El Salvador, and several other nations, meaning a ruling against TPS could affect the broader Caribbean and Latin American diaspora across the US.
What TPS Holders Should Know Right Now Advocacy groups are urging calm, stressing that all protections remain fully in effect while the court deliberates.
The Haitian Bridge Alliance was direct in its guidance to the community: “Haitian TPS holders should know that if they are stopped in the street by ICE, they have protected status still.
Employers should know their Haitian TPS holders are STILL authorized to live and work.” Immigration attorneys are advising TPS holders to take the following steps immediately: Ensure all TPS documentation is current and accessible Consult an immigration attorney to understand individual options Do not travel internationally without confirming re-entry authorization Know your rights if approached by immigration enforcement A Decision By June The Supreme Court is expected to issue its ruling by June — the same month the nation celebrates Caribbean Heritage Month.
Advocates warn that depending on the outcome, the decision could trigger immediate uncertainty for hundreds of thousands of Caribbean families across the United States.
For now, the Haitian Bridge Alliance and other organizations are urging TPS holders to stay informed, stay calm, and stay connected to legal resources.
NewsAmericasNow.com will continue tracking this case through the Supreme Court’s June decision.
For immigration legal resources, contact the Haitian Bridge Alliance at haitianbridge.org.
RELATED: Haiti TPS Update 2026: What Haitians In The U.S.
Should Know
By Ron Cheong News Americas, TORONTO, Canada, Weds.
April 29, 2026: CARICOM’s founding promise can be characterized as: One Region, One People, One Future – something it would be helpful to refocus on in moments like this.
The bloc began as a regional integration project grounded in shared history, collective resilience, and a unified diplomatic voice – that is now being tested by a sharper, more transactional global order.
At the center of that strain lies a consequential shift: The United States has moved away from partnership toward influence through pressure.
That shift is no longer abstract – it is playing out in symbols, alliances, and fractures across the globe including the Caribbean, which is our focus.
Few episodes capture this better than the recent “brooch diplomacy” controversy involving Delcy Rodríguez.
Her decision to wear a brooch depicting Venezuela’s claim over Guyana’s Essequibo region during engagements with CARICOM leaders in Barbados and Grenada was more than a symbolic gesture – it was a calculated assertion of territorial ambition in a regional diplomatic space that is supposed to prioritize neutrality and cohesion.
For Guyana, the implications are stark.
In the midst of navigating a volatile border controversy with Venezuela, this uncomfortable foray raises the possibility that elements within the CARICOM community could be somewhat open, directly or indirectly, to Venezuelan influence.
But to understand how CARICOM arrived at this moment, one must look beyond the region to Washington.
Pressure Over Partnership For decades, U.S.
– Caribbean relations were built on a mix of development assistance, trade access, and institutional cooperation.
While never perfectly balanced, the relationship carried some sense of predictability.
That is no longer the case.
Today, U.S.
policy toward the Caribbean increasingly emphasizes sanctions, geopolitical alignment, and strategic compliance.
Whether through its hardline stance on Cuba, military action in Venezuela, or sweeping tariff regimes, Washington’s posture has become more conditional and less collaborative.
The consequences are cumulative.
The long-running embargo on Cuba, now intensified into a de facto oil blockade, has forced Caribbean states into agonising choices between principle and survival.
Cuban medical missions, long a backbone of regional healthcare systems, are now being unwound or restructured under pressure.
Even Guyana, once deeply aligned with Havana, had been forced by imperatives of its security and survival to recalibrate this alignment and historical friendship.
In addition, rather than contributing to Guyana’s security, the recent U.S.
military intervention in Venezuela, and arrest of Nicolas Maduro, culminated in an unstable paradox.
Instead of ushering in a democratic transition led by opposition figures – and greater regional stability, the US chose to let power effectively remain within the existing governing structure, now fronted more prominently by Rodríguez herself.
If anything, this outcome has strengthened a figure who is arguably more diplomatically agile and legally sophisticated than Maduro, enabling Venezuela to engage the region with renewed effectiveness.
Oil, Influence, And Divergence Energy politics further complicate the picture.
Venezuela’s oil industry remains state-controlled, giving Caracas a powerful tool of foreign policy: the ability to cultivate alliances through preferential energy arrangements.
Historically, initiatives like Petrocaribe allowed Venezuela to build goodwill across the Caribbean by supplying oil on concessional terms.
Guyana, by contrast, sits on vast high quality oil reserves but operates within a very different model.
Its sector is dominated by foreign firms, most notably ExxonMobil.
While this has accelerated production and revenues, it limits Georgetown’s ability to deploy oil as a direct instrument of regional diplomacy.
This divergence matters.
Where Venezuela can translate energy into influence, Guyana must rely more heavily on formal alliances – chief among them, its alignment with the United States for security backing against Venezuelan territorial claims.
That alignment, however, comes at a cost.
A Hornet’s Nest of Contradictions Guyana faces tough strategic options.
There was little choice other than leaning toward Washington for protection in the face of the Venezuelan threat.
But the U.S.
influence in the region has not lead to more stabilization as would have been hoped. Their approach, marked by coercion rather than consensus, has heightened tensions, disrupted economic flows, and placed CARICOM states under competing pressures.
It also undermined the ties between some longstanding regional and ideological partners, and Cuba in particular. This weakens the very CARICOM unity that Guyana seeks to champion.
The “broochgate” episode underscores the dilemma.
Georgetown has protested that CARICOM members should not entertain Venezuelan symbolism which challenges its sovereignty. But even as it did so – the political opposition in Guyana chimed in that: Guyana itself has shown selective solidarity in its actions.
The claim was that Although Cuba is not a CARICOM member it has long had ties with its members. When Cuba faced intensified U.S.
pressure, Guyana’s response was measured, even muted.
And when regional states were forced to reconsider Cuban medical cooperation, Georgetown adjusted its position rather than seeking a unified defense.
Notwithstanding Guyana has since sent humanitarian rice shipments to Cuba, the point was that these the actions are not consistent with mutual support.
CARICOM At A Crossroads The deeper issue is not any single incident, but the fragmentation of strategic alignment within CARICOM.
External powers are no longer offering partnership frameworks – they are presenting choices, often framed as zero-sum.
The United States demands alignment on security and geopolitics.
China offers targeted economic engagement.
Venezuela leverages energy diplomacy and regional familiarity.
Cuba, despite its constraints, remains a vital social partner.
Each relationship pulls CARICOM states in different directions.
Without a coordinated regional strategy, these pressures risk turning CARICOM from a unified bloc into a collection of individually managed relationships – precisely the kind of fragmentation its founders sought to avoid.
The Path Forward For Guyana, the immediate priority is clear: defend its territorial integrity.
But doing so effectively requires more than bilateral security guarantees – it requires regional legitimacy.
That, in turn, demands consistency.
Guyana’s call for unwavering CARICOM support on Essequibo, should be supported by the same level of commitment on issues that matter to its community, whether related to Cuba, economic sovereignty, or external pressure.
More broadly, CARICOM must confront a hard truth: the era of comfortable alignment is over.
The region is operating in a fluid, contested geopolitical space where influence is increasingly exercised through leverage rather than loyalty.
In that environment, unity is not just an aspiration – it is a necessity.
Because if the Caribbean cannot hold a coherent center, others will define it from the outside.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Ron Cheong is a frequent political commentator and columnist whose recent work focuses on international relations, economic resilience, and Caribbean-American affairs.
He is a community activist and dedicated volunteer with extensive international banking experience.
Now residing in Toronto, Canada, he is a fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Toronto.
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El Gobierno de Donald Trump llevó este miércoles a cotas nunca antes vistas su cruzada contra el crimen organizado en México, y su corolario, la narcopolítica, al acusar al gobernador de Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha, así como a un senador de Morena, el partido oficialista, y a otros ocho funcionarios, de colusión con el cartel fundado por el capo Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán y su socio Ismael El Mayo Zambada.
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Washington ha asestado este miércoles un golpe inédito en la siempre tensa relación con México.
El Departamento de Estado ha acusado formalmente al gobernador morenista de Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, de trabajar con el grupo de Los Chapitos, los herederos de Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán, facilitándoles el envío de drogas a EE UU y dejándolos nombrar a altos cargos de su Gobierno después de que estos le ayudaran a ganar su elección en 2021.
Pero Rocha Moya solo es el rostro más visible.
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Estados Unidos dio este miércoles el golpe de gracia a las relaciones bilaterales con México al acusar formalmente al gobernador de Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, de tener vínculos con el narcotráfico.
El fiscal federal para el Distrito Sur de Nueva York, Jay Clayton, señala en su escrito, hecho público por el Departamento de Justicia, una lista con nombres y apellidos de funcionarios señalados por conspirar con líderes del Cartel de Sinaloa con protección e información a cambio de apoyo político y sobornos.
Entre los acusados está el senador morenista Enrique Inzunza, el alcalde de Culiacán y varios altos cargos de seguridad, de la fiscalía y de la policía en el Estado.
La Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores de México (SRE) ha respondido que Estados Unidos ha solicitado la detención con fines de extradición de los hombres en la lista, pero que no ha enviado “elementos de prueba” de su culpabilidad.
Rocha ha defendido su inocencia y asegura que la acusación es un ataque a la Cuarta Transformación.
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Medellín, Colombia – Chihuahua state Attorney General César Jáuregui, resigned on Monday following the death of two CIA agents in a car crash in Mexico on April 19.
In a press conference announcing his resignation on Monday, Jáuregui admitted that there had been “omissions” in relation to the presence of the American agents in the country.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum earlier ordered an investigation into why the U.S.
agents – who were apparently working with local authorities – were in the country.
The two spies were returning from a drug raid in the El Pinal area of Chihuahua alongside Mexican security forces when the fatal crash occurred. Following the crash, Sheinbaum said, “neither had formal accreditation to participate in operational activities” and one had entered the country as a tourist.
Attorney General Jáuregui had initially claimed that the U.S.
operatives had been giving drone lessons in the mountains of Chihuahua, and had coincidentally got a ride with the police convoy..
U.S.
President Donald Trump has long advocated for Washington’s involvement in Mexican anti-drug operations, but Sheinbaum has been opposed to U.S.
forces or agents participating in domestic security operations, though she welcomes intelligence sharing. Trump has threatened that the U.S.
could “go it alone” in the case that Washington deems Mexico’s anti-cartel efforts insufficient.
Jáuregui is not the only Mexican official facing scrutiny for his involvement in covering up the unregulated presence of the CIA agents.
The Governor of the state of Chihuahua, Maru Campos, was supposed to meet with the Senate of the Republic on Tuesday to clear up unknown details regarding the presence of the CIA agents in Mexico. She was expected to explain the level of their participation in the operations, whether there were formal or informal agreements with U.S.
agencies, the extent of the knowledge of the Mexican federal government, and if there was a potential exchange of sensitive information.
However, on Tuesday, Campos announced that she would not be attending the meeting, in order to “ensure the proper development of the ongoing proceedings, avoiding at all times the compromising of information of a confidential or classified nature.” She also reiterated that her conduct has “always been under the principles of legality and transparency.” The deaths of the two agents and the circumstances surrounding it have raised tensions between Mexico and Washington, but Sheinbaum highlighted on Tuesday in her daily press conference that she does not desire “conflict” between the two nations.
Featured image description: Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua Features image credits: On^ste82 via Wikimedia Commons The post Chihuahua state attorney general resigns after CIA agents die in Mexico appeared first on Latin America Reports.
News Americas, Hamilton, Bermuda, Weds.
April 29, 2026: Powertranz, a leading payment gateway in the Caribbean and Central America, today announced a strategic partnership with 1Money, the first vertically integrated financial stack.
The collaboration enables Powertranz clients to settle invoices and pay for Powertranz services using stablecoins, offering a faster, more flexible alternative to traditional international cross-border payment methods.
With over 27 years of experience, Powertranz is at the forefront of payment innovation in the region.
This new partnership represents a further step in that journey – one that recognises the growing role of digital assets in the global payments landscape and the evolving expectations of modern merchants.
By integrating 1Money’s platform, Powertranz clients can now settle Powertranz invoices faster and more efficiently than traditional cross-border transactions.
The integration eliminates many of the inefficiencies associated with traditional international transfers, including delays and high conversion costs, while remaining fully compliant with applicable regulations.
This is the first phase of a wider stablecoin payments strategy.
“At Powertranz, we are committed to giving our clients more choice in how they do business with us.
By enabling stablecoin payments for our services, we are making it easier for clients to pay us in a way that is modern, efficient, and aligned with the evolving global payments landscape.
We are pleased to be working with 1Money, whose platform is built to support compliant stablecoin and fiat flows with global bank on- and off-ramps.” — Chris Burns, Powertranz CEO Key Client Benefits • Enhanced flexibility: Stablecoins are now available as an additional payment option, giving clients greater freedom in how they settle invoices with Powertranz.
• Improved payment efficiency: Stablecoin settlements are faster and more streamlined than traditional methods, particularly for cross-border payments where delays and currency conversion costs have historically posed challenges.
• Continued innovation: This partnership underscores Powertranz’s commitment to evolving alongside the needs of merchants and the broader global payments ecosystem, ensuring clients always have access to best-in-class solutions.
About Powertranz Powertranz is a leading payment gateway powering online and in-store payments for merchants across the Caribbean and Central America.
With over 25 years of experience, PCI DSS Level-1 certification, and integrations with banks and shopping carts across the region, Powertranz provides secure, multi-currency payment solutions, tokenization services, and fraud management solutions to more than 10,000 businesses – processing more than 60 million transactions annually.
Powertranz is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.
Website: www.powertranz.com About 1Money 1Money is the first vertically integrated, full-stack infrastructure company providing a unified technology layer across the lifecycle of stablecoins and real-world assets (RWAs).
The 1Money ecosystem consists of three synergistic pillars: 1Money Network, a patent-pending Layer-1 blockchain purpose-built to be the fastest, cheapest, and most scalable network for compliant stablecoin and RWA transactions 1Money.com, a licensed and regulated orchestration platform that enables users to receive, buy, sell, convert, send, and custody both stablecoins and fiat currencies domestically and globally; and 1Money Issuance, an institutional-grade “Issuance-as-a-Service” solution that allows partners to launch white-labelled stablecoins for their own customers.
Operating through fully regulated entities and holding more U.S.
money-transmitter licenses than most major stablecoin competitors, 1Money combines the rigor of traditional finance with the always-on speed and efficiency of Web3.
This foundation enables faster settlement, lower costs, and enterprise-grade compliance, making 1Money the trusted infrastructure layer for global money movement.
Website: www.1money.com YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: One Wallet Across The Caribbean: Rethinking Payments For Growth And Connection
By Staff Reporter | NewsAmericasNow.com News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Weds.
April 29, 2026: He arrives by Expedia Gulfstream and gets millions watching.
IShowSpeed, the American internet phenomenon whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins Jr., has so far racked up more than 16 million cumulative live stream viewers across five Caribbean islands, turning what would have cost governments millions in tourism advertising into a free, real-time global showcase.
The 21-year-old African American streamer kicked off his Caribbean run in Trinidad and Tobago before hitting Grenada, Barbados, St.
Lucia, and St.
Vincent and the Grenadines yesterday.
His highest single-stream viewership so far has come from Trinidad and Tobago at 4.7 million.
Even his lowest – 2.9 million from Barbados – rivals the audience of a major cable news broadcast.
Why Caribbean Tourism Boards Should Be Paying Attention Speed’s visits aren’t scripted tourism campaigns.
They are chaotic, unfiltered, deeply human encounters with local culture – and that is precisely why they work.
When millions of Gen Z viewers watch him eat doubles in Port of Spain, react to a fish market in Barbados, or get mobbed by fans on a St.
Lucia street, they aren’t watching an ad.
They’re experiencing a place.
Tourism economists have a term for this: earned media.
What Speed is generating for the Caribbean is essentially the same visibility that agencies spend tens of millions of dollars trying to manufacture – delivered organically to a global audience that trusts him.
During a recent Africa tour spanning 20 countries in under a month, Speed gained more than 3.7 million YouTube subscribers and pushed past the 50 million subscriber milestone.
The pattern is consistent: he visits, the world watches, and destinations trend.
The Tour Isn’t Over While no official schedule has been confirmed, the broader Caribbean leg is expected to include Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Sint Maarten, St.
Kitts and Nevis, and the U.S.
Virgin Islands.
For islands still on the itinerary, the calculus is straightforward: millions of eyeballs, zero cost, and the kind of youth-market penetration that no tourism board has reliably cracked.
The Bigger Picture Speed has taken his cameras across Africa, Europe, Asia, South America, and Australia and New Zealand.
His Caribbean run follows that same model: arrive with a massive platform, engage authentically with locals, and let the algorithm do the rest.
What is new is the regional concentration.
Five islands in rapid succession means the Caribbean as a whole – not just individual destinations – is getting a sustained moment in front of one of the internet’s largest audiences.
For a region that has long struggled to compete with better-funded tourism markets for global attention, Speed’s tour is a reminder that the rules of visibility are changing.
And the Caribbean, for once, is on the right side of the algorithm.
ABOUT ISHOWSPEED Speed, whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins Jr., was born in Ohio.
He reportedly became a millionaire by age 16 or 17 – one of the fastest wealth accumulations in streaming history.
By the end of 2023, he had firmly established himself as a multi-millionaire, with his net worth growing well beyond early estimates, driven by YouTube ad revenue, brand deals, merchandise, and his massive live-streaming audience.
His net worth ranges from $10 million to $30 million.
IShowSpeed’s Caribbean tour is ongoing.
NewsAmericasNow.com will continue tracking viewership data and island visits as they are confirmed.
News Americas, FORT LAUDERDALE, FL, Weds.
April 29, 2026: A GoFundMe established in honor of slain Haitian-American Coral Springs Vice Mayor Nancy Metayer Bowen has raised nearly $50,000 toward its $250,000 goal, as family, friends, and the wider community continue to mourn her loss.The Nancy Metayer Endowment Fund was launched on April 8th by her sister, Jennifer Metayer-Smith, to support the family and preserve her legacy.
Just days later, on April 17th, hundreds gathered at Church by the Glades for a public viewing and celebration of life, remembering the 38-year-old leader for her compassion, energy, and dedication to service.Metayer Bowen, the first Black and Haitian-American woman elected to the Coral Springs City Commission, was widely described as “the heart of the commission” and a leader who made people feel seen and included.A graduate of Florida A&M University and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, she built a career in public service and was preparing to launch a congressional bid when she died.
House lawmakers honored Metayer Bowenon April 28th during a short floor session, holding a roughly 20-second moment of silence after brief comments about her accomplishments and legacy.
Speaker Pro Tempore, Wyman Dugganof Jacksonville, delivered the remarks before members marked their attendance.
“Earlier this month, we tragically lost Coral Springs Vice Mayor Nancy Metayer Bowen.
Elected in 2020 at just 32 years old, she quickly became a respected leader and dedicated public servant in her community.
As an environmental scientist, she championed environmental and public health initiatives.
More importantly, she was deeply devoted to her family and friends,” he said.
“She was a friend to many in this House, and her legacy will never be forgotten.
On behalf of Reps.
(Christine) Hunschofsky and (Anna) Eskamani, I ask for a moment of silence for Nancy Metayer Bowen.
Members, please join me in a moment of silence.”Her death has also reignited calls for stronger domestic violence protections.
HUSBAND Authorities have charged her husband, Jamaican Stephen Bowen, with premeditated murder, and he remains in custody without bond.
Bowen, 40, appeared in court without his attorneys at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday.
His attorneys have submitted a written not guilty plea after Bowen was indicted on a first-degree murder charge in the death of his wife.
He’s being represented by Glenn Roderman and Philip Johnston of Roderman & Johnston after the public defender’s office asked to recuse itself on the basis of some of the attorneys’ relationships with the vice mayor.
The indictment shows a grand jury has charged Bowen with first-degree premeditated murder with a firearm and tampering with evidence, namely a firearm and a cell phone.
The indictment was entered in court records on April 22nd.
After reaching Bowen’s attorney by phone from the courtroom, Judge Ernest A.
Kollra scheduled a status hearing for May 28.
Meanwhile, Coral Springs officials planted a tree in her memory.
It bears a plaque with her name and a phrase repeated at her memorials: “Be like Nancy.” U.S.
Rep. Jared Moskowitzhas also filed legislation to rename a local post office after her.
RELATED: Haitian-American Coral Springs Vice Mayor Legacy Resonates Beyond Tragedy
The Mexican military captured Audias Flores Silva, alias ‘El Jardinero’, on Monday – one of the top leaders of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
Flores Silva was considered to be one of the key candidates to succeed alias ‘El Mencho’, the former leader of the CJNG who was killed by authorities in February.
The drug lord’s arrest comes amid a wider crackdown by Mexican security forces against organized crime, driven partly by pressure from Washington.
According to authorities, Monday’s operation did not involve any shooting, injuries, or collateral damage.
The military deployment included 120 direct action troops, four close air support helicopters, four fixed-wing aircraft, and two troop transport helicopters, with 400 naval personnel providing support.
The CJNG leader’s more than 60-strong escort group dispersed in different directions upon the arrival of security forces, attempting a tactical distraction maneuver, but the target was located through air and ground tracking.
Official footage of the operation shared by Omar García Harfuch, Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection of Mexico, shows the moment of the capture, with Flores Silva extracted from a roadside drainage conduit, where he was hiding.
The arrest happened near El Mirador, a rural community in the western state of Nayarit.
Hours after the news became public, several stores and vehicles were set on fire across Nayarit.
While the unrest fell short of the level of retaliation following the killing of ‘El Mencho’ in February 2026, the Government of Nayarit urged citizens to stay in their homes as a preventative measure.
A major blow to CJNG The arrest was praised by the U.S.
Ambassador to Mexico, Ronald Johnson, who congratulated Mexico’s Security Cabinet and Secretary of the Navy.
In 2021, the U.S.
Drug Enforcement Agency offered a US$5 million reward for information leading to Audias Flores Silva’s arrest or conviction.
Flores Silva was defined as “closely aligned” with former CJNG leader ‘El Mencho’, whose real name is Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes.
In June 2025, the U.S.
Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Flores Silva, identifying him as a CJNG regional commander in charge of significant portions of territory in the states of Zacatecas, Guerrero, Nayarit, Jalisco, and Michoacán. According to U.S.
authorities, Flores Silva was in control of clandestine laboratories producing methamphetamine and other illicit drugs in central Jalisco and southern Zacatecas.
In addition, Silva managed the logistics of cocaine trafficking operations from Central America through Mexico to the United States, including the supervision of several clandestine airstrips.‘El Jardinero’ was also believed to have coordinated a deadly 2015 attack against Mexican police forces in Jalisco that left 15 agents dead.Flores Silva’s arrest is a hard hit to CJNG, as security analysts considered him a potential successor to the group’s command after the death of ‘El Mencho’ last February.
“Flores Silva was the closest thing the CJNG had to a chief operating officer, the man who once ran Mencho’s personal security, managed the Pacific corridor’s labs and airstrips, oversaw a timeshare fraud network and U.S.
money-laundering pipeline, and brokered the alliance with Los Chapitos after the Sinaloa civil war,” Chris Dalby, director of World of Crime and senior analyst at Dyami Security Intelligence, told Latin America Reports.
Authorities dealt a second blow to CJNG yesterday when the Special Forces of the Mexican Army and the National Guard detained César Alejandro N, alias “El Güero Conta”.
He was identified as the main financial operator for ‘El Jardinero’ and accused of laundering money through companies and frontmen.
“Losing Silva alongside his financier on the same day hits the CJNG operationally and financially simultaneously.
It doesn’t spell an end to the CJNG, however, and may actually help Juan Carlos Gonzalez Valencia secure leadership by removing a rival,” said Dalby.
Featured image description: Wanted poster for Audias Flores Silva, alias ‘El Jardinero’.
Featured image credit: Omar García Harfuch via Facebook.
The post Mexican authorities arrest top cartel leader ‘El Jardinero’ appeared first on Latin America Reports.
Saint Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago — The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is grappling with a protracted period of regional tensions, tied to the new normal in international politics.
In some respects, this moment is the bloc’s toughest test yet. At a time when the unity of CARICOM is under growing strain, marked by a discernible shift in respect of interactional norms and diplomatic coherence pertaining to the foreign policy realm, St.
Kitts and Nevis took up the mantle of Chair of the bloc. Arguably, the impacts of that strain on the regional grouping have had a profound effect on how Prime Minister of St.
Kitts and Nevis Terrance Drew has approached his leadership role in CARICOM — on behalf of his country. Drew is the Chairman of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM — for a six-month term that got underway this past January.
As the bloc’s constituent treaty notes: “The Conference shall be the supreme Organ of the Community.” In this framing, regional priorities are the rotating chairmanship’s main focus. Perhaps most consequentially, Drew is discharging his regional leadership responsibilities at a juncture when CARICOM member states are facing up to emergent geopolitical dynamics that have driven a wedge between them. A wide (foreign policy) gap CARICOM member states’ duelling perspectives on the high-stakes “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine became a consequential, foreign policy-related sticking point that placed the bloc in a months-long diplomatic rut.
This situation has weighed down the regional grouping, making its members’ efforts to cohesively contend with an international order that is undergoing a seismic change that much more difficult.
(The international system last experienced change on such a scale at the Cold War’s end, which also precipitated the demise of bipolarity and ushered in the now erstwhile unipolar moment.) While most CARICOM member states have responded to that Doctrine with suspicion and trepidation, some have offered full-throated support.
The former subset of member states are standing their ground in respect of long-established CARICOM foreign policy-related principles, which hinge on the shared desire of such small states to respect processes of international cooperation and multilateralism. In contrast, Trinidad and Tobago has controversially thrown its support behind Washington in respect of the spiralling U.S.-Israeli war with Iran — which has been quelled by a tenuous cease-fire for now.
Instructively, early on in that conflict, Barbados called for “restraint as Middle East tensions intensify.” United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres has raised serious concerns about the conflict, too, as have many other stakeholders.
Of note, legal experts have been sounding the alarm about what has transpired in the Middle East. At the core of such concerns are breaches of the UN Charter — a document whose normative and legal standards are the traditional bedrock of the conduct of CARICOM member states’ international relations as small states.
This is precisely why breaches of this Charter endanger these states in respect of the anarchic international system. Few dynamics in this system undercut the UN Charter more than great powers behaving as if they have a license to do what they want without fear of the consequences.
This is why the U.S.
military campaign that, according to the U.S.
administration, sought to target illegal drug trafficking in the Caribbean by going after alleged “narco-trafficking” boats raised so many eyebrows within the CARICOM fold.
(All along, of course, Venezuela’s Maduro regime was in Washington’s crosshairs.) US Air Force special missions aviators display a US flag on a helicopter flying over the Caribbean Sea near Puerto Rico, Jan.
23, 2026.
Image credit: U.S.
Southern Command via X.
Trinidad and Tobago did not share those concerns, unequivocally supporting the U.S.
military action that laid the groundwork for and resulted in the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro.
The U.S.
administration has rewarded Port-of-Spain for its foreign policy positioning, deepening security cooperation.
This was a priority area of the most recent bilateral engagement between Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and U.S.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio — convened on the margins of the Fiftieth Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM. What also stands out is Trinidad and Tobago’s inclusion in the Shield of the Americas initiative.
Indeed, Port-of-Spain is over the moon with its participation in the recently held Shield of the Americas summit.
Guyana is the only other CARICOM member state that the U.S.
has included in this high-profile initiative.
With the two camps of CARICOM member states being far apart on key demands of the U.S., the status quo has fuelled mutual mistrust among members of the now five-plus-decade old grouping.
It did not help that Washington operationalized the aforesaid Doctrine in invasive, heavy-handed security and foreign policy-related terms. It is also the case that regional politics have focused intently on seeing the way forward, amidst widespread dissatisfaction with this difficult situation.
Notably, upon the start of his term as CARICOM Chair, Drew sought to shift the situation in a positive direction.
With an eye to preparing the ground for the success of the Fiftieth Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, held under his chairmanship this past February, he piloted “a series of high-level engagements with regional leaders.” Drew’s intent was to build goodwill among his fellow regional leaders, with a view to creating the conditions for them to all gather at this summit.
In effect, those high-profile, face-to-face bilateral meetings held the promise of building “trust” and “shared purpose” in respect of the region’s leaders.
He said as much. Beyond ensuring that all CARICOM members’ respective leaders were at ‘the (summit) table’, Drew was also committed to having them primed for a productive exchange on key issues on the regional agenda.
Drew got his wish — at least in part.
All his regional counterparts took part in the said summit; although, leaders of three of the bloc’s 14 sovereign member states departed early.
Consequently, closed-door deliberations that took the form of the leaders’ Retreat did not benefit from a full house. The Retreat was a key component of the summit’s proceedings.
This one-day, all-important session partly focused on geopolitical developments. CARICOM member states did close ranks on some of the issues arising, which include Cuba policy.
Their respective long-standing and wide-ranging bilateral relations with the Communist island have emerged as a diplomatic pressure point.
In fact, several hold outs in the CARICOM fold have little choice but to accept Washington’s foreign policy line on how they should treat Havana vis-à-vis facets of those relations. One day prior to that leaders’ Retreat, and as part of the summit’s proceedings, Rubio met in-person with CARICOM leaders.
One important take away from these talks is that they resulted in an agreement on a contemporary Cooperation Framework, which is now earnestly in the works. These developments had a direct bearing on regional leaders’ subsequent consideration of geopolitical developments — a priority matter at the summit — warranting the issuance of the ‘Joint Statement on CARICOM’s Engagement with Secretary Rubio’.
The pre-eminence of the ‘sovereignty narrative’ Signals emanating from the summit in question also called attention to the limits of CARICOM-based regionalism, with member states reaffirming their pragmatic approach to integration. It is important to note that, with a nod to the Rose Hall Declaration on ‘Regional Governance and Integrated Development’, Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness drove this point home at the formal start of that very summit.
Regarding regional governance, the so-called Rose Hall Declaration states (in part): “The reaffirmation that CARICOM is a Community of Sovereign States, and of Territories able and willing to exercise the rights and assume the obligations of membership of the Community, and that the deepening of regional integration will proceed in this political and juridical context.” Put differently, and as Terri-Ann Gilbert-Roberts notes in a 2013 scholarly work, there is a “strong aversion among political elites to delegating authority to supranational institutions — a legacy of the Federal Experiment.” Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness addresses the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM.
Image credit: Office of the Prime Minister of Jamaica.
In his address to the Opening Ceremony of the summit under reference, Holness underscored the following: “For decades, an idealised narrative around Caribbean integration, while well-intentioned, has framed perhaps unrealistic expectations within our respective populations.
It has also perhaps unintentionally diminished the genuine strengths of our existing arrangement, an association of independent states bound not by uniformity, but by shared purpose, mutual regard, and a deep history of collaboration.” Yet it is equally important to recognize the tremendous achievements of a cohesively functioning CARICOM, as advanced (in large part) by regional summitry.
Such summitry has long played a key role in member states’ broader efforts to coordinate with each other and partners, enabling dialogue that has paid off in spades over several decades.
Meetings of this kind are crucial for strengthening bilateral and multilateral ties and contributing to diplomatic solutions, now more than ever. Holness himself seemed to signal as much, conveying the following perspective at the opening of the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM: “We meet at a time when the speed of global change is outpacing the speed of regional coordination.” This summit, per its communiqué, represents an important win for St.
Kitts and Nevis and CARICOM as a whole. Unity hopes suffer another blow Yet what brought opportunity for coordination at a time of sharp tensions that are the cause of a foreign policy-related rift in CARICOM has also created yet another point of contention: The much-publicized controversy that has arisen surrounding the reappointment of the Secretary-General of CARICOM during the leaders’ Retreat. This controversy has been brewing ever since Drew’s initial statement — issued on March 25th — regarding the reappointment of incumbent Secretary-General of CARICOM Carla Barnett for a second term of office beginning in August 2026.
The impasse runs deeper than procedural concerns over the reappointment of the Secretary-General and attendant matters, with CARICOM’s governance and operations having also come under the spotlight. The headlines create the impression that there is little sign yet that a resolution is imminent. The parties out-front on the matter have apparently doubled down on their respective positions, which have only hardened.
In this regard, the latest missives (as of this writing) penned by Trinidad and Tobago Foreign Minister Sean Sobers (dated April 9th) and Drew (dated April 11th), respectively, come to mind.
Although dispatched via diplomatic channels, the correspondence in question is now in the public domain. While some political leaders are clashing publicly, others in the CARICOM fold are walking a tightrope on this issue. High-level diplomatic efforts to see a way forward on what has become a significant bone of contention — with the potential to stymie CARICOM regionalism — will no doubt continue.
Opening Ceremony of the 50th Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, St Kitts and Nevis.
Image credit: CARICOM via Flickr Rising to the challenge And yet, CARICOM has not a moment to lose in effectively marshalling member states to contend with the resurgence of great-power politics.
This spheres of influence-related development carries serious risks, which undercut a cornerstone of the postwar international order: multilateral cooperation. These dynamics of contemporary international politics continue to turn the screws on CARICOM — and fast. We are already seeing a key consequence of this turn of events: A new reality now shapes CARICOM diplomacy — already under strain from the aforementioned foreign policy-related rift in the bloc. In short, the shift within the grouping in respect of interactional norms and diplomatic coherence pertaining to the foreign policy realm exposes seemingly deep divisions in relation to worldviews. History shows that such moments do not augur well for the bloc.
One could draw a historical parallel with the U.S.
invasion of Grenada in 1983, which stoked tensions within and had far-reaching impacts on the region. Clearly, key foreign policy-related setbacks within today’s CARICOM fit a longer pattern.
Even so, their ever-widening rifts ought not to become a fixture in the scheme of things either. While there was much-needed discussion at the summit under reference about geopolitical developments, along with a nod to the rationale qua nature of the bloc itself, CARICOM needs to work through how it can better rise to the challenge of navigating the return of great-power politics. In years ahead, the new normal in international politics will likely continue to undermine the UN Charter.
The stakes are high for such small states at this moment, and all concerned need to take a long, hard look at the issues arising.
There is increasing recognition in CARICOM foreign policy circles that, facing rising risks, the bloc needs to get a handle on the current state of affairs. When CARICOM foreign ministers meet next month, they will likely continue to try to work things through. Featured image: 50th Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM.
Photo of CARICOM Leaders with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Image credit: CARICOM The post What is behind growing disunity in the Caribbean Community bloc?
(Opinion) appeared first on Latin America Reports.
Caracas, Venezuela — Venezuela’s prison system has long been criticized for its poor conditions, ranging from overcrowding and procedural delays to unsanitary environments and allegations of abuse. These concerns are again mounting following the deaths in recent days of nine detainees in various detention centers across the country.
The first case involves five deaths inside the Yare III prison in the state of Miranda, as confirmed on April 20 by the Ministry of Penitentiary Affairs.
After several hours of silence and conflicting reports, the agency issued a statement indicating that the deaths were the result of a fight inside the prison. The victims were identified as Keivin Matamoros, Eliecer Córdoba, Erkin Ramos, José Andrade, and Jean Carlos Jiménez.
Screenshot of statement from Ministry of Penitentiary Affairs via Instagram The Venezuelan Prison Observatory (OVP) last week requested that an investigation be conducted to clarify what had occurred.
Furthermore, they noted that relatives of the detainees did not believe the government’s version of events, as the deceased reportedly suffered gunshot wounds.
“These allegations are particularly alarming in a prison where the state exercises total control and where the entry of weapons cannot be explained without the participation, tolerance, or negligence of the custodial authorities,” the observatory stated.
For this reason, the organization demanded that Ángel de Castro, the director of the Yare III prison, be removed from office. It also called for the prison to be placed under the supervision of a commission comprising the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Ombudsman’s Office, the Ministry of Penitentiary Affairs, and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), based in Caracas, to verify the current detention conditions, guarantee the lives and safety of the inmates, and ensure transparency in the investigation of the recent killings. Family members of other prisoners have also publicly asked authorities if anyone else was injured in the incident and, if so, what their condition is.
Tras horas de incertidumbre y exigencias de fe de vida por parte de familiares, el Ministerio para el Servicio Penitenciario confirmó la muerte de cinco personas privadas de libertad en Yare III, ocurrida el #20Abr en medio de una situación irregular dentro del penal.Las… pic.twitter.com/qjtMLIRvcs— Observatorio Venezolano de Prisiones (@oveprisiones) April 21, 2026 The OVP has documented human rights violations at this prison before. The complaints they have received indicate that there have been incidents of torture and cruel and inhuman treatment, such as beatings with a bat called “human rights” and prolonged confinement in the “tigrito” cell, a space devoid of light and ventilation.
Four deaths in recent days In a separate case, the OVP reported on April 21 the death of Rosqui Norberto Escalon (71), who it claims was the victim of a series of irregularities at the Uribana prison in the state of Lara in northern Venezuela. They noted that the inmate died on the way back to the prison, after officials allegedly forced his medical discharge despite his frailty.
The man’s body was allegedly left on the floor of the Barquisimeto Central Hospital by guards.
The incident was captured on video, which has gone viral on social media.
#DenunciaOVP Rosqui Norberto Escalona, de 71 años de edad, privado de libertad en el Centro Penitenciario David Viloria, Uribana #Lara, murió bajo condiciones de absoluta crueldad.
Desde el viernes #17Abr el septuagenario presentaba graves padecimientos de salud, que… pic.twitter.com/lsOpIl22xK— Observatorio Venezolano de Prisiones (@oveprisiones) April 22, 2026 Similar deaths were also reported: Yelamo Zárraga José Ramón’s death inside the Tocuyito Prison, the country’s largest penitentiary, was reported on April 24. Deivi Enrique García’s death at Rodeo IV was reported on April 20. Ovidio José Madriz Mendoza’s death at Rodeo III was also reported April 20. The OVP stated that these individuals “died in circumstances marked by a lack of timely medical care and degrading living conditions.
They, too, are victims of state negligence.” Featured image: Prisoners in Venezuela.
Image credit: The Venezuelan Prison Observatory (OVP) website.
The post Deaths in Venezuelan prisons raise alarms among NGOs and human rights defenders appeared first on Latin America Reports.
Caracas, Venezuela — Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez announced that the country’s so-called amnesty law, which aims to free political prisoners detained during the regime of Nicolás Maduro, will come to an end just two months after its approval in February.
During an April 24 event at Miraflores Palace, the presidential headquarters, the president said, “This amnesty law is coming to an end.
For those cases that were not covered, or rather, were expressly excluded, there are other avenues through which they can be addressed.” She also noted, “In the Democratic Coexistence and Peace Program—from which some members have moved to the Executive Branch—there is a forum for addressing cases related to justice.
The same applies to the Commission for Criminal Justice Reform.” At the meeting, Rodríguez said that some 8,616 people had been freed under the amnesty law, the BBC reported. According to Foro Penal, an NGO that monitors political detentions in the country, 473 political prisoners remain in jail.
(Other NGOs have counted as many as 670 political prisoners still in custody).
Many of their family members are worried about their fates as the sun goes down on the amnesty law. Other NGOs, such as the Venezuelan Program for Education and Action on Human Rights (Provea), have been more forceful, rejecting Rodríguez’s statements and characterizing the move as a major setback for the country.
“This constitutes an arbitrary and unconstitutional measure that does not contribute to the process of coexistence and peace that has been announced,” the organization wrote.
It added that, despite its limitations, “the Amnesty Law is a first step toward dismantling the repressive framework that has stifled the rights of the Venezuelan people in recent years.” The organization argues that an instrument such as amnesty for political prisoners must be part of any process of reinstitutionalization in the country. “It should be a first step in that direction, but it is not a prerequisite for the full release of all those deprived of their liberty for political reasons,” Provea noted.
Featured image: Families of political prisoners protest in Caracas in February 2026.
Image credit: Julio Blanca for Latin America Reports The post Venezuela’s amnesty law comes to an end, alarming families of political prisoners appeared first on Latin America Reports.
Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori and left-wing candidate Roberto Sánchez would tie at 38% of the vote in the Peruvian presidential runoff scheduled for June 7, according to the first opinion poll published after the April 12 election, against a backdrop of an inconclusive count and an ongoing dispute over second place.
The Ipsos Peru survey, conducted between April 23 and 24 and published by daily Perú.21, points to a scenario of absolute parity with a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percentage points.
The foreign ministers of Bolivia, Fernando Aramayo, and Chile, Francisco Pérez Mackenna, agreed on Friday to deepen bilateral ties and advance a joint economic agenda, amid a decisive diplomatic rapprochement between the two countries after nearly five decades without ambassador-level relations.
The meeting, held at an event organized by the Chamber of Industry, Commerce, Services, and Tourism (Cainco) in Santa Cruz, concluded a two-day official visit by the Chilean minister.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro will meet at midday on Friday in Caracas with Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez, in what marks the first official meeting between a head of state and the Venezuelan leader since she took office on January 5, following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro in a US military operation on January 3 of this year.
Two commercial aircraft collided on the ground at Santiago's Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport on Wednesday evening in an incident that left no injuries but forced the rescheduling of both affected flights.
The collision occurred at around 8:00 p.m.
local time, when a LATAM Airlines Airbus A321 struck a stationary Aerolíneas Argentinas Boeing 737 that was holding on the apron awaiting clearance for take-off.
Brazilian group BTG Pactual, Latin America's largest investment bank, is awaiting authorisation from Uruguay's Central Bank (BCU) to begin operating in the local financial market following its $175 million acquisition of HSBC Uruguay, agreed in July 2025.
Group executives expect regulatory approval to come through by mid-year, allowing them to begin operations gradually in the second half of 2026.
