Honduras has severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan and established them with China, a move that signals growing Chinese influence in Latin America and deals a blow to Taiwan's struggle for recognition. The decision is the latest example of China's increasing assertiveness towards Taiwan and its influence in Latin America, a region traditionally seen as within the US sphere of influence. It remains to be seen how the move will affect diplomatic relations between China, the US, and other countries in the region.
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Two migrants were found dead and at least 10 hospitalized after police in South Texas received a call that they were “suffocating” in a freight train near the U.S.-Mexico border. The train was stopped by US Border Patrol near the town of Knippa, northeast of Uvalde, and Union Pacific is working with local law enforcement and the Border Patrol to investigate the incident. The identities of the deceased and the hospitalized individuals have not been released and the cause of death is still under investigation.
Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, a Russian intelligence officer, has been charged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for acting as an illegal agent of a Russian intelligence service. He had been living in the US under the alias Victor Muller Ferreira since 2018, and was gathering information on U.S. foreign policy before his cover was blown. The Justice Department has warned that foreign intelligence services are increasingly targeting the U.S. and its allies.
Paul Rusesabagina, the man who inspired the Hollywood film “Hotel Rwanda”, has had his 25-year sentence commuted by the Rwandan government. The commutation was welcomed by many, and was facilitated by the US and Qatar governments. The conviction still stands, but it is hoped that the clemency will bring closure to this long-running saga.
EU leaders have responded to a sharp drop in bank shares on Friday, triggered by fears of weaknesses in the global financial system, by reassuring markets that the EU banking sector is resilient and well-regulated. This follows a hastily arranged marriage between two banks on Sunday and a government-backed takeover of Swiss lender Credit Suisse by its rival UBS. EU leaders are continuing to monitor the situation and reassure markets that the banking sector is stable.
On Thursday, a US contractor was killed and five US service members and one US contractor were wounded in an attack on a coalition base in northeast Syria. In response, President Joe Biden authorized a precision airstrike against facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The US Central Command forces conducted the airstrike in eastern Syria, targeting facilities used by the IRGC, and the US is closely monitoring the situation and will take appropriate action to protect US personnel and interests in the region.
The U.S. and Canada have reached an agreement to restrict certain migrants from seeking protections in Canada in response to the sharp increase of people crossing into Canada from the US. The agreement would require migrants to request asylum in the first safe country they enter, which in this case would be the United States. It is unclear how the agreement will affect the number of illegal crossings into the U.S. from Canada.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released a report on Thursday revealing a 36% increase in antisemitic incidents in the US in 2022, the highest level since 1979. The report found that harassment, vandalism, and assault incidents all rose, with visibly Orthodox Jews targeted in more than half of all assault incidents nationwide. In response, the ADL is launching a new initiative called "Stop the Hate" to combat antisemitism and other forms of hate through education, advocacy, and community engagement.