Texas Weekly Online

Texas-trans-white
Menu
Menu

Year: 2025

Six people dead after alleged dynamite attack in Bolivia gold-mining clash

Six people dead after alleged dynamite attack in Bolivia gold-mining clash

The dynamite attack is thought to be the result of two mining collectives fighting over access to gold deposits. A clash between gold-mining operations in Bolivia has resulted in an explosion that killed six people, according to authorities. Thursday’s blast rocked the Yani mining camp approximately 150 kilometres – or 90 miles – northwest of the country’s administrative capital, La Paz. “There are six dead, and we have reports of missing persons,” said Jhonny Silva, a representative from one of the mining groups involved, the Hijos de Ingenio Mining Cooperative. That mining collective reportedly brawled with another group, known as Senor de Mayo, in a dynamite-laden fight over access to a gold mining area. The explosion left houses damaged and the town of Sorata without power. “They have blown up machinery with dynamite, even a diesel tank,” Silva said of the rival cooperative. Collectives developped in Bolivia as an alternative to state-run and private enterprises. Critics have accused those large companies of providing unstable employment for low-income mining workers, their jobs hinging on market fluctuations. Advertisement The collectives started to crop up in the wake of several economic crises, particularly in 1985, when international mineral prices fell and the state-owned mining company Corporación Minera de Bolivia (COMIBOL) temporarily shuttered. That left tens of thousands of Bolivian miners without jobs. As Bolivia’s mines were privatised, the collectives offered a space for the miners to self-organise. Some would eventually extract tin, silver, gold and zinc to sell to private businesses. Collectives now represent the majority of mining workers, outnumbering their counterparts at COMIBOL and in the private sector. They therefore wield significant political power, despite their relatively modest ability to extract minerals, compared to big companies. Estimates put the number of gold-mining collectives at about 1,600. But critics of the cooperative system warn that there are few safeguards in place for workers, who are exposed to toxic conditions in the extraction process. Opponents also note that – while cooperatives are legal – some of their mining activity is not, and that can lead to environmental destruction and pollution. The informal nature of the work has also led to deadly clashes, both over access to mining sites and the markets in which to sell the metals and raise investments. The fights sometimes involve COMIBOL workers and security forces. The state-run company has become Bolivia’s largest company, propelled in part by favourable policies under former socialist President Evo Morales, who led the country from 2006 to 2019. Advertisement In 2012, for instance, tensions between COMIBOL and the collectives led to road blockages and a deadly dynamite attack in La Paz. Thursday’s dynamite attack between the collectives, however, was simmering for years, according to Silva. Colonel Gunther Agudo, a local police officer, told local media that the dynamite attack “caused an explosion of great magnitude”. “We’re continuing the rescue efforts,” he said. Adblock test (Why?)

Downtown Seoul tense as court rules on President Yoon’s impeachment

Downtown Seoul tense as court rules on President Yoon’s impeachment

Seoul, South Korea – The catchphrase “8-0” was blasted on loudspeakers and seen on placards in Seoul’s historic centre of Jongno District, where thousands of critics of impeached President Yoon Suk-yeol gathered. The demonstrators on Thursday were calling for Yoon to be impeached, confident that all eight acting justices in the country’s Constitutional Court would decide to uphold an impeachment motion passed by the National Assembly in mid-December after Yoon’s short-lived martial law bid. When the final verdict was announced on Friday, the court ruled unanimously to uphold Yoon’s impeachment and remove him from office for briefly declaring military rule. The decision has set in motion a presidential election, which must be held within 60 days. Nestled between ancient palaces and state-of-the-art museums, the neighbourhood of Anguk, where the court is located – and which translates to “peaceful country” – was fortified by hundreds of police buses on Friday morning. More than 14,000 police officers have been mobilised throughout the city while the Anguk subway station, local businesses and several schools were closed in case of disturbances following the court’s ruling. Police buses are parked to make walls on the road as part of precautions for any eventuality near the Constitutional Court in Seoul, South Korea, on April 3, 2025 [Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo] In front of Gyeongbokgung Palace on Thursday, a student organisation staged what sounded like a celebratory band performance in anticipation of a successful impeachment decision that many hoped would end a four-month-long standoff over Yoon’s future. Advertisement “I completely trust that they will make the right decision,” said Song Hye-jung, who was watching the band from afar on Thursday. “But with so many things that have happened in the last few months, I have the tiniest of uncertainty still.” There have been two acting presidents since Yoon was suspended from office in December, as Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who was next in line to the presidency, was also impeached by the National Assembly. While Han was reinstated as acting president last month, it had taken a record 38 days for the court to deliver its ruling on Yoon. “By looking at how long it took for the court to make its decision, there might have been one or two dissenting votes. So, it might not turn out to be a perfect eight to zero,” Lim Woon-taek, a sociology professor at Keimyung University and a former member of the Presidential Commission on Policy Planning, told Al Jazeera ahead of the ruling. “The key point in this fiasco was that the whole nation could watch what was happening on the night martial law was declared through live feeds on televisions and their phones. It was clear to see that the president overstepped the limits of his powers,” Lim said. Yoon’s case had centred on whether he broke the law by engaging in five key actions: declaring martial law, writing up a martial law decree, deploying troops to the National Assembly, raiding the National Election Commission and allegedly attempting to arrest politicians. “None of the five reasons are light whatsoever. The actions on December 3 can be seen as an attempt to suspend the constitutional government, freeze all political activities, and replace the National Assembly with a substitute force,” said Chung Tae-ho, a professor at Kyung Hee University specialising in constitutional law. Advertisement As a graduate law student at Seoul National University, Lim Hyeon-chang blamed the prolonged decision in Yoon’s case on the Constitutional Court being too sensitive towards public opinion. “It’s already been four months of protesting for many of our students, so we definitely felt tired from all the wait. But with spring and the new semester starting, there’s hope that this social chaos will go back to normalcy finally,” he said. While pro-impeachment protests gathered in their thousands on Thursday night, pro-Yoon supporters were harder to find. In a small group of fewer than 10 people, Grace Kim held a poster reading, “NO impeachment”. “I’m fully convinced that the court will decide to reinstate Yoon in office. The whole process of suspending and impeaching our president was illegal from the start,” the 63-year-old said. “If the court decides otherwise, we will exercise our right of resistance and fight until truth prevails,” she said. Adblock test (Why?)

South Korea’s Constitutional Court removes President Yoon from office

South Korea’s Constitutional Court removes President Yoon from office

BREAKINGBREAKING, South Korea’s Constitutional Court said that President Yoon Suk-yeol ‘violated’ people’s basic rights by declaring martial law. Seoul, South Korea – The Constitutional Court in South Korea has removed President Yoon Suk-yeol from office after upholding his impeachment by parliament for declaring martial law late last year. The court’s Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae opened the proceeding on Friday by declaring that there was sufficient reason to impeach President Yoon. “The defendant mobilised military and police forces to dismantle the authority of constitutional institutions and infringed upon the fundamental rights of the people,” the acting chief justice said while reading the court’s decision. “In doing so, he abandoned his constitutional duty to uphold the constitution and gravely betrayed the trust of the Korean people,” the chief justice said. “Such unlawful and unconstitutional conduct constitutes an act that cannot be tolerated under the constitution,” he said. “The negative consequences and ripple effects of these actions are substantial, and the benefit of restoring constitutional order through removal from office outweighs the national costs associated with the dismissal of a sitting president,” he added. Advertisement The Constitutional Court’s decision was unanimous, Hyung-bae said. The ruling on Friday now means that South Korea must hold a presidential election within 60 days. Yoon briefly declared martial law late on the evening of December 3, claiming that antistate and North Korean forces had infiltrated the government. But senior members of the police and military said they were instructed to detain rival politicians and prevent the country’s assembly from voting to lift the president’s surprise imposition of military rule. This is a breaking news story. We will bring you more soon … Adblock test (Why?)

Trump supports proxy voting for new mothers in Congress: ‘Don’t know why it’s controversial’

Trump supports proxy voting for new mothers in Congress: ‘Don’t know why it’s controversial’

President Donald Trump said he supports letting new moms in Congress vote by proxy, putting him at odds with House Speaker Mike Johnson. “You’re having a baby, I think you should be able to call in and vote,” Trump told reporters Thursday on Air Force One. “I’m in favor of that.” “I don’t know why it’s controversial,” he added. He said he had spoken with Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., one of the lead GOP voices behind the plan. ANNA PAULINA LUNA FORCES HOUSE LEADERSHIP’S HAND ON PROXY VOTING AS GOP WAR ESCALATES Luna and Rep. Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo., are pushing a proposal that would let new parents vote by proxy for 12 weeks while caring for their newborns. With 218 lawmakers backing the move, it has enough support to force a vote. Johnson, however, has historically opposed proxy voting, previously calling it unconstitutional and warning it was misused under then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi during COVID. But after Trump’s endorsement, Luna revealed that Johnson reached out to her. “@SpeakerJohnson has called me after POTUS statement and we discussed limiting the vote to just new moms who cannot physically travel in event of emergency etc. This is smart,” Luna tweeted. “Remember: only 13 in US history.” ANNA PAULINA LUNA RESIGNS FROM HOUSE FREEDOM CAUCUS, SAYS ‘MUTUAL RESPECT’ WAS ‘SHATTERED’ Johnson had tried to kill the effort earlier this week, but nine Republicans joined all Democrats to block him, voting 206-222. After the loss, Johnson canceled votes for the rest of the week. Despite the setback, Luna made it clear the issue isn’t about advancing any legislation for the president, saying she personally told Johnson as much. It is unclear whether the issue will be brought back for a vote on the House floor before the April Recess. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The offices of House Speaker Mike Johnson and Representative Anna Paulina Luna did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Politics Newsletter: Waltz under fire

Fox News Politics Newsletter: Waltz under fire

Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest updates on the Trump administration, Capitol Hill and more Fox News politics content. Here’s what’s happening… -Newsom foe picked by Trump for key prosecutor job vows to ‘dismantle’ sanctuary state shields –Trump’s DOGE push slashes millions in DEI contracts funding ‘divisive ideologies’ in blue states -Hawley, Senate Judiciary panel to hear from muzzled Meta whistleblower next week President Donald Trump’s national security advisor, Mike Waltz, has repeatedly landed in hot water in recent days, beginning with an uproar from Democrats over a Signal chat leak with high-ranking national security officials that has since snowballed.  Trump and his administration, however, repeatedly have defended the national security leader publicly.  Waltz, who previously served as a Florida congressman and as a decorated combat Green Beret, has come under fire from Democrats and critics since March, when the Atlantic magazine’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg published a firsthand account of getting added to a Signal group chat with top national security leaders, including Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, while they discussed strikes against Yemen terrorists…Read more ‘NAZI NEPO BABY’: Unearthed photo shows smiling Obama touring SpaceX alongside ‘Nazi nepo baby’ Elon Musk ‘CASH AVALANCHE’: President Trump, conservatives celebrate ‘absolutely massive’ Florida special elections sweep ‘THE PATIENT LIVED’: Trump issues ‘prognosis’ for US after tariffs in medical metaphor CHANGE OF POLICY: Trump admin moves to more easily fire federal workers at 2 agencies: report COURT TURBULENCE: Trump faces Judge Boasberg over migrant deportation flights defying court order ‘REAL LEADERSHIP’: Trump invites El Salvador’s Bukele to White House for ‘working visit’ COSMIC CLASH: Space Force chief fires off dire warning about Chinese capability to knock out US satellites ‘RESTORING DIALOGUE’: Kremlin official says he’s meeting Trump admin in first Russian visit to US since Ukraine war UNLIKELY ALLY: Trump gets rare Democrat support for new tariffs: ‘This is a good start’ ‘LONG-OVERDUE’: Trump’s GOP allies praise new tariff strategy, Dem critics say they will only make life more difficult ‘UNBELIEVABLY DISLOYAL’: Senate approves resolution against Trump’s Canada tariffs hours after ‘Liberation Day’ event CALIFORNIA CLASH: Congress barrels toward showdown over Biden-era rule letting California ban gas cars POWER STRUGGLE: Bipartisan senators’ bill would require Congress to approve new tariffs GOOD TIMING: House Democrats to head to U.S.-Mexico border in California to scrutinize Trump security policies ‘FULL SUPPORT’: Top House Republican backs Byron Donalds for Florida governor FIRST ON FOX: Washington Post article hyping anti-DOGE protesters in deep red state omits crucial details DOWNWARD DOGE: Musk’s political baggage: Polls show Americans sour on Trump’s most visible advisor WATCHDOG: Pentagon watchdog opens probe into Hegseth’s use of Signal to discuss Houthi attack plans ONE-WAY TICKET: ICE says it deported 174 criminal migrants from Texas, including a man with 39 illegal entries Get the latest updates on the Trump administration and Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.