Bukele criticises Venezuela over migrant abuse investigation
The dispute follows a recent prisoner exchange involving over 250 migrants held in El Salvador's CECOT prison.
Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab stated that an inquiry has been launched against Bukele and other Salvadoran officials for alleged crimes against humanity.
The migrants, detained for nearly four months, reportedly endured sexual abuse, beatings, and poor living conditions.
Bukele responded on social media, accusing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government of hypocrisy.
'They were satisfied with the exchange agreement, which is why they accepted it,' he said.
He suggested Venezuela's anger stemmed from losing leverage over the US, as the deal included the release of 10 American detainees.
The migrants were deported to El Salvador in March after the US invoked wartime laws to bypass court hearings.
Human rights groups condemned the move, with many arguing the deportees had no gang affiliations.
Venezuelan authorities confirmed that the returned migrants are undergoing medical checks and receiving new identification before reuniting with their families. – AFP
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The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Asean News Headlines at 10pm on Saturday (July 26, 2025)
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The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Thai-Cambodia clashes spread along the frontier as death toll rises
BANGKOK (Thailand)/SAMROANG (Cambodia): Thailand and Cambodia pounded each other with heavy artillery fire for a third day on Saturday (July 26) as a border conflict that killed at least 33 people and displaced more than 170,000 from their homes spread across the frontier. Clashes broke out for the first time in the countries' coastal regions where they meet on the Gulf of Thailand, around 250km southwest of the main frontlines thumping with blasts on July 26 afternoon. 'It feels like I'm escaping a war zone,' 76-year-old Samlee Sornchai told AFP at a temple shelter for evacuees in the Thai town of Kanthararom, after abandoning his farm near the embattled frontier. Both sides say they are open to a truce in the combat being fought with jets, tanks and ground troops, but have accused the other of undermining armistice efforts. Tensions initially flared over long-contested ancient temple sites, but fighting has spread along the neighbours' rural frontier region, marked by a ridge of forest-clad hills surrounded by wild jungle and agricultural land where locals farm rubber and rice. Both sides reported a coastline clash at around 5am (6am Singapore time), with Cambodia accusing Thai forces of firing 'five heavy artillery shells' into locations in Pursat province, which borders Thailand's Trat province. Cambodia's Defence Ministry said 13 people were now confirmed killed in the fighting, including eight civilians and five soldiers, with 71 people wounded. Thai authorities say 13 civilians and seven soldiers have been killed on their side, taking the toll across both nations higher than the 28 killed in the last major round of fighting between 2008 and 2011. The fighting has forced more than 138,000 people to be evacuated from Thailand's border regions, with more than 35,000 driven from their homes in Cambodia. After the closed meeting of the Security Council in New York, Cambodia's UN ambassador Chhea Keo said his country wanted a ceasefire. 'Cambodia asked for an immediate ceasefire – unconditionally – and we also call for the peaceful solution of the dispute,' he told reporters. Border row Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said on July 26 that for any ceasefire or talks to proceed, Cambodia needed to show 'genuine sincerity in ending the conflict'. 'I urge Cambodia to stop violating Thai sovereignty and to return to resolving the issue through bilateral dialogue,' he told reporters. Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura said on July 25, before the UN meeting was held, that Bangkok was open to talks, possibly aided by Malaysia. 'We are ready, if Cambodia would like to settle this matter via diplomatic channels, bilaterally, or even through Malaysia, we are ready to do that. But so far we have not had any response,' Nikorndej told AFP. Malaysia currently holds the chair of the Asean regional bloc, of which Thailand and Cambodia are both members. Acting Thai Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai has warned that if the situation escalates, 'it could develop into war'. Both sides blamed each other for firing first, while Thailand accused Cambodia of targeting civilian infrastructure, including a hospital hit by shells and a petrol station hit by at least one rocket. Cambodia has accused Thai forces of using cluster munitions. At the UN, Cambodia's envoy questioned Thailand's assertion that his country, which is smaller and less militarily developed than its neighbour, had initiated the conflict. '(The Security Council) called for both parties to (show) maximum restraint and resort to a diplomatic solution. That is what we are calling for as well,' said Chhea Keo. Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra – still an influential figure in the kingdom – visited shelters on July 26 to meet evacuees. 'The military needs to complete its operations before any dialogue can take place,' he told reporters. The 76-year-old said he had no plans to contact Hun Sen, Cambodia's powerful former prime minister who was long a close ally. 'His actions reflect a disturbed mindset. He should reflect on his conduct,' Thaksin said of Mr Hun Sen. The fighting marks a dramatic escalation in a long-running dispute between the neighbours – both popular destinations for millions of foreign tourists – over their shared 800km border. Dozens of kilometres in several areas are contested and fighting broke out between 2008 and 2011, leaving at least 28 people dead and tens of thousands displaced. A UN court ruling in 2013 settled the matter for more than a decade, but the current crisis erupted in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a new clash. Relations between the two countries soured dramatically when Hun Sen in June released a recording of a call with suspended Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra focused on the border row. The leak triggered a political crisis in Thailand as Paetongtarn – Thaksin's daughter – was accused of not standing up for Thailand enough, and of criticising her own army. She was suspended from office by a court order. -- AFP, BLOOMBERG
The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
Fleeing Thais, Cambodians plead for peace amid border war
KANTHARAROM (Thailand): As Cambodia and Thailand traded deadly strikes, fleeing civilians on both sides described their cross-border neighbours as 'siblings' and 'friends' -- swapping calls for peace against the backdrop of artillery barrages. The death toll from three days of fighting has risen to 33, the majority civilians, after a long-running border dispute sharply escalated into combat waged with jets, artillery, tanks and ground troops. 'Relations used to be good -- we were like siblings,' said 56-year-old Sai Boonrod, one of hundreds of Thais sheltering at a temple in the town of Kanthararom after evacuating her border village home. 'But now things may have changed,' she told AFP. 'I just want the fighting to end so we can go back to being like siblings again.' Over the Cambodian border, 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Sai's temporary home, a similar scene plays out: hundreds of evacuees huddled in makeshift tents on a temple site, surrounded by emergency food rations and their hastily packed clothes. 'We are neighbours, we want to be friends,' one 50-year-old told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity at the temple shelter in Phumi Bak Thkav. 'But they are attacking us. We are fleeing homes because of them.' Tensions have long flared over the countries' shared 800-kilometre border, peppered with ancient temple sites claimed by both nations. The previous most deadly clashes broke out between 2008 and 2011 -- leaving at least 28 people dead. But stretching her legs on a bamboo mat, Sai said 'it was never this violent' in previous times. She is one of more than 170,000 evacuated from the countries' border zones, but her husband stayed behind to help guard neighbours' livestock and belongings. 'I want them to negotiate, to stop firing quickly... so the elderly can return home and the children can go back to school,' she said. The UN Security Council held an urgent meeting on Friday and both sides have said they are open to a truce -- but accused the other of undermining armistice efforts. - 'End the fighting' - This flare-up began with a gun battle in late May killing one Cambodian soldier, and festered with tit-for-tat trade restrictions and border closures before hostilities spiked on Thursday. At 73 years old, Suwan Promsri has lived through many episodes of border friction -- but said this one feels 'so much different'. He said resentment of Cambodians among Thais -- including himself -- is growing, with patriotic online discourse fanning the flames. In February, Bangkok formally protested to Phnom Penh after a video of women singing a patriotic Khmer song in front of a disputed temple was posted on social media. The fighting has also been accompanied by a wave of online misinformation and disinformation from both sides. 'Before the internet, I felt indifferent,' said Suwan. 'But social media really plays a part in fuelling this hatred.' Despite the divisions, he is united with his Thai neighbours, and those over the border in Cambodia, in his calls for peace. 'I want the government to realise that people along the border are suffering. Life is difficult,' he said. 'I hope the authorities work on negotiations to end the fighting as soon as possible.'- AFP
