Latest news with #CentroAmerica
New York Times
09-07-2025
- Climate
- New York Times
Guatemala Closes Schools in Capital After Earthquakes
Guatemala suspended classes at schools in and around its capital on Wednesday and ordered some businesses to close after an earthquake triggered landslides that killed at least two people and destroyed some buildings. The initial 5.7-magnitude earthquake on Tuesday afternoon struck about 10 miles southwest of Guatemala City, according to the United States Geological Survey. The city has a population of about three million people. The earthquake and its aftershocks led to landslides that caused some buildings to collapse, the national disaster agency said on social media. At least two people were killed when a boulder fell on their vehicle, the local news media reported, citing firefighters at the scene. Officials in the area could not immediately be reached for comment. Map: 5.7-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Guatemala View the location of the quake's epicenter and shake area. The government suspended classes at schools and non-essential services in and around the capital after the quakes. Guatemala's Finance Ministry was also closed through at least Wednesday so that inspectors could evaluate the building for damages. President Bernardo Arévalo of Guatemala told reporters that some infrastructure, homes and highways had been damaged. He said the earthquake, in a country known for volcanic activity, was not linked to a volcanic eruption.
Al Bawaba
09-07-2025
- Al Bawaba
Series of earthquakes kill 2 in Guatemala
ALBAWABA - A series of earthquakes struck Guatemala, leaving two people dead, authorities in the country said on Wednesday. According to AFP, the people were killed after their vehicle was buried under a landslide due to the earthquakes in the Central American country. Several tremors measuring up to 5.6 magnitude hit Guatemala on Tuesday afternoon, centered near Amatitlan and Alotenango towns, southwest of the capital, seismological services detailed. "Unfortunately, human fatalities are confirmed" due to a landslide after rocks and earth buried a vehicle on a highway, according to Andres Erazo, a spokesman for the disaster coordination agency "Conred". In addition, people in El Salvador, a country neighboring Guatemala, said they felt the quake. Furthermore, President Bernardo Arevalo said the quakes had also trapped a family of five, but they were saved by Guatemala rescue teams; meanwhile, two others are being treated for injuries.
Reuters
08-07-2025
- Climate
- Reuters
Magnitude 5.2 earthquake hits southern Guatemala
GUATEMALA CITY, July 8 (Reuters) - An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 hit southern Guatemala on Tuesday, the Central American country's seismology institute reported in a post on X.
Associated Press
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
El Salvador President Bukele denies beating and torture of Kilmar Abrego Garcia in prison
MEXICO CITY (AP) — El Salvador President Nayib Bukele cast aside allegations that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was beaten and subject to psychological torture in a Salvadoran prison on Thursday. In a post on the social media platform X, Bukele wrote that Abrego Garcia 'wasn't tortured, nor did he lose weight.' In the post, Bukele included pictures and video of Abrego Garcia in a detention cell. 'If he'd been tortured, sleep-deprived, and starved, why does he look so well in every picture?' Bukele wrote. It comes after Abrego Garcia said he suffered severe beatings, severe sleep deprivation and psychological torture in the notorious El Salvador prison the Trump administration had mistakenly deported him to in March, according to court documents filed on Wednesday. He said he was kicked and hit so often after arrival that by the following day, he had visible bruises and lumps all over his body. He said he and 20 others were forced to kneel all night long and guards hit anyone who fell. In the new court documents, Abrego Garcia said detainees at CECOT 'were confined to metal bunks with no mattresses in an overcrowded cell with no windows, bright lights that remained on 24 hours a day, and minimal access to sanitation.' Abrego Garcia's description falls in line with accounts from other Salvadorans who were detained under Bukele's state of emergency, where the government has detained more than 1% of the Central American nation's population in its war on the country's gangs. Hundreds of people people have died in the prisons, according to human rights groups, which have also documented cases of torture and deteriorated conditions. Abrego Garcia was living in Maryland when he was mistakenly deported and became a flashpoint in U.S. President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. The new details of Abrego Garcia's incarceration in El Salvador were added to a lawsuit against the Trump administration that Abrego Garcia's wife filed in Maryland federal court after he was deported. The Trump administration has asked a federal judge in Maryland to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that it is now moot because the government returned him to the United States as ordered by the court.
CNA
02-07-2025
- Politics
- CNA
Costa Rica's top court calls for President Chaves to stand trial on corruption charges
SAN JOSE: Costa Rica's highest court on Tuesday (Jul 1) asked the country's legislature to strip President Rodrigo Chaves of his immunity from prosecution so he can stand trial on corruption charges. Costa Rica's attorney general's office in April alleged that members of Chaves' government awarded kickbacks to a top government ally using funds from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI). In an extraordinary session, the court also requested Culture Minister Jorge Rodriguez, who previously acted as communication minister, stand trial in the same case. Costa Rica's National Assembly is controlled by opposition lawmakers. Chaves and Rodriguez face between two to eight years in prison if convicted. They both have denied the accusations. The attorney general's office said that a former presidential adviser was paid US$32,000 with funds awarded by CABEI.
