Thomas Graham

A 7.4-magnitude earthquake in western Colombia killed at least 240 people, left thousands missing and destroyed thousands of homes, with Cali and Pereira among the worst-hit cities. Firefighters, civilians, hospitals, ministers and military units mounted continuing rescue operations, pulling survivors from collapsed buildings nearly a day after the quake. President Abelardo de la Espriella declared a state of emergency and took a visible role in coordinating the response, which experts contrasted favorably with Venezuela’s slower handling of devastating earthquakes in June. Analysts attributed the difference to Colombia’s stronger democratic institutions and civil society, while warning that the government’s initial energy must be followed by effective reconstruction, housing assistance and support for displaced workers.

A magnitude 7.4 earthquake centered in Colombia’s western department of Chocó killed at least 132 people and injured more than 570, with Cali, Pereira, Manizales and other cities suffering widespread building collapses and infrastructure damage. Rescue teams searched for people trapped under rubble while authorities declared a national emergency, imposed curfews in several cities and warned residents about aftershocks. Colombia’s government promised aid, including rent subsidies and additional security personnel, while the US announced $15.5m in emergency assistance.

A magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck western Colombia, with the epicentre near San José del Palmar in Chocó, killing more than 110 people and leaving thousands missing. Pereira, Cali, Chocó and Valle del Cauca suffered extensive damage, including collapsed buildings, damaged hospitals and disrupted airports and communications. President Abelardo de la Espriella declared a state of national emergency and prioritized search-and-rescue operations, while volunteers and emergency teams worked through rubble to locate survivors. The United States pledged $15.5m in relief, and other Latin American and European governments offered assistance.

Colombia’s incoming president, Abelardo de la Espriella, plans to end peace talks with armed groups and launch a new military offensive, prompting the ELN to prepare for renewed nationwide conflict. In its stronghold in Chocó, the guerrilla group maintains trained forces, modern weapons, drones, and revenue from illegal mining, logging, drug trafficking, and kidnappings. The ELN rejects the peace model that demobilized the Farc and argues that Colombia’s political system cannot deliver fundamental reform. Failed negotiations under Gustavo Petro, territorial competition with the Gulf Clan, accusations of recruiting minors, and recent bomb and drone attacks point to an escalating security crisis.

Valentín Lavín Romero, the Green party mayor of Temoac in Morelos, was shot dead inside the town hall months after surviving an earlier attack. He is reportedly the 14th Mexican mayor murdered since Claudia Sheinbaum became president and among nearly 100 killed since 2006. Authorities have not identified suspects or a motive, while Lavín Romero had faced allegations of links to local criminal groups and possible involvement in activists’ murders. His killing comes as the federal government’s Operation Swarm targets corruption networks connecting municipal officials and organised crime; official homicide figures have fallen, though security analysts question the scale of the decline and more than 130,000 people remain registered as missing.

Ricardo Sánchez Bobadilla has spent nearly two decades using the cartoon characters El Ñacas and El Tacuachi to satirize cartel life, corruption and violence in Sinaloa. The cartoon began in La Locha and has run weekly in Ríodoce, drawing on the region’s narco culture while avoiding naming real individuals. Bobadilla’s work has been shaped by the murder of his brother, fellow journalists Javier Valdez and Humberto Millán, and the continuing cartel war, which has left more than 6,000 people dead or missing in two years. Despite the risks, he argues that humor offers Mexicans a way to confront an increasingly brutal reality.

A mysterious US-Venezuelan operation in Bolívar state was announced by Donald Trump as the assassination of Héctor Guerrero Flores, leader of the Tren de Aragua gang, but authorities have provided little evidence about the target, timing, casualties or the precise US role. The strike has focused attention on the Orinoco Mining Arc, where criminal groups, Colombian guerrillas and elements of the Venezuelan state control lucrative illegal mines. Experts and local sources question whether eliminating one gang leader can change the region’s entrenched power structure, while suspecting that the operation may also help clear the area for US and Canadian mining companies such as Gold Reserve and Crystallex. The region remains highly unstable, with alleged criminal retaliation and deep military and political involvement in illegal economies complicating any prospect of secure investment.

Relatives searching for Mexico’s disappeared face escalating threats from organized crime, with at least 44 searchers murdered or disappeared since 2010 and 2025 identified as the deadliest year yet. In Sinaloa, the Hearts United for One Cause collective has lost one member to murder and another to abduction while continuing to search for victims of cartel violence, including those missing since the factional war that began in 2024. Government protection has been limited and temporary, while most attacks remain unpunished. Human rights monitors and the searchers themselves say authorities lack the political will to protect them, but the women continue because they believe no one else will look for their relatives.

US overdose deaths have fallen sharply since 2023, alongside a substantial decline in the purity of seized fentanyl. A study and related evidence suggest that Chinese controls or enforcement against precursor chemicals may have disrupted supplies reaching Mexico and the US, though researchers cannot identify which Chinese measures were responsible or prove that purity reductions caused the decline. Chinese officials welcome the development, while US experts argue that China’s actions mattered but remain incomplete. The article cautions that supply shocks may be temporary and unpredictable, noting that China’s 2019 fentanyl ban helped push production and trafficking through Mexican cartels, creating unintended consequences.

The US Justice Department has charged Sinaloa governor Rubén Rocha Moya and nine current or former Mexican officials with alleged ties to the Sinaloa cartel, including narcotics importation, weapons offences and kidnapping. The indictment claims the cartel helped Rocha Moya win office in 2021 in exchange for protection of its operations; he denies the allegations as baseless. Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexico would investigate and would not shield anyone proven to have committed crimes, but questioned whether the charges were politically motivated and rejected foreign intervention. Mexico is reviewing US evidence and extradition requests while preparing a parallel investigation.

Mexico has intensified intelligence-led operations against senior figures in the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, including the arrest of Audias Flores, known as “El Jardinero,” after the February killing of cartel leader “El Mencho.” Although El Mencho’s death briefly triggered attacks, no major succession war has emerged, and analysts say cartel members may avoid disrupting business during the 2026 World Cup. Experts nevertheless warn that removing kingpins can fragment criminal groups and provoke territorial conflict. The operations have been aided by US intelligence and are occurring amid escalating pressure from Donald Trump’s administration, which is now also targeting alleged corruption and senior officials in Sinaloa.

Mexico is investigating whether a drug-lab raid near Chihuahua involved an unauthorized joint operation with the United States after two US embassy officials died in a crash while returning from the site. Reports identify the officials as CIA operatives, although the US embassy has not confirmed this. Mexican officials have offered conflicting accounts of their role, while President Claudia Sheinbaum said neither she nor her cabinet knew about the operation and warned that any confirmed constitutional violation could lead to sanctions. The episode highlights growing US-Mexico tensions as Donald Trump presses Mexico to combat cartels and threatens stronger intervention.

Korean popular culture has moved from a niche interest to a major force across Latin America, with K-pop, television, film, food, skincare, fashion and language studies gaining momentum in Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Argentina and elsewhere. The growth accelerated during the pandemic through streaming and social media, while influencers, restaurants, cultural institutes and fan communities have helped turn enthusiasm into businesses, educational programs and travel links. BTS’s Mexican demand, millions of Mexican K-pop fans, expanding Korean restaurants in Santiago and the rise of Latin American creators connected to South Korea illustrate the scale of the trend. The article also links Korea’s growing soft power to a perceived weakening of US cultural appeal, particularly amid controversial policies under Donald Trump.

Arizona has overtaken Texas as the leading US source of recently purchased guns recovered and traced in Mexico, accounting for 62% of such weapons seized in 2024. The shift coincides with the prolonged war between factions of the Sinaloa cartel, which has left roughly 5,000 people dead or missing and driven major firearm seizures in Sinaloa and neighboring Sonora. Straw purchasers allegedly buy weapons in Arizona for cartel associates, while rising prices for rifles such as AR-15s and AK-47s indicate heightened demand. Arizona authorities have indicted a trafficking ring linked to more than 330 firearms, and Mexico is suing five Arizona gun shops while seeking US cooperation to stem the flow.

Bolivia arrested Sebastián Marset, an alleged Uruguayan drug trafficker accused of moving cocaine from South America to Europe, laundering money through US banks and ordering the 2022 assassination of Paraguayan prosecutor Marcelo Pecci. Bolivia's interior minister said Marset was being extradited to the United States. The arrest ends a years-long pursuit involving multiple countries, aliases, forged passports and alleged links to Brazilian and Italian organized-crime groups. It also marks renewed law-enforcement cooperation between Bolivia and the US under President Rodrigo Paz, after years of strained relations during Evo Morales's government.

A study by international legal experts concludes there are reasonable grounds to believe El Salvador’s mass-arrest campaign has involved crimes against humanity, citing arbitrary detention, torture, deaths in custody and forced disappearances. Since 2022, President Nayib Bukele’s state of exception has detained roughly 90,000 people and sharply reduced homicide rates, winning broad domestic support and international admiration. The policy has also weakened constitutional safeguards, persecuted critics and enabled indefinite presidential re-election, prompting calls for a UN investigation and warnings that the influential “Bukele model” threatens democracy and human rights.

Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum pledged that visitors to the 2026 FIFA World Cup would face no safety risk after the military killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes. His followers responded by blocking nearly 100 roads and attacking security installations, killing at least 25 soldiers and 34 cartel gunmen, although the violence largely subsided within two days. Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta and other affected areas began reopening, while FIFA president Gianni Infantino expressed confidence in Mexico’s hosting role. Sheinbaum also considered legal action against Elon Musk over allegations that she takes orders from cartels, and defended her government’s operation as an effort to pursue peace rather than a return to a broader war on drugs.

Mexican authorities killed Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, after tracking him to a safe house near Tapalpa through a romantic partner and receiving intelligence support from the United States. His death triggered coordinated cartel retaliation across western Mexico, including road blockades, arson, gun battles and attacks on security forces, causing deaths, arrests, school closures and major disruption to flights and tourism in Jalisco and Michoacán. Although authorities said the blockades had been cleared, the operation has created a dangerous power vacuum: the cartel could either remain unified under a successor or splinter into rival factions, potentially producing even greater violence. The killing also temporarily eases pressure from Donald Trump’s administration while reviving concerns that militarized drug-war tactics may generate instability without dismantling organized crime.

Costa Rica’s presidential and congressional election is being shaped by rising organized crime, drug trafficking and public insecurity. Laura Fernández, the handpicked candidate of President Rodrigo Chaves, leads the polls while promising tougher security measures, including a possible state of exception in violence hotspots. Her potential victory could preserve Chaves’s influence and give his movement enough congressional power to pursue major institutional or constitutional changes. Critics warn this could accelerate an authoritarian shift, while supporters and some analysts argue that Costa Rica’s democratic institutions will endure. The fragmented opposition and large number of undecided voters leave the final result uncertain.

Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum warned that Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba could worsen the island’s fuel shortages and create a humanitarian crisis affecting hospitals, food supplies and other basic services. The US policy is part of a broader campaign to pressure Cuba’s government, which Washington links to Russia, Hamas and Hezbollah. Mexico has become Cuba’s leading oil supplier and is seeking information from the US while exploring ways to provide humanitarian aid without exposing itself to retaliation. Cuba reportedly has only 15 to 20 days of oil remaining at current demand, while daily blackouts have reached about 12 hours, forcing families to rely on charcoal. Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel condemned the policy, and energy expert Jorge Piñon warned that the crisis could become much more severe if deliveries do not resume within six to eight weeks.

Mexico has cancelled an oil shipment to Cuba, with President Claudia Sheinbaum calling the decision sovereign and denying that it resulted from U.S. pressure. The move comes as Cuba faces severe fuel shortages and blackouts, following Donald Trump’s declaration that no further oil or money would go to the island. Sheinbaum reaffirmed Mexico’s opposition to the U.S. blockade and its solidarity with Cuba but avoided saying whether the cancellation would become permanent. The decision reflects Mexico’s effort to maintain trade and security cooperation with the Trump administration while avoiding backlash from the left wing of Morena, especially as the countries renegotiate the USMCA and tensions over drug cartels continue.

Ryan Wedding, a Canadian former Olympic snowboarder, was arrested on US drug-trafficking charges after allegedly building an international cocaine network operating across Canada, the United States, Mexico and Colombia. Prosecutors accuse him of arranging retaliatory killings, including the murder of former associate Jonathan Acebedo-García, and of working with Toronto-area lawyer Deepak Balwant Paradkar to target a witness. US officials have compared Wedding to Pablo Escobar and Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, but security analysts argue that authorities may have overstated his organization’s scale and influence for political and publicity reasons. Paradkar denies the allegations and is contesting extradition.

Canadian former Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding surrendered at the US embassy in Mexico City and was flown to California to face charges of drug trafficking, conspiracy to murder, witness tampering and money laundering. US authorities allege that his organization moved almost 60 metric tons of cocaine annually from Mexico to Los Angeles and ordered multiple killings, while Canadian and US agencies had pursued him through Operation Giant Slalom. The FBI highlighted the arrest as a major victory and seized high-value vehicles and other assets, but analyst Cecilia Farfán-Méndez questioned whether Wedding’s alleged scale and importance had been exaggerated and whether the arrest will significantly affect cocaine supplies. A second FBI Most Wanted fugitive, Alejandro Rosales Castillo, was also captured in Mexico.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum defended the transfer of 37 suspected cartel operatives to the United States as a sovereign decision, resisting US demands for direct American military involvement in Mexico. The transfers, which bring the total sent to 92, are intended to ease pressure from Donald Trump’s administration, but analysts warn Washington will seek further action, including investigations of Mexican politicians linked to criminal groups. The unusual extradition process has raised legal questions, while security demands are increasingly intertwined with renegotiation of the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement and the threat of tariffs.