Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday (August 28) praised Colombian President Gustavo Petro for deploying 25,000 troops to strengthen security in the Catatumbo region, a key area along the shared border between the two countries.
Tensions between the United States and Venezuela are rising amid a large U.S. naval buildup in the Southern Caribbean and nearby waters, which U.S. officials say aims to address threats from Latin American drug cartels.
U.S. President Donald Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a central goal of his administration, part of a wider effort to limit migration and secure the U.S. southern border.
While U.S. Coast Guard and Navy ships regularly operate in the Southern Caribbean, this buildup is significantly larger than usual deployments in the region, a move which was denounced by Maduro.
The Pentagon has not indicated publicly what exactly the U.S. mission will be, but the Trump administration has said it can now use the military to go after drug cartels and criminal groups and has directed the Pentagon to prepare options.
On its part, in a message via X platform, Colombian President Gustavo Petro said he had ordered the Colombian army to increase the number of troops in the Colombian Catatumbo region “to reduce the mafia's forces as much as possible.” “It is not the land that defeats the mafia, it is the coordination between the two states that achieves this,” he added.
On Thursday, Venezuela complained to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres about the U.S. naval build-up, accusing Washington of violating the founding U.N. Charter.
The Trump administration designated Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel and other drug gangs, as well as the Venezuelan criminal group Tren de Aragua, as global terrorist organizations in February.
Maduro's government said last week it would send 15,000 troops along its western border with Colombia to combat drug trafficking groups.
Maduro has also called for civil defence groups to train each Friday and Saturday.
Maduro's government regularly accuses the opposition and foreigners of conspiring with U.S. entities such as the CIA to harm Venezuela, accusations the opposition and the U.S. have always denied. It characterizes sanctions as "economic war."
A torpedo from a U.S. submarine sunk an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, U.S. Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth told reporters as ...
A U.S. submarine strike sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, leaving at least 80 dead, the country&...
The election of Iran’s next supreme leader could provide an opportunity to end the ongoing regional war involving Israel, the U.S. and ...
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the United States is making gains in its conflict with Iran after a key I...
The U.S. Department of Defense has released a video of a submarine strike on an Iranian warship off the southern Sri Lankan coast. At least 80 peop...
A U.S. submarine strike sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, leaving at least 80 dead, the country’s deputy foreign minister said. Meanwhile, Iran postponed the funeral of its late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, according to state media.
The election of Iran’s next supreme leader could provide an opportunity to end the ongoing regional war involving Israel, the U.S. and Iran, Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the United States is making gains in its conflict with Iran after a key Iranian naval target was destroyed, confirming that the strike was carried out by a U.S. submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka. Rescue efforts are now under way for the ship’s crew.
The U.S. Department of Defense has released a video of a submarine strike on an Iranian warship off the southern Sri Lankan coast. At least 80 people died in the U.S. attack on the vessel, Sri Lanka's Deputy Foreign Minister said.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. military has enough stockpiled weapons to fight wars "forever"; in a social media post late on Monday. The remarks came hours before conflict in Iran and the Middle East entered its fourth day.
U.S. first lady, Melania Trump chaired a UN Security Council meeting on children and education in conflict on Monday (2 March), a move criticised by Iran as hypocritical following U.S. and Israeli strikes that triggered a UN warning about risks to children.
A torpedo from a U.S. submarine sunk an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, U.S. Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth told reporters as the Iranian conflcit entered its fifth day on Wednesday.
The U.S. embassy in Riyadh was hit by two drones resulting in a limited fire and some material damage, the kingdom's defence ministry said in a post on X on Tuesday, citing an initial assessment.
Shahid Motahari Sub-Speciality Hospital in northern Tehran and parts of the Golestan Palace were bombed on day two of the U.S.‑Israel strikes. AnewZ Touraj Shiralilou is in Iran's capital city and said that the facility was flattened in an airstrike.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the United States is making gains in its conflict with Iran after a key Iranian naval target was destroyed, confirming that the strike was carried out by a U.S. submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka. Rescue efforts are now under way for the ship’s crew.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 4th of February, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Strikes across the Middle East are intensifying, fuelling travel disruption, driving up global energy prices and forcing diplomatic missions to shut their doors.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States has a “virtually unlimited supply” of munitions and is capable of sustaining military action indefinitely, as the conflict with Iran entered its fourth day.
The United Nations has called for an investigation into a deadly attack on a girls’ primary school in Iran, which Iranian officials say has killed more than 100 children. The U.S. has said its forces “would not” deliberately target a school.
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