Síntesis informativa - 19 de octubre 2018
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Saudis May Blame Intelligence Official for Killing Jamal Khashoggi
ISTANBUL — The rulers of Saudi Arabia are considering blaming a top intelligence official close to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, three people with knowledge of the Saudi plans said Thursday.
The plan to assign blame to Maj. Gen. Ahmed al-Assiri, a high-ranking adviser to the crown prince, would be an extraordinary recognition of the magnitude of international backlash to hit the kingdom since the disappearance of Mr. Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi dissident. A resident of Virginia and contributor to The Washington Post, Mr. Khashoggi was last seen entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.
Blaming General Assiri could also provide a plausible explanation for the apparent killing and help deflect blame from the crown prince, who American intelligence agencies are increasingly convinced was behind Mr. Khashoggi’s disappearance.
Turkish officials have said they possess evidence showing that 15 Saudi agents assassinated and dismembered Mr. Khashoggi in the consulate.
An Afghan Police Chief Took On the Taliban and Won. Then His Luck Ran Out.
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — One of the most devastating Taliban assassination strikes of the long Afghan war on Thursday killed a regional police chief with a larger-than-life reputation as one of the last stalwarts against the militants. The top American commander in Afghanistan narrowly escaped injury.
The assassination, just two days before national elections already undermined by violence, took place inside the provincial governor’s compound in Kandahar City.
In what appeared to be an insider attack, at least one gunman killed the police chief, as well as the provincial intelligence chief. The governor of Kandahar and another senior police commander were also targeted; reports about their fate were conflicting.
The police chief, Gen. Abdul Raziq, had survived dozens of attempts on his life and was widely considered an indispensable American ally with influence across critical areas of southern Afghanistan, in the Taliban heartland. A fierce commander, he pacified Kandahar Province, once one of the most troubled spots of the war, and then held it secure for years even as the Taliban gained large swathes of territory all around it.
Afghan War Casualty Report: Oct. 12-18
The following reports compile all significant security incidents confirmed by New York Times reporters and stringers throughout Afghanistan. It is necessarily incomplete as many local officials refuse to confirm casualty information.
Based on New York Times reporting, clashes between security forces and Taliban fighters spread to 14 provinces. Suicide attacks and bombings were reported in six additional provinces. One of those provinces, Daikundi, is an anti-Taliban stronghold where insurgent activity had been very rare. On Wednesday, a suicide bomber attacked a NATO military convoy near the main American military base at Bagram, killing civilian bystanders only. And on Thursday, an apparent insider attack at the governor’s compound in Kandahar left two important Afghan leaders dead. The top American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Austin Scott Miller, was on the compound during the attack, but escaped without injury. The Times confirmed reports of 140 security force members and 56 civilians killed in the past week
Mike Pompeo Warns Panama Against Doing Business With China
PANAMA CITY, Panama — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday that he had warned President Juan Carlos Varela of Panama about doing business with China, criticizing Chinese state-owned enterprises that engage in “predatory economic activity.”
As his plane left Panama City, Mr. Pompeo recounted his talks with Mr. Varela and local journalists. Clearly concerned that Panama could become a beachhead for growing Chinese economic influence in the Western Hemisphere, he emphasized that Panamanians should be cautious when considering business ties with China.
Mr. Pompeo said he intended to tell the entire region that “when China comes calling, it’s not always to the good of your citizens,” and that countries had to watch out for Chinese companies that “show up with deals that seem too good to be true.”
His warning came more than a year after Panama cut diplomatic relations with Taiwan — which China views as a part of its territory — in favor of establishing ties with Beijing. Two other nations in the region followed suit this year.
U.S. Folding Jerusalem Consulate Into Embassy, a Blow to Palestinians
JERUSALEM — The Trump administration said Thursday that it would abolish the United States Consulate in Jerusalem, which has long overseen American ties to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and fold its operations into the newly relocated embassy in the city.
The move effectively downgrades American representation to the Palestinians, dealing them another blow after President Trump reversed longstanding American policy and recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital late last year. The United States then moved its embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, angering the Palestinians.
The consulate’s stand-alone diplomatic mission has functioned as a quasi-embassy to a future state the Palestinians hope to establish. In its place, American relations with the West Bank and Gaza will now be managed by a Palestinian Affairs Unit that will report to David Friedman, the ambassador, who has been a staunch ally of the right-wing Israeli government, an unabashed friend of the Jewish settlement movement and a stern critic of the Palestinians.
The closing of the consulate follows a series of punitive measures by the Trump administration against the Palestinians and their leader, Mahmoud Abbas, in hopes of compelling them to participate in an American-led peace process.
John Kelly and John Bolton Have Shouting Match Over Immigration
WASHINGTON — The White House chief of staff and the national security adviser got into a profanity-laced argument about immigration outside the Oval Office early Thursday morning, two people briefed on the altercation said, prompting the chief of staff to leave the White House complex and not return for the rest of the day.
The blowup between John F. Kelly, Mr. Trump’s chief of staff, and John R. Bolton, his national security adviser, was loud enough to be overheard by several officials in the West Wing. It erupted as the president — disappointed by new government data showing that his restrictive immigration policies have failed to discourage migrants from seeking entry into the United States — is grasping to resolve a problem that has bedeviled his administration.
A third person described the episode as little more than a typical airing of differences between Mr. Bolton and Mr. Kelly, who has a temper. All three spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe an internal conversation.
Will There Be a Ban on Killer Robots?
LONDON — An autonomous missile under development by the Pentagon uses software to choose between targets. An artificially intelligent drone from the British military identifies firing points on its own. Russia showcases tanks that don’t need soldiers inside for combat.
A.I. technology has for years led military leaders to ponder a future of warfare that needs little human involvement. But as capabilities have advanced, the idea of autonomous weapons reaching the battlefield is becoming less hypothetical.
The possibility of software and algorithms making life-or-death decisionshas added new urgency to efforts by a group called the Campaign To Stop Killer Robots that has pulled together arms control advocates, humans rights groups and technologists to urge the United Nations to craft a global treaty that bans weapons without people at the controls. Like cyberspace, where there aren’t clear rules of engagement for online attacks, no red lines have been defined over the use of automated weaponry.
THE GUARDIAN
Trump says it appears Khashoggi is dead and consequences could be ‘severe’
In another sign the Trump administration was dropping its defence of Riyadh and beginning to distance itself from the Saudi monarchy over Khashoggi’s suspected murder, the treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, announced he would not attend next week’s government-sponsored investment conference in the Saudi capital, joining a growing exodus of western corporate leaders and politicians.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, said France had suspended political visits to Saudi Arabia in coordination with Germany, the UK and the Netherlands, pending clarification on what happened to Khashoggi. France’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, pulled out of the investment forum on Thursday as did the UK’s international trade secretary, Liam Fox.
Midterms: how the votes of vulnerable groups are being suppressed
Since a landmark supreme court ruling in 2013, which repealed key provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, over a dozen states, mostly Republican controlled, have imposed a swathe of laws that critics argue are intended to suppress the franchise among often vulnerable, Democratic leaning, groups.
The measures range from complex voter ID laws to restrictive voter registration procedures as well as efforts to cut back on polling places and bids to exclude more former felons from casting a ballot.
BepiColombo spacecraft launches on mission to Mercury
Experts say BepiColombo could not only shed light on the mysteries of our neighbourhood’s smallest planet, but also offer new insights into how the solar system formed and even provide vital clues as to whether planets found orbiting other stars – so-called exoplanets – could be habitable.
Due to launch from Kourou, French Guiana, late on Friday night local time, the BepiColombo mission is a €1.6bn (£1.4bn) joint venture between the European Space Agency(ESA) and the Japanese space agency, Jaxa.
DEUTSCHE WELLE
UE y Asia defienden el multilateralismo en cumbre ASEM
La cumbre entre 51 países del foro Asia-Europa (ASEM) comenzó en Bruselas con el objetivo de potenciar sus conexiones y enviar un mensaje de apoyo al multilateralismo.
Los líderes de Asia y Europa conversan en Bruselas sobre temas como la promoción de un crecimiento inclusivo, el apoyo al sistema multilateral y la cooperación en asuntos globales.
Los gobernantes de Alemania, Angela Merkel, y Austria, Sebastian Kurz, defendieron a su llegada a la cumbre la importancia del multilateralismo, cuestionado por el presidente estadounidense, Donald Trump.
https://www.dw.com/es/ue-y-asia-defienden-el-multilateralismo-en-cumbre-asem/a-45953068
Turquía niega haber difundido grabaciones que prueben la muerte de Khashoggi
El Gobierno turco negó hoy haber difundido grabaciones que prueben que el periodista saudí Jamal Khashoggi fue asesinado en el consulado saudí en Estambul.
XINHUA
Putin: Rusia fortalecerá coordinación con China en favor de intereses en común
SOCHI, 18 oct (Xinhua) -- El presidente ruso Vladimir Putin dijo hoy que su país está listo para fortalecer aún más la coordinación y la cooperación con China para salvaguardar y promover los intereses en común y la paz y el desarrollo mundiales.
Rusia aplaude el elevado nivel de la asociación estratégica integral de coordinación entre los dos países, dijo Putin, durante una reunión con Yang Jiechi, miembro del Buró Político del Comité Central del Partido Comunista de China (PCCh).
Todo el consenso logrado entre los dos presidentes se está implementando, dijo Putin, quien agregó que su país está dispuesto a realizar esfuerzos junto con China para mantener un contacto cercano en todos los niveles y profundizar la cooperación práctica en todos los ámbitos.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/19/c_137542725.htm
Turquía niega haber compartido "grabación de audio" sobre caso Khashoggi con EEUU
ANKARA, 19 oct (Xinhua) -- El ministro de Relaciones Exteriores de Turquía, Mevlut Cavusoglu, dijo hoy que no ha compartido con nadie ninguna grabación de audio relacionada con el caso de Khashoggi, en medio de rumores acerca de que Ankara había dado una grabación relacionada con el desaparecido periodista saudí a Estados Unidos.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/19/c_137544676.htm
Premier chino insta a Asia y Europa a promover conectividad
BRUSELAS, 19 oct (Xinhua) -- El primer ministro de China, Li Keqiang, instó hoy viernes a los países asiáticos y europeos a promover la conectividad.
En la XII Cumbre de la Reunión Asia-Europa en Bruselas, Li pidió promover la "conectividad dura" de infraestructura para construir redes de transporte, industrias y logística a lo largo de los dos continentes.
En tanto, los países involucrados también deben fortalecer la "conectividad blanda" de sistemas, políticas, reglas y estándares con el fin de estimular el vigor de elementos como capital, tecnología, servicios y datos, dijo el premier chino.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/19/c_137544925.htm
China y Camboya fortalecerán cooperación en comercio e inversión
BRUSELAS, 18 oct (Xinhua) -- China y Camboya están listas para ampliar la cooperación en áreas que incluyen comercio e inversión, aseguraron hoy en Bruselas los líderes de los dos países.
El mensaje fue transmitido desde una reunión entre el primer ministro chino, Li Keqiang, y su homólogo camboyano, Samdech Techo Hun Sen.
China está preparada para seguir consolidando la amistad tradicional con Camboya y profundizará la cooperación bilateral en diferentes áreas, con el fin de generar más beneficios reales para los pueblos de ambas naciones, dijo Li.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/19/c_137542742.htm
AL JAZEERA
China to launch 'artificial moon' to illuminate city streets
The man-made moon to be launched by 2020 as Beijing hopes to use 'illumination satellites' to light up city streets.
By reflecting light from the sun, the satellites could replace streetlamps in urban areas, saving an estimated 1.2bn yuan ($170m) a year in electricity costs for Chengdu, if the man-made moons illuminate an area of 50 square kilometres.
As China's space programme races to catch up with that of the United States and Russia, a number of ambitious projects are in the pipeline, including the Chang'e-4 lunar probe - named after the moon goddess in Chinese mythology - which aims to launch later this year.
China is not the first country to try beaming sunlight back to Earth. In the 1990s, Russian scientists reportedly used giant mirrors to reflect light from space in an experimental project called Znamya or Banner.
Honduran activists welcome Trump's threats to cut US aid
Activists and others have longed called for a cut in US military aid to Central American country over rights abuses
By Sandra Cuffe
The caravan set out Saturday from northwestern Honduras. More than 2,000 people reached Guatemala Monday after a standoff with Guatemalan police at the border. The caravan, now in waves at different points on the route, continues to grow, with some estimates putting it at more than 5,000
On Thursday, Trump ramped up his threats against the caravan, tweeting that "in addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in strongest terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught - and if unable to do so I will call up the U.S. Military and CLOSE OUR SOUTHERN BORDER!"
[For Hondurans] Major points of concern have been a 2009 military coup, a 2012 massacre of four indigenous locals during a DEA-assisted drug raid in the Moskitia region, the 2016 murder of prominent Honduran indigenous and social movement activist Berta Caceres, and the violent crackdown on post-election protests in 2017 and this year.
China's economic growth hits nine-year low
China's economic growth slows down to 6.5 percent in the third quarter as trade frictions with the US take their toll.
China's economic growth has slowed down to 6.5 percent in the third quarter - its slowest quarterly growth since 2009 - as a campaign to tackle mounting debt and trade frictions with the US take their toll
Analysts say the slowing growth could prompt an end to Beijing's fiscal prudence, while the gloomy export picture has reinforced the need for China to rely on its legion of consumers to grow its economy
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/10/china-economic-growth-hits-year-181019071158221.html
RT
Brazil's frontrunner Bolsonaro accused of 'fraud & fake news campaign' ahead of runoff
Brazil's trailing Workers Party candidate Fernando Haddad has accused the right-wing Jair Bolsonaro of organizing an illegal multi-million-dollar defamation campaign via WhatsApp ahead of next week's runoff presidential polls.
In its report, the Brazilian publication alleged that a group of entrepreneurs have backed a campaign to use the popular messaging app to reach out to Haddad supporters and bombard them with fake news in an effort to coerce their votes. The publication claims that it discovered contracts worth up to $3.2 million (BRL 12 Million) each for companies to spam the virtual space with false information. Quickmobile, Yacows, Crock Services, and SMS Market are just some of the entities listed in the report that allegedly have been hired by Bolsonaro's camp to generate numbers that would later be used to send hundreds of millions of WhatsApp messages.
Bolsonaro, who – after barely missing the required majority in the first round – is currently leading with 59 percent of voter support versus 41 percent for his rival, has deflected the allegations made against him and the Social Liberal Party (PSL) using multiple outlets.
https://www.rt.com/news/441690-brazil-whatsapp-election-fraud/
Helicopter of most disastrous Seventh Fleet crashes aboard USS ‘Ronald Reagan’ in Philippine Sea
The most disaster-prone US fleet has suffered another incident after a MH-60 Seahawk helicopter crashed on the flight deck of the USS ‘Ronald Reagan’ shortly after takeoff at 9am, the Navy confirmed on Friday. According to the Navy, the injured personnel are “in stable conditions” and none of the injuries is life-threatening. Some of the servicemen were evacuated ashore.
The crash happened as the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier was conducting regular operations in the Philippine Sea. This is the second incident involving helicopters to hit the US Navy this month. Earlier, two HH-60H Seahawks crashed into each other while taxiing at Kadena Air Force Base in Japan. No one was injured in the collision.
The nuclear-powered USS ‘Ronald Reagan’ is part of the US Seventh Fleet, operating in the west Pacific. It is based in Yokosuka, Japan. The Seventh Fleet had gained a reputation as one of the most disaster-prone Navy units. Last year, it suffered at least seven major incidents, which resulted in 20 fatalities.
https://www.rt.com/news/441696-navy-helicopter-crashes-reagan/
From nuclear holocaust to playing hockey: Five takes from Putin’s Valdai talk
Vladimir Putin showed up at the Valdai Club on Thursday to discuss some of the hot topics for Russian and international politics. Here are the five top takes from the event.
The Valdai Club holds an international forum each year in Sochi, and some of the most senior world politicians and leading experts gather to take part in the discussions. Putin often participates, and this year the Russian president gave a somewhat grim warning to anyone, who would seek Russia’s destruction.
Putin was speaking of a possible nuclear holocaust. Russia is currently upgrading its nuclear deterrence, saying it is necessary to keep in check the US development of anti-ballistic missile technologies. Within months, world’s first hypersonic glider warhead will enter service in the Russian military, the president announced.
https://www.rt.com/news/441666-valdai-club-putin-quotes/
Kremlin critic Navalny agrees to duel with National Guard boss, but not in hand-to-hand combat
Anti-corruption blogger, Aleksey Navalny, said he is ready for a duel with National Guard commander, Viktor Zolotov, but wants it to be a debate on national TV instead of hand-to-hand combat, suggested by the General.
Zolotov demanded satisfaction from Navalny in mid-September after a report from his NGO, the Foundation for Countering Corruption, alleged that tenders for food purchases by the National Guard were rigged in favor of a single supplier, supposedly linked to Russian Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev. Zolotov proposed “hand-to-hand combat” as the best way to settle their differences, warning that he would turn Navalny “into minced meat.”
The reply from the Kremlin critic and the head of unregistered political party Future Russia came so late because he was serving almost two months of administrative arrest. Navalny initially served 30 days for staging an illegal protest, but was taken to court right after his release and sentenced to 20 days more for another violation of law on rallies.
https://www.rt.com/russia/441646-navalny-national-guard-duel/
AL MAYADEEN
Presunto asesino de Khashoggi participa en encuentro entre Pompeo y Bin Salman
18 de agosto. El periódico turco Akşam precisó que dos de los sospechosos de llevar a cabo el asesinato son miembros del equipo de seguridad del príncipe heredero MBS. Ellos son el ya mencionado Saad al Zahrani y Tahir Galib al Harbi
Haitianos protestan contra el despilfarro de fondos sociales del Estado
18 de agosto. En julio pasado ocurrieron disturbios que se cobraron la vida de más de 20 personas. Los manifestantes rechazaron el aumento en los precios de la gasolina, el petróleo y el kerosene. Esta medida fue acordada en febrero entre el Gobierno y el Fondo Monetario Internacional (FMI).
AMÉRICA LATINA
Mike Pompeo visitó al presidente panameño y hoy se reúne con Peña Nieto
El encuentro confirmó “la solida relación y exitosa alianza estratégica que mantienen Panamá y Estados Unidos, a nivel bilateral, regional y global”, señala una nota de prensa de la Presidencia de la República. Igualmente, en la reunión se abordó ampliamente la situación en Venezuela y Nicaragua, “y los esfuerzos regionales necesarios ante la situación humanitaria que atraviesan los migrantes”.
Por otra parte, este viernes Pompeo transmitirá a los representantes mexicanos el deseo de Estados Unidos de seguir trabajando con el presidente electo, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, que asumirá la Presidencia de México el 1 de diciembre.
“Tendremos una extensa conversación con México, estoy seguro de que el tema de Venezuela surgirá debido a la amplitud y el efecto de la crisis. Y continuaremos teniendo conversaciones con el nuevo Gobierno”, dijo el citado alto funcionario.
https://www.nodal.am/2018/10/mike-pompeo-se-reunio-con-el-presidente-panameno-y-hoy-llega-a-mexico/
Caravana hondureña avanza pese a amagos de Trump
Los primeros cientos de hondureños que conforman la caravana de migrantes que busca llegar a Estados Unidos comenzaron a llegar hoy a la localidad guatemalteca Tecún Umán, en la frontera con México. La caravana salió el sábado pasado de San Pedro Sula en Honduras y pretende recorrer varios miles de kilómetros para llegar hasta la frontera con Estados Unidos atravesando Guatemala y México. De acuerdo con diversas organizaciones, la caravana está formada por entre mil 500 y 3 mil personas, todas de nacionalidad hondureña, aunque ahora subdivididas en distintos grupos.
Haití: El pueblo en la calle contra el régimen
Después de las manifestaciones multitudinarias que este miércoles 17 salieron a la calle para denunciar al gobierno corrupto de Jovenal Moise, parece ser que el eje de la demanda ha dado un paso más adelante, y ya no es solo el reclamo por los fondos desviados de PetroCaribe, sino que la gente, encolerizada además por la represión policial que hoy costó una nueva vida, exigen directamente la renuncia de Moise.
http://www.resumenlatinoamericano.org/2018/10/17/haiti/
Ecuador expulsa a la embajadora venezolana
Ecuador ordenó ayer la expulsión de la embajadora venezolana en Quito luego de comentarios “ofensivos” lanzados desde Caracas contra el presidente Lenín Moreno.”Frente a las expresiones ofensivas formuladas el día de ayer por el Ministro de Comunicación e Información de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela”, Jorge Rodríguez, el gobierno “ha resuelto expulsar de nuestro país a la embajadora de Venezuela en Ecuador, Carol Delgado”, indicó la cancillería en un comunicado.
https://www.pagina12.com.ar/149753-ecuador-expulsa-a-la-embajadora-venezolana
¿Cuál es la razón por la que ordenan liberar a Keiko Fujimori?
La excandidata presidencial peruana Keiko Fujimori recobró la libertad luego de que un tribunal de apelaciones ordenó su excarcelación mientras avanza una investigación por presunto lavado de activos.
En síntesis, a la hija mayor del expresidente Alberto Fujimori, condenado a 25 años de cárcel, se le acusa de haber recibido 1,2 millones de dólares para su campaña presidencial en 2011 de la constructora brasileña Odebrecht
“El ‘big data’ será una gran tendencia en México”
En México, la empresa tecnológica Microsoft entrevistó a 500 estudiantes y 500 profesores y encontró que ambos están en favor de la personalización de la educación. Salcito cree que si los maestros, además de impartir clases y evaluar exámenes, analizan el entorno de sus alumnos pueden hallar una manera para lograr un progreso en su aprendizaje, principalmente si se enfoca en los intereses de los niños y jóvenes. “La tecnología es una gran catalizador para lograr un aprendizaje personalizado”, refiere. En algunos colegios, por ejemplo, los alumnos ya emplean la versión educativa del popular videojuego Minecraft.
https://elpais.com/tecnologia/2018/10/18/actualidad/1539833139_371773.html
TUITS DEL DÍA
Secretaría de la Defensa de Honduras compra dos botes Multi-Mission Interceptor al Ministerio de la Defensa de Colombia.
https://twitter.com/sedenah/status/1053331099026448384
Secretario de Defensa Nacional y el Director de Inteligencia de la Fuerza Naval del Southern Command de los Estados Unidos acuerdan convenio para intercambio de inteligencia marítima.
https://twitter.com/sedenah/status/1053042165218201603
Luis Verdegaray y Mike Pompeo se reúnen en las oficinas de Relaciones Exteriores en México
https://twitter.com/USEmbassyMEX/status/1053340213001510915
https://twitter.com/USEmbassyMEX/status/1053308309145444353
Encargada de Negocios de Ecuador en Caracas, Elizabeth Méndez, es declarada como declaración de Persona No Grata en Venezuela.
https://twitter.com/correoorinoco/status/1053339998982934530
Caravana de migrantes centroamericanos en México; permiten acceso a quienes cumplen requisitos migratorios.
https://twitter.com/MarioteleSUR/status/1053330205790613505
Consejo Permanente de la OEA analiza la situación de Nicaragua.
https://twitter.com/OEA_BR/status/1052947549747900417
Comandantes de la US Navy South y de la U.S. Coast Guard.tratan con Colombia lucha contra el crimen transnacional.
