On September 18, agents of the Paraguayan National Anti-Drug Secretariat (SENAD, in Spanish) captured Mauro Galeano, alias Alemão, an alleged key member of the Brazilian criminal group Red Command (CV, in Portuguese) in Paraguay. Galeano, a 34-year-old Paraguayan national, is believed to be the right-hand man of Marcelo Pinheiro, alias [ … ]
Transnational Threats
Hezbollah Presence Means Venezuela Is a Global Problem
When federal prosecutors in New York unsealed an indictment against a former Venezuelan lawmaker in May 2020, it included the stunning charge that the accused, Adel El Zabayar, was part of conspiracy by the Nicolás Maduro regime to assist Middle Eastern terrorist groups Hezbollah and Hamas to commit attacks against [ … ]
Western Hemisphere Allies Work Together to Ensure Stability
A sign outside an office in the Pentagon summarizes the feelings of the people inside the office: “The Western Hemisphere Is the Best Hemisphere.” Sergio de la Peña, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Western Hemisphere affairs, says that, despite some problems, the “neighborhood” is safe and prospering. Still, this [ … ]
Maduro Targets Journalists and Doctors, New Report Says
The illegitimate Maduro regime has used the COVID-19 pandemic to crack down on anyone who doesn’t comply with Maduro, a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report says. Since mid-March, “Venezuelan authorities have arbitrarily detained and prosecuted dozens of journalists, health care workers, human rights lawyers, and political opponents who criticize the [ … ]
Guatemala Designates Hezbollah as Terrorist Organization
The Islamic group Hezbollah is now considered a terrorist organization in Guatemala, joining Argentina, Colombia, Honduras, and Paraguay to become the fifth country in Latin America, since July of 2019, to make this declaration in the fight against the impact and advance of transnational criminal groups in the region. Guatemalan [ … ]
Paraguay, Brazil Disrupt Narcotrafficking, Money Laundering Ring
In early September, Paraguayan and Brazilian security forces dismantled one of the most powerful narcotrafficking and money laundering networks in the region, the Paraguayan Secretariat for the Prevention of Money or Asset Laundering (SEPRELAD, in Spanish) said in a statement. It is the García Morínigo clan, “a family scheme that [ … ]
Venezuela: Parliamentary Elections Move Forward Despite International Pressure
The Nicolás Maduro regime insists on holding parliamentary elections on December 6, despite pressure from the international community to postpone them, in addition to persistent uncertainty about the logistic viability of conducting the voting. According to the former Venezuelan ambassador to the United Nations, Milos Alcalay, Maduro's purpose is "to [ … ]
Guyana, US Join Efforts to Fight Narcotrafficking
The U.S. government, through U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Guyanese President Mohamed Irfaan Ali agreed on September 18, to deploy joint patrols that will operate in Caribbean airspace to disrupt drug smuggling on Guyana’s border with Venezuela. The agreement was made possible under the reactivated 2001 Shiprider program, [ … ]
Colombian Navy Destroys 3 Narco-labs on the Pacific Coast
In mid-September, the Colombian Navy dealt a new blow to narcotrafficking during an operation conducted in Cauca department, on the Pacific coast of Colombia. Three labs used to process coca base paste, which belonged to dissidents of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, were found and destroyed, the Navy said [ … ]
Harsh Detention Conditions Persist for Political Prisoners in Venezuela
In late August, the illegitimate Nicolás Maduro regime surprised the international community by announcing so called 110 pardons and house arrests for political prisoners who until then had been illegally detained. However, the release of a few prisoners brought to light the harsh detention conditions that persist in cells of [ … ]
Ecuadorean Security Forces Seize Almost 6.5 Tons of Drugs
Nearly 6.5 tons of drugs, including cocaine and marijuana, were seized in less than a week in Ecuador, in 11 operations carried out between September 5-9 the National Police reported in a statement. On September 9, the National Police seized 3.8 tons of marijuana hidden in a truck that was [ … ]
The Venezuelan Migration and the Maduro Regime
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), an agency with the mandate to protect refugees, more than 4.5 million Venezuelans have left their country, escaping difficult economic, social, and political conditions over a period of seven years. The exodus can be divided into two waves. The first [ … ]