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Corruption has emerged as a major concern for Brazilian voters ahead of the October 25 presidential runoff between far-right candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. However, experts say its biggest impact may be on voter turnout rather than on voters' choice between the two candidates. Both candidates are associated with corruption allegations in the eyes of many Brazilians. Bolsonaro is under investigation for corruption, money laundering and tax evasion, while Lula spent 19 months in prison on corruption and money laundering charges that were later annulled. For staunch supporters of either candidate, such allegations are unlikely to weaken their loyalty. However, experts say widespread perceptions of corruption could discourage people from voting and fuel anti-incumbency sentiment, potentially benefiting Bolsonaro, who received 2.2 million more votes than Lula in the first round. Brazil remains deeply polarised During the first round, many voters wore red hats and T-shirts to show support for Lula's party, while others donned the yellow and green colours of the Brazilian flag adopted by Bolsonaro's movement, reflecting the country's deep political divisions. Supporters of both candidates are highly distrustful of the opposing camp and view it as a threat. Experts say such voters are less likely to be swayed by corruption allegations against their preferred candidates. "We have a great ability to filter information that goes against our beliefs," said Nara Pavão, a political science professor at the Federal University of Pernambuco. "People don't want to discover the truth about their candidates, they want to beat the opponent." Camila Tobji de Aquino, a 19-year-old student of pedagogy and psychology, said corruption was a problem across political parties in Brazil. However, her main concern was what she viewed as the threat Flávio Bolsonaro posed to democracy. "If I were to vote only for a candidate not tied to any corruption, I would vote blank," she said. "But that's not the choice Brazil is facing. For me it's a question of being able to vote in the next election." Corruption scandals contribute to rising abstention A wide-ranging scandal involving politicians and Supreme Court judges has dominated headlines ahead of the election, placing corruption at the centre of public debate. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who presided over the legal case that led to former President Jair Bolsonaro's imprisonment over his attempted coup, is suspected of having links to the former head of the failed Banco Master bank. Flávio Bolsonaro has also faced allegations of links to the bank. Both have denied wrongdoing. For many Brazilians, the Banco Master controversy has revived memories of Operation Car Wash, the country's largest corruption and money-laundering investigation, launched in 2014 and involving dozens of politicians. Repeated corruption scandals could increase abstention and influence undecided voters, said Laura Chelidonopoulos, a political science PhD candidate at the University of Pittsburgh who has studied corruption. "People become disenchanted with politics," she said. "They have less motivation to actually choose between one of these two sides." More than 33 million people, or 21% of eligible voters, did not cast ballots on October 4, marking the highest abstention rate in a first round since 1998. Data from Brazil's electoral court show that first-round abstention has gradually increased since 2006. Voters call for change José Tainan, a 36-year-old kitchen assistant from Rio de Janeiro's Penha favela complex, said he could hardly remember the last time he voted, though he believed it was probably for Lula sometime in the 2000s. He cited corruption as the main reason for abandoning voting. "There are no good options. Neither one of them suits me. I would rather justify why I didn't vote," he said. Voting is compulsory in Brazil for citizens aged 18 to 70. Those who fail to vote without a valid reason face a small fine. Matusalem Aguiar, a 54-year-old taxi driver from Belford Roxo, an impoverished municipality near Rio de Janeiro, said he would prefer that only candidates with clean records be allowed to run for office. Despite that view, he plans to vote for Bolsonaro, disregarding the corruption investigations involving the candidate. "There needs to be a change," Aguiar said while waiting for his next passenger in downtown Rio. "Some people have a lot of power and they're not managing the country in the right way."

Heavy rainfall battered Chile's capital Santiago and surrounding areas on Thursday, triggering mudslides that swept cars through streets, inundated homes, forced evacuations and injured at least six people, authorities said. President José Antonio Kast declared a state of emergency in Las Condes, a wealthy suburb east of Santiago, granting government agencies greater powers to respond to the situation as torrential rain turned major roads into impassable waterways. Catalina San Martín, mayor of the district, said 14.4 centimetres (5.7 inches) of rain had fallen in recent days, nearly nine times the average rainfall for October, leaving the area “totally saturated.” The Mapocho River, which flows through Santiago, overflowed its banks, prompting evacuation orders. Chile's disaster-response agency placed 10 other districts on high alert over the risk of further landslides and ordered schools to remain closed on Friday. Earlier storms this week had already damaged dozens of homes across central Chile and left nearly 12,000 customers in Santiago without electricity, officials said. The heavy rainfall was expected to ease on Friday. No deaths were reported on Thursday. The injured included a one-year-old child who suffered broken bones, officials said. Firefighters reported rescuing or evacuating more than 1,000 people. The flooding comes as a powerful El Niño weather phenomenon gains strength. The naturally occurring warming of tropical Pacific waters disrupts rainfall patterns worldwide and often brings wetter spring conditions to the Southern Hemisphere. The World Meteorological Organization said on Thursday that this year's El Niño was expected to peak in December and could be among the strongest recorded since at least 1950.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and opposition presidential candidate Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro campaigned Saturday in the key state of Sao Paulo, seeking to rally supporters and win over undecided voters a day before Sunday's presidential election. Lula, seeking a fourth nonconsecutive term, joined a traditional pre-election parade in Sao Paulo city, while Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, campaigned in the countryside cities of Santa Barbara d'Oeste and Americana. Sao Paulo is Brazil's most populous and economically powerful state, with about 46 million residents and around 34 million eligible voters. Its annual gross domestic product is about 3.4 trillion Brazilian reais, or $650 billion. Addressing supporters near Paulista Avenue, Sao Paulo's main thoroughfare, Lula described the election as a crucial battle over Brazil's future. "On one side, we have democracy and sovereignty; on the other, barbarism and corruption," Lula said, repeating key themes of his campaign. Former President Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced by Brazil's Supreme Court last year to 27 years in prison for attempting a coup after losing the 2022 election to Lula. Observers say he could potentially be released if his son wins the election. Lula's campaign has also portrayed Flavio Bolsonaro as a threat to Brazil's sovereignty because of his close ties with US President Donald Trump. Trump last year imposed a 50 percent tariff on Brazilian imports over Jair Bolsonaro's trial, which Trump described as a "witch hunt." Daniella Fernandes, a 32-year-old secretary at a public school in Sao Paulo, said she had initially wanted another Workers' Party candidate to run instead of Lula but changed her mind during the campaign. "I wanted some renovation, but Lula is the only one who can appeal to everyone — even those who are not on the left," she said, wearing several Lula badges. "The Bolsonaros are still strong, Brazil is a conservative country. Only Lula can win this one," Fernandes said. About 140 kilometres from Lula's campaign event, Flavio Bolsonaro travelled through Santa Barbara d'Oeste and Americana on a sound truck, accompanied by a long procession of supporters wearing yellow and green and riding motorcycles. "I'm convinced that we can win in the first round," Bolsonaro told supporters, who shouted "mito," or "legend," a term used by his father's supporters. "So let's get out of our houses to vote (...) because Bolsonaro is going to be president," he said. Bolsonaro was accompanied by Sao Paulo Gov. Tarcisio de Freitas, who had previously been considered a possible political successor to Jair Bolsonaro before Flavio said last December that his father had chosen him to contest the presidential election. Voters on Sunday will also elect federal and state lawmakers, governors and some senators. In Sao Paulo, de Freitas is seeking re-election against opposition candidate Fernando Haddad, who lost the 2018 presidential election to Jair Bolsonaro and later served as Lula's finance minister. De Freitas holds a substantial lead in opinion polls. Twelve candidates are contesting the presidency, but Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro are widely seen as the only candidates with a realistic chance of winning. If no candidate secures more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two will face each other in a runoff on Oct. 25. The two leading candidates represent sharply different political positions, with contrasting approaches to issues including organised crime and Brazil's relations with the Trump administration. Lula, a former factory worker and trade union leader, lost his left pinky finger in a workplace accident at age 19. He has long enjoyed strong support among sections of the population. He spent more than a year in prison after being convicted on corruption charges, but those convictions were later annulled. He subsequently won a third nonconsecutive presidential term in 2022. Lula has pledged to ensure Brazilians benefit from the country's rare minerals and natural resources, protect the Amazon rainforest and continue his flagship Bolsa Familia welfare programme. Flavio Bolsonaro has largely adopted his father's ultra-conservative agenda while at times using a more moderate tone to attract centrist voters. His campaign has placed strong emphasis on tough security measures, which polls indicate have significant public support. He has pledged to combat organised criminal groups by building megaprisons modelled on those in El Salvador, follow the Trump administration's approach of designating transnational gangs as terrorist organisations, and lower the age of criminal responsibility to 16.

Kosovo’s former President Hashim Thaci was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Wednesday after being convicted of war crimes committed during the 1998-99 war for independence from Serbia. Thaci stepped down from the presidency nearly six years ago to face charges before the European Union-backed Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague. He was found guilty on four counts of war crimes, including murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention. Both Thaci and prosecutors, who had sought a harsher sentence, have the right to appeal. The verdict triggered anger among Thaci’s supporters and dealt a major blow to a man who was once strongly supported by Western countries, was invited to the 1999 peace talks in France and was viewed as a leader capable of guiding Kosovo toward independence. Presiding Judge Charles Smith said Thaci had actively participated in and encouraged crimes, including by promoting people involved in criminal acts. He also said Thaci “showed a ruthless ability to remove and eliminate political impediments” to his own leadership and that of other commanders. Wearing a suit and tie, Thaci stood silently as Smith announced the sentence. Supporters condemn verdict Kosovo Foreign Minister Glauk Konjufca condemned the verdicts as “a terrible judgment for Kosovo, for our people and for our liberation war.” Hundreds of Thaci supporters gathered at a park near the courthouse in The Hague, with some briefly clashing with Dutch riot police. Police said on X that two people were detained. In Kosovo’s capital, Pristina, thousands watched the hearing live on a large screen and reacted with shock to the sentence. Some shouted “UCK,” the Albanian-language acronym for the Kosovo Liberation Army, which Thaci led before entering politics. Bekim Fetahu, one of the supporters, described the verdict as “a catastrophic decision.” “They (judges) have put the victims together with the aggressors,” Fetahu said. Later, masked protesters threw stones at the compound of the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, known as EULEX, on the outskirts of Pristina, breaking several windows. Judge says trial focused on Thaci’s responsibility, not KLA’s legitimacyJudge Smith said Thaci “used his position, leadership, authority and standing” to encourage crimes and failed to investigate or punish abuses committed by KLA fighters. The American judge, however, emphasized that the trial was “not about the legitimacy of the Kosovo Liberation Army” or its ultimate objective of achieving independence for Kosovo, which was then a province of Serbia. Specialist Prosecutor Kimberly West welcomed the judgment. “Certain individuals exploited those war circumstances to commit grave crimes, and it is to the credit of Kosovo that those individuals are now being held accountable,” she said in a statement. In Belgrade, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said, “we have no reason to rejoice,” while expressing concern that the verdict might not survive the appeals process. Vucic also criticized the failure to consider several other alleged crimes against ethnic Serb civilians, alleging anti-Serb bias. “No responsibility has been established for the toughest crimes,” he said. “Serbs are always (war) criminals and others are liberators and heroes.” Thaci was tried alongside three other former KLA leaders who fought Serbian forces during the 1998-99 conflict and are widely regarded as national heroes in Kosovo. All four pleaded not guilty to the charges. The court acquitted them of six charges of crimes against humanity, ruling that prosecutors had failed to prove the crimes were part of a widespread and systematic attack against civilians. However, they were convicted of war crimes involving the arbitrary detention of 385 people, cruel treatment of 49, torture of 303 detainees and the murder of 96 people. Thaci and the other defendants — Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi — continued to maintain their innocence. Veseli was sentenced to 18 years in prison, Selimi to 13 years and Krasniqi to 25 years. Veseli’s lawyer, Rodney Dixon, described the verdict as “not a good day for Kosovo. It’s not a good day for the rule of law or international law.” He said he would “mount a robust appeal to continue the fight to show Mr. Veseli’s innocence and to bring him home to Kosovo.” Thaci remained defiant throughout trial At the conclusion of his trial in February, Thaci told the judges: “Throughout my life, I stood with the people of Kosovo, defending freedom, life and dignity. I was always guided by the Western ideals of democracy, equality and justice.” The court, however, ruled that Thaci and his co-defendants had targeted political opponents and civilians whom they regarded as collaborators and traitors during their time in the KLA. “In reality, there is no indication that the victims in this case were spies or collaborators,” Smith said. He added that simply having “Serbian friends or jobs in Serbian companies was enough to treat them as collaborators” with the enemy. When the war began, Thaci was a student who returned from what he described as political exile in Switzerland to join Kosovo’s independence struggle. He was given the nickname “the Snake” for his ability to evade Serbian forces during the conflict. Thaci became a prominent political figure after the war but resigned as president to defend himself before the court in The Hague. Esther Major, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for Europe, said the convictions “show that senior officials are not above the law.” About 13,000 people were killed during the Kosovo war, most of them ethnic Albanians. A 78-day NATO air campaign against Serbian forces brought the conflict to an end, while about 1 million ethnic Albanian Kosovars were forced from their homes. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Belgrade has refused to recognize it. Relations between Kosovo and Serbia remain tense despite years of EU-mediated negotiations backed by the United States.

An Argentine federal judge on Wednesday ordered British and Israeli companies to suspend development of an oilfield near the Falkland Islands, creating a new legal front in the decades-old sovereignty dispute between Argentina and Britain that Argentine President Javier Milei has intensified in recent weeks. The injunction issued by Judge Mariel Borruto, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, targets the Sea Lion oil project about 220 kilometers (140 miles) north of the British-controlled islands in the South Atlantic. The order bars drilling, offshore installations and port construction until Argentine authorities can conduct an environmental assessment and make a decision. In practice, however, the ruling is unlikely to stop the project's progress. Borruto acknowledged that enforcement “depends on international cooperation and the conduct” of the two companies involved — Israel's Navitas Petroleum and Britain's Rockhopper Exploration. Both companies have already said they intend to continue with the project despite Milei's threats to impose tougher sanctions on them and other businesses operating around the islands. Rockhopper declined to comment, while Navitas did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the injunction. Commercial oil production from Sea Lion is expected to begin in 2028, raising the stakes in a territorial dispute that led Argentina and Britain into a brief but bloody war in 1982. For the islands' roughly 3,500 residents, the oil project could transform an economy that has long relied on fishing. Argentina, which refers to the islands as the Malvinas, considers the oil resources its own and opposes foreign companies extracting them. Argentina's claim to the archipelago, located about 480 kilometers (300 miles) off its coast, is enshrined in the country's constitution and remains a deeply rooted part of its national identity, receiving support across political divisions. Trump comments add uncertainty U.S. President Donald Trump, a close ally of Argentina's libertarian president, has introduced further uncertainty into the dispute in recent weeks. Citing Britain's lack of support for his war against Iran, Trump has suggested that Washington could reconsider its traditionally neutral position on the sovereignty of the islands. Speaking to reporters in Dublin on Saturday, Trump again questioned whether Britain would be able to retake the Falklands as it did following Argentina's 1982 invasion under military rule. “I don't know if they're going to be willing to travel that far,” he said. Milei seized on what he described as “winds of change” following Trump's comments earlier this month. In a national address on Sept. 3, he announced measures against companies developing oilfields around the islands. He said the projects represented a “clear and urgent danger” to Argentina's sovereignty claim and pledged to use all “diplomatic, economic, judicial and legal tools” available to defend it. His government is preparing legislation to expand sanctions against companies involved in oil projects around the islands. It has also filed three criminal complaints against Tel Aviv-listed Navitas and nine other companies and their executives, accusing them of violating Argentine law by conducting oil operations without authorization from Argentina. The potential impact of the charges on the Sea Lion project remains unclear. Britain rejects Argentina's legal campaign Britain has responded defiantly to Argentina's legal actions, arguing that the people living in the Falklands should determine the territory's status. It points to a 2013 referendum in which island residents overwhelmingly voted to remain a British territory. “Argentine domestic law does not apply within the Islands,” the British government said Tuesday in guidance intended to reassure businesses operating there. Wednesday's ruling by the federal court in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina's southernmost province, came from a separate civil lawsuit filed by environmental lawyers and veterans of the 1982 war. The plaintiffs are seeking to prevent environmental damage from the oil project. Their complaint cites potential ecological risks including chemical pollution, underwater noise, increased ship traffic and possible oil spills. Borruto warned that allowing drilling and construction to continue could cause changes to the marine ecosystem that might be difficult to reverse. “The risk is neither hypothetical nor remote,” she wrote, noting that work on the project's infrastructure had already begun.

A building weakened by Israeli strikes collapsed suddenly in Gaza City early Wednesday, killing at least 21 people, including 11 children, as they slept, with rescuers forced to search through the rubble with their bare hands. The collapse of the building, which had been considered unstable since it was damaged in earlier Israeli strikes during the war, highlighted the increasingly dangerous living conditions faced by much of Gaza’s population as a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas remains stalled. Almost a year after the ceasefire was agreed, no reconstruction work has taken place. Israel has said it will not allow rebuilding until Hamas disarms, while only a limited number of excavators have been permitted to enter Gaza. Asked whether machinery would be allowed into Gaza to assist with the collapse, COGAT, the Israeli military body responsible for coordinating aid to the Gaza Strip, said the Israeli government’s policy allows heavy machinery to enter Gaza. Six Palestinian families sheltered in the building By Wednesday afternoon, the death toll included 11 children and five women, Gaza Health Ministry spokesperson Zaher al-Wahidi said. At least 14 others were injured, he said, adding that rescuers had completed their search of the rubble. About six displaced Palestinian families had been sheltering in the building despite knowing that it was at risk of collapsing, according to Gaza’s civil defense. “The lack of options and alternatives left them with no other choice,” said Aboud Majdalawi, a civil defense rescuer. Around 2 million people in Gaza are now living in an area covering less than half of the enclave. They depend heavily on humanitarian aid and remain surrounded by Israeli troops, who continue to conduct strikes or attacks almost daily. Rescuers search for bodies with bare hands Following the collapse, residents desperately searched for relatives and loved ones. Men were seen carrying the headless body of a child, while others sat on the rubble and frantically pulled at flashes of color they thought might be clothing worn by a survivor. Instead, they found dust-covered blankets trapped beneath the debris. The collapse occurred as rescue workers across Gaza continued efforts to recover hundreds of bodies from buildings destroyed in Israeli strikes earlier in the war. Only a few excavators are operational, while fuel supplies are running low. The U.N. human rights chief said Wednesday that he feared the bodies recovered so far represented only the “tip of the iceberg.” “It is heartbreaking that the loved ones of those missing for so long are only now having their worst fears confirmed,” he said. “Much of Gaza has been flattened by Israeli bombing or demolition and clearing by heavy machinery and explosives.” Many Palestinians living in unsafe structures More than one-fifth of the buildings assessed in Gaza City by the Norwegian Refugee Council in March were found to be structurally unsound, but residents said they had no other place to go. The council leads a coalition of shelter providers operating in Gaza. The coalition said in an assessment released in August that two-thirds of Palestinian households in the enclave were living in tent camps. Among households living in buildings, 72% were staying in structures that had suffered minor or moderate damage. The war began after the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants entered southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Many hostages later described prolonged starvation, physical and psychological abuse and, in some cases, sexual abuse. Although an October ceasefire has significantly reduced fighting in Gaza, Israel has continued conducting strikes that have killed at least 1,375 people since the agreement took effect, according to local health officials. The nearly three-year Israel-Hamas war has killed more than 73,789 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government, keeps detailed records that U.N. agencies and international organizations generally consider reliable. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its figures but says women and children account for about half of the deaths.

An Argentine court on Friday approved an agreement clearing the way for the return of an 18th-century portrait looted from a prominent Jewish art dealer during World War II to his surviving heir. The agreement allows Patricia Kadgien, daughter of a former senior Nazi official, and her husband, Juan Carlos Cortegoso, to give up their claim to the painting in exchange for avoiding a criminal trial and remaining under court supervision for two years. The work, known as “Portrait of a Lady,” will be returned to Marei von Saher, the sole surviving heir of Dutch-Jewish art dealer Jacques Goudstikker. Goudstikker's extensive art collection was forcibly sold to Nazi officials after Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940. The couple had been charged with aggravated cover-up last year after authorities alleged they concealed the painting despite knowing that investigators were searching for it. Under the court-approved deal, the couple must remain under judicial supervision for two years, make payments to a hospital in Mar del Plata, where they live, and regularly report their whereabouts to authorities. The painting was rediscovered after Dutch journalists investigating Friedrich Kadgien, a former Nazi financial official who fled to Argentina after the war, spotted it in an online property listing for his daughter's home in Mar del Plata in August 2025. The listing was removed shortly after a Dutch newspaper published the discovery. Argentine police searched the property several times without finding the artwork before Kadgien's lawyer eventually handed it over to authorities. The portrait had long been attributed to Italian Baroque painter Giuseppe Vittore Ghislandi. However, an examination ordered by the court and conducted by Argentina's National Academy of Fine Arts attributed it to Italian painter Giacomo Antonio Melchiorre Ceruti. Experts confirmed that the painting had belonged to Goudstikker's collection and estimated its value at about 250,000 euros ($290,000). Goudstikker was among Europe's leading art dealers before World War II and owned works by renowned painters including Rembrandt and Vermeer. He died in a shipwreck while fleeing the Netherlands with his family as German forces invaded in May 1940. About 1,100 works from his collection were illegally sold to Hermann Göring, one of Adolf Hitler's most powerful associates and a major collector of looted art. It remains unclear how the portrait later came into the possession of Friedrich Kadgien, who served as Göring's financial adviser and was involved in handling foreign currency, precious metals and confiscated property for the Nazi regime. Kadgien escaped Europe after the war, eventually settling in Argentina, where he died in 1978 without being arrested or prosecuted for war crimes. Von Saher, who lives in Greenwich, Connecticut, has spent decades seeking the return of artworks stolen from her family. Her lawyers said she has agreed to have the portrait exhibited in Argentina before it is returned to her. Argentine authorities also recovered two 19th-century paintings, along with prints and engravings, during searches last year of properties belonging to Kadgien and her sister in Mar del Plata. Investigators are examining whether any of those works were also looted during World War II.

President Donald Trump said Friday that the United States has reached a major agreement with Venezuela that could give an American-backed private company access to the South American nation's vast oil reserves. Trump described the agreement as the “biggest oil deal in world history”, saying it was negotiated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez. Rodríguez's government said the agreement covers the development of 17 oil fields with proven potential of 65 billion barrels. It estimated that the deal could attract around $100 billion in investment and generate more than $209 billion in tax revenue for Venezuela. Under the agreement, the United States would partner with an unnamed private operator to establish a new company to develop the oil fields, according to a U.S. official familiar with the deal. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the agreement publicly, said Rodríguez had granted the company rights to develop the fields for 100 years. The company would give the United States an effective 55% share of its output, including an ownership stake and the right to purchase oil at cost, the official said. If realized, the company would become the world's second-largest corporate holder of proven oil reserves after Saudi Aramco. Trump under pressure over high fuel prices The announcement comes as Trump faces pressure to reduce high fuel prices in the United States amid the ongoing war in Iran and disruptions to global energy supplies. The U.S. government has been drawing from its strategic petroleum reserves, which fell below 300 million barrels in early August, more than 100 million barrels lower than at the beginning of 2026. The conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran has sharply reduced the flow of Gulf oil through the Strait of Hormuz, a major global energy route that previously carried about 20% of the world's petroleum. The average U.S. gasoline price was around $4.09 per gallon on Friday, compared with $3.21 a year earlier, according to AAA. However, experts said the Venezuelan agreement is unlikely to bring immediate relief at the gas pump. Increasing Venezuela's oil production substantially would require years of investment to repair and expand its badly damaged infrastructure. Major U.S. oil companies could also be reluctant to return because of Venezuela's political uncertainty and their previous experiences operating in the country. After Maduro's removal, Trump met oil executives at the White House and urged them to return to Venezuela. Although executives showed interest, some remained cautious. ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods had previously described Venezuela as an “un-investable” market. Trump has maintained that his administration has helped bring greater stability to Venezuela. He has also accused the country of taking U.S. oil after former President Hugo Chávez nationalized hundreds of foreign-owned assets, including those belonging to American oil companies. Venezuela opens oil sector to private investment Rodríguez moved to open Venezuela's oil industry to greater private investment after taking power, reversing a key policy of the socialist movement that has governed the country for more than two decades. Rubio said the new agreement would bring billions of dollars in private investment to Venezuela while helping reduce fuel prices in the United States. The U.S. official said oil purchased from the new company would be used to replenish the American strategic petroleum reserve and for military purposes. Venezuela possesses the world's largest proven crude oil reserves, estimated at around 303 billion barrels, or approximately 17% of global reserves, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Most of the country's oil deposits have already been identified, but aging infrastructure has severely limited production. Venezuela currently accounts for only about 1% of global oil output. Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro remains jailed in the United States. He has pleaded not guilty to federal narcoterrorism and drug trafficking charges.

At least 23 people were killed and five others injured when a minibus and a truck collided head-on in Brazil’s southern Parana state early Wednesday, police said. The crash occurred around 3:30 a.m. on a highway near Ipiranga, a city about 560 kilometers (350 miles) south of Sao Paulo, according to traffic police. Preliminary investigations suggest the truck, which was empty at the time, crossed into the opposite lane and struck the minibus head-on. The minibus was traveling from nearby Imbituva, while the truck was registered in Erechim city in the neighboring state of Rio Grande do Sul. The minibus was carrying healthcare workers, patients and several family members, authorities said. Among the dead were 13 women, eight men and two children, according to the company operating toll facilities on the highway. Three of the five injured people were in serious condition and were being taken to hospitals, police said. Emergency personnel and police remained at the scene for several hours following the crash. The highway was closed for about seven hours as rescue and recovery operations continued. Television footage showed the badly damaged minibus and the truck lying beside the road, with broken glass and passengers’ belongings scattered around the crash site. The accident was the deadliest in the region since 2021, when 19 people were killed after a bus crashed near Curitiba. Parana Gov. Ratinho Júnior declared three days of mourning following the tragedy.

Aid from regional partners began arriving in Colombia on Wednesday as rescue teams intensified their search for survivors in the rubble left by a powerful earthquake that destroyed buildings, damaged roads and crushed vehicles. The disaster has put pressure on Colombia’s new President Abelardo de la Espriella and his government as they work to coordinate the emergency response, while civil society groups are also mobilizing assistance for the hardest-hit communities. De la Espriella said Wednesday evening that at least 265 people had been killed in Monday’s magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck western Colombia. Nearly 500 people were officially reported missing, although civilian-run databases put the number at more than 4,100. More than 25,800 families have been affected, the president said. “Our efforts are focused on the disappeared,” he told reporters in the capital, Bogotá. Rescue teams continued searching through collapsed structures in the worst-hit cities of Cali, Pereira, Manizales and Quibdo as the chances of finding survivors alive diminished with each passing hour. Aid agencies say the first 48 to 72 hours are especially critical for rescue operations, although people trapped under rubble can sometimes survive longer if they have access to food and water. Alejandro Eder, the mayor of Cali, said Wednesday afternoon that rescue workers were still finding indications that people remained alive beneath the rubble. “The next 20 hours are the most critical to find and rescue people alive,” he said. “Every minute is vital.” Survivors pulled from rubble In Pereira, rescuers pulled Daniela Largo alive from the debris late Tuesday after a difficult 12-hour operation. Crews created a small opening to free her trapped arm, while a doctor administered intravenous fluids to stabilize her. Wrapped in a blue blanket, the young woman was carried to an ambulance as firefighters embraced and residents cheered. In another rescue operation in the same city, however, a man was pulled from a damaged building dead and covered with a white blanket. Authorities across the coffee-growing region, one of the areas hardest hit by the earthquake, have turned sports arenas, schools and other public buildings into temporary shelters for thousands of displaced people. Ebert Jonathan Morales, a resident of Cali, said his family had lost everything. “My house was completely destroyed. We can't live there,” Morales said. “It collapsed. The floor collapsed, the walls cracked. The roof came down.” In Pereira and Cali, many families have been sleeping in parks, either because they fear aftershocks and further collapses or because they no longer have homes to return to. Colombia’s geological service has recorded 130 aftershocks since the main earthquake. “We have the most important things: a roof over our heads, food, water and, in my case, medical care,” said Edith Penagos, 48, who was staying with her teenage son in a white tent in a Pereira park. Rodrigo León Loya, a seismologist and geosciences professor at the University of the Andes, said the likelihood of another earthquake of similar strength occurring in the same area is low, but he cautioned that further seismic activity cannot be ruled out. “Let's remember that Colombia is full of active fault lines,” he said. “The question isn't whether it can happen again. The question is rather when an earthquake of similar magnitude will occur at another of Colombia's seismic sources.” Humanitarian crisis complicates responseThe official response has been particularly difficult in many parts of Choco, the region where the earthquake was centered. The area has long struggled with severe poverty and armed conflict that has displaced people for decades. The full extent of the earthquake’s impact in the remote, jungle-covered northwest remains unclear because cellphone services have been disrupted and many affected communities can only be reached by river. “This earthquake compounds an already severe humanitarian situation, and there is a need for increased support for the humanitarian response,” said Giovanni Rizzo, Colombia director for the Norwegian Refugee Council. Several humanitarian organizations were already operating in Choco, supporting the 2016 peace agreement between the government and leftist rebels and responding to continued violence involving other armed groups. Those organizations were able to quickly shift their operations toward earthquake relief, said María José Torres, the U.N. resident coordinator in Colombia. “We have a presence on the ground. Therefore, our ability to be there, present with the people, I think, has increased exponentially,” Torres said in a statement Tuesday. International aid arrives Meanwhile, assistance from foreign governments and international organizations continued to arrive in Colombia. The U.S. State Department said disaster response teams began arriving Monday. Washington has also offered more than $15 million in aid. Mexico said it sent two military aircraft carrying 19.5 tons of nonperishable food and 19 members of its security forces to Pereira. It plans to send another 39 tons of aid in the coming days. Another 255 military specialists and 20 dogs are on standby to deploy to Colombia if needed. El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele offered to send two planes carrying 100 tons of humanitarian aid. Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday expressed support for those involved in the recovery effort and said he was praying for those killed, injured and otherwise affected by the earthquake. “I want to express my solidarity with my Colombian sisters and brothers who have suffered the effects of the recent earthquake,” he said.