On December 10, 2024, a woman arrived at a health facility in Pariak, a town in the state of Jonglei in South Sudan, with diarrhea, vomiting and symptoms of dehydration. She had recently returned from an area affected by cholera. In one of the most vulnerable countries in the world, where millions of people lack regular access to clean water and health services, this could have been the beginning of a new emergency.
The image is unprecedented even by Washington standards. A massive four-pronged steel structure known as “The Claw” rises above the White House South Lawn as workers put the finishing touches on the venue that will host UFC Freedom 250. The mixed martial arts event, promoted by President Donald Trump and UFC CEO Dana White, is intended to commemorate the 250th anniversary of American independence.
The United States professional baseball league (MLB) was suspended for three months between May and July 2020, at the worst point of the pandemic. When it finally resumed, it did so behind closed doors or with very restricted access. For the first time in many years, stars of the sport such as Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels and Christian Yelich of the Milwaukee Brewers had to celebrate their victories in front of empty stands.
Only 24 hours remain before the World Cup kicks off in Mexico and the country is going though its final dress rehearsals. Preventing demonstrations on opening day is already a pipe dream: negotiations with teachers have stalled and search groups will march to make their missing relatives visible. With everyone in position and the cards on the table, attention is focused on avoiding the worst-case scenario for the government of Claudia Sheinbaum — an image of a police officer striking a teacher circling the globe on the day the country is playing for its international image. The concern is not unfounded: on the first day of protests a teacher lost an eye in clashes with police. The past two weeks have tested containment measures, and Wednesday will be the last chance to fine-tune the public staging. To ease the pressure, authorities have canceled classes for Thursday and ordered remote work for public servants.
Political and religious leaders in Northern Ireland saw early Wednesday morning — with the embers of a long night of violence in Belfast and other parts of the region still smoldering — that their calls for calm had fallen on deaf ears. Cars, buses, phone booths, and trash cans set ablaze. Homes where immigrants — or simply people from ethnic minorities — were believed to live, completely engulfed in flames after violent groups targeted them as places that needed to be “liberated.”
The largest FIFA World Cup in history kicks off on Thursday, June 11, at the Estadio Azteca. The opening match between Mexico and South Africa will be the starting gun for a tournament also hosted by Canada and largely staged in the United States, where 78 of the 104 matches will be played, including the final on July 19. FIFA president Gianni Infantino said last May at the United Nations headquarters in New York, an organization founded in 1945 to prevent armed conflict, that “the eyes of the world will be focused on North America.” “We spend so much time in discussing what divides us, but actually we realize that when we put people together, what happens is that there are many more things that unite us than the things that divide us,” he added. The World Cup, however, will be co-hosted in a country that just over 100 days ago launched a war against Iran, alongside Israel, without any United Nations endorsement, that has an open diplomatic dispute with another co-host, Mexico, and whose anti-immigration policies — policies that frighten many fans — on Monday denied entry to Somali referee Omar Artan, one of the 52 match officials assigned to the tournament.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is addicted to money. The major labs developing AI models are intoxicated with the dollars that will finance the technology’s evolution. The three leading companies in the sector, Anthropic, OpenAI and SpaceX, have announced in recent days plans to go public to raise more funds in an endless race. Other long-established tech multinationals such as Google, Microsoft, Meta and Amazon have also launched financial operations in what is shaping up to be the biggest capital raising effort in the sector’s history.
The Venezuelan government on Tuesday authorized the release of another 54 political prisoners, all military personnel, according to information confirmed by relatives of the detainees and support groups such as the Coalition for Human Rights and Democracy. Three of those released are women. According to data provided by Foro Penal official Gonzalo Himiob, most of them were part of the so‑called Operation White Armband, an alleged military conspiracy denounced by Venezuelan intelligence agencies four years ago. They had been held at Ramo Verde prison and the National Institute for Female Rehabilitation (INOF).
Peruvians who went to the polls this past Sunday to vote in the presidential runoff will not know who their president is until July. One month is how long the National Jury of Elections estimates it will take to review the 1,555 tallies that have been challenged, a spokesman confirmed on Tuesday. Two days after voting, uncertainty over a result that will be decided by about 25,000 votes between the leftist candidate Roberto Sánchez and the right-wing Keiko Fujimori is turning into weariness and allegations of fraud on the streets and social media.
Spain’s National Police on Monday arrested a 29-year-old Colombian national who had been sentenced by a court to five years’ expulsion from the country for deliberately killing his ex-partner’s cat in Torrevieja, a resort town on the Mediterranean coast. According to Asociación Leal, an animal-welfare group that filed a private criminal complaint in the case, this is the first time that “animal abuse has had real consequences.” The court ruling, it said, “sets a precedent.”
As the start of the World Cup draws near, the United States government has set its sights on foreigninfluencers. Immigration authorities have warned that individuals entering the country on a tourist visa may not use their stay to produce content intended to generate income on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook or other online platforms — a practice that for years has been common among digital creators worldwide.
Help for Parkinson’s patients in the Rio Grande Valley
Seek appropriate care. Dr. CJ Martínez-Menéndez, a neurologist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, emphasizes that Parkinson’s treatment is a team effort. Finding a neurologist is the first step; ask for a referral to a movement disorders specialist, physical therapists and occupational therapists, and possibly a psychiatrist or psychologist for emotional support.
Join a support group. Two hospital systems — South Texas Health System and DHR Health System — hold monthly meetings. Another group meets at Siesta Retirement Village in Weslaco, Texas. Myla Garza, a Parkinson’s patient, encourages people not to be “afraid” of the diagnosis. “There are many things that can improve your quality of life,” she says.
Explore online resources. The Michael J. Fox Foundation and the Parkinson’s Foundation offer free, reliable information to help patients and families understand and cope with the disease. The Parkinson’s Foundation also operates a toll-free helpline (1-800-473-4636) available in English and Spanish.
Participate in Parkinson’s research projects. Contact brain@utrgv.edu for information about Dr. Kelsey Baker’s study at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. You can also email genetics@parkinson.org or call the Parkinson’s Foundation helpline (1-800-473-4636) to enroll in the foundation’s national genetic study, which offers free genetic testing to all participants.
U.S. President Donald Trump has made good on his warning. U.S. forces deployed near the Persian Gulf struck targets in Iran early Wednesday after that country shot down a U.S. Apache helicopter flying over the waters of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Central Command, which is responsible for those troops in the Middle East. The news website Axios reported that the targets were radar and air defense systems in Iran.
The battle for control of the United States Senate begins in Maine. If Democrats want to take the upper house from Republicans in the upcoming November 3 midterm election, they cannot lose in this northeastern state, famous for its lobster industry and for producing the writer Stephen King. Republican Senator Susan Collins, who has sometimes been critical of President Donald Trump, is running for re-election and polls place her in a weak position. Graham Platner, a political newcomer, seemed like the right man for the job—until criticism from at least three women he had relationships with, as well as new details about a tattoo resembling a Nazi symbol that he got years ago, began to cast doubt on his suitability. Despite these shadows, Platner won the Democratic primary this Tuesday, making him the official Senate candidate for the midterms.
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