Free Republic

Communism is not dead in Latin America. In fact, the dominoes are falling south of the border, but no one seems to be noticing. “It’s a new day. Communism is dead. It’s even dead in Cuba.” So declared Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing in May 2002. “I hate to say it,” she continued, “it’s dead.” The senator’s proclamation was a surprise, no doubt, to Fidel Castro, whose regime was (and is) alive and as Red as ever. It also must have come as welcome news to the people of Cuba, still suffering, after nearly half...

Porfirio Lobo, Honduras president elect, said on Sunday he is committed to enable ousted president Manuel Zelaya to leave the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa, where he remains under refuge following a frustrated attempt last week. Honduras now made it clear what it will accept: "It was decided at the highest level of government: it will be a territorial asylum and he may not go to any nation which borders Honduras, ie that is in Central America," said the Foreign Ministry spokesman, Milton Mateo. According to the Honduran government, Zelaya will not be allowed to travel to Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua...

A Massachusetts judge has been slapped with fresh charges after she was accused helping a twice-deported illegal immigrant evade Immigration and Customs Enforcement in 2018. Judge Shelley Joseph, now assigned to Boston Municipal Court, is under fire again six years after she allegedly allowed Jose Medina-Perez to walk out a back door of the Newton District Courthouse to avoid getting arrested by the ICE agents on duty. In a scathing 112-page report, the state's Commission on Judicial Conduct accused Joseph of 'willful judicial misconduct' and bringing 'disrepute' to the court system. While these aren't criminal charges, the commission did ask...

The nation’s sports minister Kelvin Cruz confirmed that the 51-year-old Dotel, who pitched for 13 teams, died.Longtime MLB relief pitcher Octavio Dotel was among the dozens of people killed in the Dominican Republic when a nightclub roof collapsed in Santo Domingo, officials said Tuesday. The nation’s sports minister Kelvin Cruz confirmed the 51-year-old Dotel, who pitched for 13 teams, was among the victims. "We deeply regret the passing of former Major Leagues and Immortal of Dominican Sport, Octavio Dotel," Cruz said in a statement. "His legacy on and off the field leaves an indelible mark on national baseball history. Peace...

The following is an excerpt from pp 682 - 690 of the: National Archives - JFK Assassination Records - Appendix 13: Biography of Lee Harvey Oswald Detailing Lee Harvey Oswald's U.S. Marine Corps activities for the period of 1957 - 1959, prior to his defection to the U.S.S.R.

A Long Island tax preparer allegedly bilked the IRS out of $12 million in a COVID scheme she used to buy jewelry, a Honda — and a house in the Dominican Republic. Damaris Beltre, 57, filed false tax returns for her clients between 2021 and 2024, and launched a scheme to illegally obtain Payroll Protection Program loans during the pandemic, federal prosecutors said. “The defendant’s fraudulent work as a tax preparer and in furtherance of a COVID-19 loan scheme, cost the government millions of dollars,” John Durham, US attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement...

A former US ambassador to Bolivia charged with spying for Cuba for four decades told a judge on Thursday sensationally admitted to the charges and said he'd been gathering information for the rogue state since 1981. Victor Manuel Rocha, 73, was arrested in December for what US officials called 'one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the United States government by a foreign agent.' Rocha pleaded not guilty two weeks ago to charges of conspiring to act as an agent of a foreign government but he told Judge Beth Bloom at a pre-trial conference on Thursday that he wanted...

The Chinese Foreign Ministry berated the administration of President Donald Trump, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in particular, on Friday for addressing the threat of Chinese regime influence during a tour to Central America and the Caribbean this week. Rubio made his first international travel after being sworn into the top diplomat position a visit to Panama, followed by stops in El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic. The growing influence of the Chinese Communist Party in these countries was a prominent topic of discussion, particularly in Panama, where Chinese influence over the Panama Canal has become...

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (CMC)— The Dominican Republic military said nearly 2,000 Haitians have been detained for illegally entering the country following operations conducted in several communities last weekend. According to a statement issued by the army, 1,936 Haitians were intercepted by motorised patrols while travelling on foot through various border communities. The statement by the army said that during these operations, nine nationals from the Dominican Republic were arrested for transporting Haitian nationals on vehicles ranging from a motorcycle to a minibus. Earlier this month, the Directorate General of Migration (DGM) said it had returned more than a quarter...

The Dominican Republic unveiled a plan Wednesday to start expelling 10,000 undocumented Haitians a week as part of a crackdown on migration from its troubled neighbor. "This operation aims to reduce the excessive migrant populations detected in Dominican communities," presidential spokesman Homero Figueroa said, adding the expulsions would start "immediately" and be done "according to strict protocols that ensure respect for human rights." The government said it took the decision in light of the international community's "slowness" in restoring stability in Haiti, large parts of which have been overrun by criminal gangs. After many months of delay, a UN-approved force...

At least 70 people have been killed in a gang massacre in Haiti, the UN has said. Armed gunmen belonging to the Gran Grif gang passed through the town of Pont-Sonde with automatic rifles, shooting at residents on Thursday, according to the United Nations' Human Rights Office.

The Dominican Republic says it plans to expel as many as 10,000 Haitian migrants per week, despite a longstanding call from the United Nations to end forced returns to Haiti amid a surge in gang violence there. Homero Figueroa, a Dominican presidential spokesman, said on Wednesday that the “operation aims to reduce the excessive migrant populations detected in Dominican communities”. Figueroa added that the expulsions to Haiti, which shares a border with the Dominican Republic on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, would begin “immediately”. The announcement comes just days after the UN reported that at least 3,661 people had been...

A criminal illegal immigrant has been charged in connection with the brutal slaughter of an entire family residing in a town near Rochester, New York. The illegal alien, identified as Julio Cesar Pimentel Soriano, 34, is reportedly wanted for a 2019 murder in his home country of the Dominican Republic. Pimentel Soriano illegally entered the U.S. through Puerto Rico and used a fraudulent New York ID before entering the mainland. On August 31, the family was killed inside their own home in Irondequoit before the house was set ablaze, according to authorities. Fraime Ubaldo, 30, Marangely Moreno-Santiago, 26, Evangeline Ubaldo-Moreno,...

Julio Cesar Pimentel Soriano, who was wanted in the Dominican Republic for m*rder in 2019, was arrested. Two toddlers and parents Fraime Ubaldo and Marangely Moreno-Santiago were allegedly k*lled by the illegal immigrant. "This was a horrific scene. In almost 32 years of doing this job, I have never seen anything like it," said Irondequoit Police Chief Scott Peters.

The US has seized a plane belonging to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro - claiming it was bought illegally for $13m (£9.8m) and smuggled out of the country. According to the US justice department, the Falcon 900EX aircraft was seized in the Dominican Republic and transferred to the US state of Florida. It is unclear how and when the plane ended up in the Dominican Republic. Tracking data showed it leaving La Isabela airport near the capital Santo Domingo on Monday, arriving at Fort Lauderdale airport in Florida soon after. A spokesperson for the White House national security council said the...

The U.S. has confiscated Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro‘s $13 billion plane in the Dominican Republic due to violations of sanctions, as reported by CNN. Earlier this year, the United States reinstated sanctions on Venezuela’s oil and gas industry due to the Maduro administration’s refusal to facilitate “an inclusive and competitive election.” According to U.S. officials, the aircraft was flown to Florida on Monday, underscoring escalating tensions between the two nations.

A recall of Boar's Head deli meat products has been widely expanded over concerns that they may be linked to a fatal listeria outbreak in the U.S., federal officials said Tuesday. Another 3,500 tons of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products sold under the Boar's Head and Old Country brands have been added to the initial recall, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said. This is in addition to approximately 103 tons of Boar's Head products that were recalled last week. The recall now includes a total of 71 products that were produced between May 10 and July 29, the USDA said....

The son of a prominent Dominican politician was shot and killed at a Houston gas station Monday, and three suspects are being sought, police said. The Houston Police Department identified the victim as Luis Alfredo Pacheco Rojas, 34, the son of Alfredo Pacheco, the president of the Chamber of Deputies of the Dominican Republic, the country's lower chamber of congress. "We have spoken with Mr. Pacheco about his son’s death and advised him detectives continue efforts to determine possible motives for the shooting," an HPD statement said. Rojas worked in the music industry in Houston and went by the name...

Haiti a country of nearly 12 million people in the Caribbean is on the brink of total State collapse around 200 0:06 different heavily armed gangs have managed to seize control over large swats of the country's territory and are operating with near impunity while some 0:13 of the more heavily armed gangs that are more similar to paramilitaries have managed to seize control over as much as 90% of hades's capital and largest city 0:20 Port of Prince these gangs have been able to completely overpower what little is left in the country of the former 0:26 Haitian government...

Just some information for anyone who may be traveling. I have a group of friends who are stranded in the Dominican Republic. Apparently, their government shut down all of their borders with little notice. I'm being told no planes or ships are allowed in at this time. My friends were scheduled to return back to the US today and the airline, Delta, canceled everything last night. Jet Blue took the same actions. Apparently there are many tourists on the island who have no idea how they are getting home. I spoke to the State Department this morning, they are aware...