Free Republic

One by one, they are singing, the men who used to do dirty deeds for the late Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez and his successor, Nicolas Maduro. Nobody knows what’s going to happen, whether the United States will attack, and whether Maduro will fall. But these Venezuelans sniff change in the air. As more countries exit Venezuela’s orbit, more allegations are likely to emerge. Two of the men are in prison here in the U.S.: Hugo “El Pollo” Carvajal, the former spy mastermind, and Cliver Alcala Cordones, a former general, both of whom have written letters to President Donald Trump airing...

On December 12, coinciding with International Mountain Day, 69 municipalities in the Valencian Community joined a nationwide initiative to create mobile-free spaces aimed at offering young people and teenagers stays in natural environments without mobile phones. The project, Refugios Bien de Altura: spaces without coverage, is promoted by the Spanish Association of Mountain Municipalities (EsMontañas) and funded by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (Miteco). It transforms municipal hostels and rural accommodation in 284 mountain villages across Spain into areas of voluntary digital disconnection. Among the 69 participating Valencian towns, only six are in the province...

Spain’s Ministry of Health has issued a warning over rising flu cases as winter approaches, preparing to require masks in hospitals, health centres, and elderly-care facilities, particularly in high-risk areas. The move comes amid an early and intense influenza season, which experts say could put additional pressure on hospitals already managing COVID-19 cases and other respiratory infections. Health authorities stress that the measure is preventative and aims to protect the most vulnerable, including the elderly and those with chronic illnesses. Several regions have already adopted measures ahead of a national agreement. Aragón and Andalucía, for instance, have recommended or mandated...

21st Century SocialismThe attempt to destroy democracy in Latin America.  The Obama administration started out on the wrong foot in world affairs. It used techniques better suited for domestic political campaigns — popularity contests — in its foreign policy. In our own hemisphere, the result was confusion for our allies and our enemies alike. The overriding objective of U.S. policy — in Latin America and elsewhere — should be to advance U.S. national interests, not to curry favor with foreign leaders. If we can be liked while advancing our interests, so much the better. But when we try to befriend...

Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and the Netherlands announced their withdrawals Thursday from next year’s Eurovision Song Contest after organizers decided that Israel will be allowed to compete. Organizers of the pop music spectacle, which draws millions of viewers globally, met earlier Thursday to discuss Israel’s participation, amid calls for the country to be excluded over the war in Gaza and threats from some members to boycott. An independent United Nations inquiry concluded in September that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and that the country’s top leaders have incited genocide. The Israeli government has maintained it is conducting the...

Despite the steady rise of contactless payments and mobile wallets, cash still plays a major role in everyday life across Spain. Whether it’s for small purchases, tips or local shops, many people continue to rely on banknotes — which means ATMs remain more important than ever. And unfortunately, that also makes them an easy target for criminals looking for quick and discreet opportunities. While we often imagine ATM crime involving complicated hacking or technical attacks, the reality is that some of the most effective scams are surprisingly simple. One of them, known as the so-called “banknote scam,” has been catching...

gThe small town of Colmenar, in the Axarquia region, just 35 minutes from Rincon de la Victoria, probably holds the crown for the most enchanting Christmas towns in Spain. Every December, the Circo Escuela Fantasia of Colmenar trades its year-round circus workshops for a full-fledged “Santa Claus Factory” – a sprawling outdoor Christmas village where children are officially recruited as Santa’s elf assistants for the day. Opened on November 15 and running every weekend and public holiday until December 23, the village turns the school’s grounds into a winter wonderland of wooden cabins, fairy-tale decorations, twinkling lights, and the unmistakable...

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - A bomb exploded in western Venezuela near the frontier with Colombia on Wednesday, damaging the headquarters of a local ranchers' association which had denounced cross-border activity by leftist Colombian rebels, witnesses and police said. No one was injured in the early morning explosion which tore through the car park and the entrance of the building in San Cristobal in Tachira state, shattering windows and scattering debris. Officials said two men were arrested in connection with the explosion. The blast came four days after a bomb badly damaged a Caracas office building where Venezuelan government and opposition...

Germany, France, Canada, and Belgium are among 12 nations that signed on to the “Declaration on Information Integrity on Climate Change,” documenting the so-called “threats” that free speech and the free press pose to what U.S. President Donald Trump refers to as the climate “con job.”Signed at the United Nations’ COP30, the UN’s annual climate confab, the declaration marks the first time that “information integrity” has been on the docket for COP’s Action Agenda.The rise of independent media, social media, and the internet has created a source of non-establishment news that has elevated legitimate criticism of the so-called man-made climate-change...

A team of independent researchers is claiming to have found Atlantis. The research centers around stone structures on Spain's Salmedina Island, off Chipiona in the Gulf of Cádiz, west of the Strait of Gibraltar. The ruins are spread across roughly 11.6 square miles of offshore seafloor and adjacent coastline, with some walls measuring 23 feet high and 6.5 feet thick.

It’s been a weird year for Spanish tourism. Scroll through the British press and you’d think Spaniards are fed up with tourists altogether, from protests in Mallorca to “Tourists go home” graffiti in Barcelona. But behind this noise, travel experts say something else is happening: misinformation. Now, British travel agencies have had enough. The UK’s main travel association, ABTA, has launched a guide to help agents explain the situation to worried clients. In doing so, they push back against what they call a “distorted picture” of Spain’s relationship with tourism. A guide for Brits travelling to Spain Speaking at the...

Today we get into the claim that the U.S. stole northern Mexico, and why that is false. Knowing this history is incredibly important, and you shouldn't need to hire a lawyer to understand it. That's why I'm here to help! I'm Jake the Lawyer, your Internet Esquire. On this channel I'll be explaining concepts, history, and legal doctrines we've all heard of, but might not totally understand. Thank you for watching! I'll be dropping episodes every Wednesday. Please enjoy and have a wonderful day.

The money will be allocated from Spain’s share of the European Union’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, a fund centred on post-Covid recovery in the bloc. The idea, which has been discussed in industry circles since the 1970s, is to connect Spain and Morocco via an underwater rail tunnel. The project was formalised in the 1980s but suffered many setbacks and was officially dropped in 2009 in the wake of the global financial crash. However, strong signals from governments on both sides of the Gibraltar Straight in 2023 have reignited the discussion. In April, at the first meeting between Spanish...

Updates to the long-awaited project linking Spain and Morocco suggest that the dream of an undersea tunnel across the Strait of Gibraltar is now within technological reach. The German firm Herrenknecht, a global leader in tunnel-boring technology, has completed a feasibility study confirming that the infrastructure, while highly complex, is technically achievable. Commissioned by Spain’s Secegsa (Sociedad Española de Estudios para la Comunicación Fija a través del Estrecho de Gibraltar) under the Ministry of Transport, the report marks a milestone for a project studied for over fifty years. According to Vozpópuli on Wednesday, the Spanish government has had the report...

Watch live coverage from Cape Canaveral as SpaceX launches a Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Spanish communications satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 40 is scheduled during a four-hour window that opens at 9:30 p.m. EDT (0130 UTC) on Thursday, Oct. 23. It will be the 22nd and final flight of booster B1076. The first-stage will not be recovered as the mission requires the full performance of the vehicle. The Spainsat Next Generation 2 (NG-2) satellite, manufactured by Airbus and Thales Alenia Space on behalf of Hisdesat, will eventually be stationed at 29 degrees East....

DEMOCRATS ABROAD BARCELONA On June 14, while Trump throws himself a made-for-TV military parade in Washington for his birthday, people across the U.S., here in BARCELONA, and around the world will rise up to reject his authoritarian agenda and defend democratic values. This coordinated day of action is a global response to authoritarianism, organized to coincide with protests across the U.S. and beyond. From city squares to parks and plazas, Americans and allies will be sending one clear message: 🛑 No dictators. No power grabs. No erosion of rights. 📣 Join us in Plaça Sant Jaume (BARCELONA, SPAIN) ⏰ Noon...

RABAT, Morocco (AP) - One of three Moroccans arrested in connection with the Madrid train bombings was already being closely watched by authorities in his homeland, where he was suspected of ties to an al-Qaida-linked group, a Moroccan official said Sunday. Jamal Zougam, 30, was one of thousands of Moroccans put under surveillance by authorities after May terrorist bombings in the coastal city of Casablanca, a high-level official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity. There were no formal accusations against him. The other two suspects, Mohamed Bekkali, 31, and Mohamed Chaoui, 34, had no police record at...

MILAN (Reuters) - A group of suspected Islamic militants arrested in Italy and Belgium may have been planning an attack on NATO headquarters or the European Parliament, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera said on Wednesday. Quoting Italian investigators, Corriere said a suspected planner of the Madrid bombings in March -- among those arrested on Tuesday -- had intended to travel from Italy to Belgium possibly to take part in an attack on a "symbolic" target. Rabei Osman Sayed Ahmed, known as "Mohamed the Egyptian," was seized on Tuesday with a fellow suspect in Milan, and Belgian police, acting on information...

A team of archaeologists from the University of Cádiz (UCA) unearthed an extraordinary 5,000-year-old dolmen at the La Lentejuela necropolis near Teba, Málaga, according to a report by SUR in English. Measuring more than 40 feet long, the massive tomb is constructed of large upright stone blocks and is one of the most monumental and well-preserved megalithic funerary structures ever uncovered in Andalusia. Within the chamber's interior, archaeologists identified several ossuaries containing human remains and a rich assemblage of grave goods, which are providing new insight into the lives and funerary practices of the community that inhabited the region several...

President Donald Trump suggested Thursday that Spain be expelled from NATO over its failure to match the higher defense spending requirement he has engineered. "We had one laggard, it was Spain," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "They have no excuse not to do this, but that's all right. Maybe you should throw them out of NATO frankly." In June, the 32-nation North Atlantic Treaty Organization agreed to massively boost defense spending over the next decade under pressure from Trump, who at the time threatened to punish Madrid on trade for resisting the new target of five percent of...