Category: News
Trump elogia a Congo y Ruanda tras firmar acuerdo de paz
Por AAMER MADHANI, CHINEDU ASADU y RUTH ALONGA
WASHINGTON (AP) — El presidente Donald Trump elogió a los líderes de la República Democrática del Congo y Ruanda por su valentía al firmar un acuerdo el jueves destinado a poner fin al conflicto en el este del Congo y abrir las reservas minerales críticas de la región al gobierno de Estados Unidos y a empresas estadounidenses.
El momento ofreció a Trump —quien ha alardeado repetida y exageradamente de haber negociado la paz en algunos de los conflictos más arraigados del mundo— otra oportunidad para presentarse como un negociador en el escenario global y argumentar que merece el Premio Nobel de la Paz. Trump no ha sido tímido respecto a su deseo de recibir este honor.
“Es un gran día para África, un gran día para el mundo”, afirmó Trump poco antes de que los líderes firmaran el pacto. Añadió: “Hoy logramos lo que muchos otros no pudieron”.
Trump dio la bienvenida a los presidentes Félix Tshisekedi del Congo y Paul Kagame de Ruanda, así como a varios funcionarios de otras naciones africanas que viajaron a Washington para presenciar la firma, en la misma semana en que insultó a Somalia y dijo que no quería inmigrantes de esa nación.
Elogiado por la Casa Blanca como un acuerdo “histórico” negociado por Trump, el pacto entre Tshisekedi y Kagame sigue a esfuerzos de paz de varios meses por parte de Estados Unidos y socios, incluyendo la Unión Africana y Qatar, y finaliza un acuerdo anterior firmado en junio.
Pero la paz negociada por Trump es precaria.
La nación centroafricana del Congo ha sido golpeada por décadas de lucha con más de 100 grupos armados, siendo los rebeldes M23 respaldados por Ruanda los más potentes. El conflicto se intensificó este año, con el M23 tomando las principales ciudades de Goma y Bukavu en un avance sin precedentes, empeorando una crisis humanitaria que ya era una de las más grandes del mundo, con millones de personas desplazadas.
“Seguimos en guerra”
Mientras tanto, los combates continuaron esta semana en la región afectada por el conflicto, con informes de enfrentamientos entre los rebeldes y soldados congoleños, junto con sus fuerzas aliadas. Trump, un republicano, ha dicho a menudo que su mediación ha terminado el conflicto, lo cual los habitantes del Congo dicen que no es cierto.
Aun así, Kagame y Tshisekedi ofrecieron un tono esperanzador al firmar el acuerdo.
“Nadie le pidió al presidente Trump que asumiera esta tarea. Nuestra región está lejos de los titulares”, dijo Kagame. “Pero cuando el presidente vio la oportunidad de contribuir a la paz, la tomó de inmediato”.
“Creo que este día es el comienzo de un nuevo camino, un camino exigente, sí. De hecho, bastante difícil”, expresó Tshisekedi. “Pero este es un camino donde la paz no será solo un deseo, una aspiración, sino un punto de inflexión”.
De hecho, los analistas dicen que es poco probable que el acuerdo resulte rápidamente en paz. Se ha firmado un acuerdo de paz separado entre el Congo y el M23.
“Seguimos en guerra”, indicó Amani Chibalonza Edith, una residente de 32 años de Goma, la ciudad clave del este del Congo tomada por los rebeldes a principios de este año. “No puede haber paz mientras sigan los combates”.
Minerales de tierras raras
El pacto del jueves también se basará en un Marco de Integración Económica Regional previamente acordado que, según los funcionarios, definirá los términos de las asociaciones económicas que involucran a los tres países.
Trump también anunció que Estados Unidos estaba firmando acuerdos bilaterales con el Congo y Ruanda que desbloquearán nuevas oportunidades para que Washington acceda a minerales críticos, acuerdos que beneficiarán a las economías de las tres naciones.
“Y estaremos involucrados en enviar algunas de nuestras mayores y mejores empresas estadounidenses a los dos países”, declaró Trump. Añadió: “Todos van a ganar mucho dinero”.
La región, rica en minerales críticos, ha sido de interés para Trump mientras Washington busca formas de eludir a China para adquirir tierras raras, esenciales para la fabricación de aviones de combate, teléfonos celulares y más. China representa casi el 70% de la minería mundial de tierras raras y controla aproximadamente el 90% del procesamiento global de tierras raras.
Trump recibió a los líderes el jueves por la mañana para reuniones individuales en la Casa Blanca, así como una conversación a tres bandas antes de la ceremonia de firma en el Instituto de la Paz en Washington, que el Departamento de Estado anunció el miércoles ha sido rebautizado como “el Instituto de la Paz Donald J. Trump”.
Más tarde el jueves, la Cámara de Comercio de Estados Unidos organizará un evento que reunirá a líderes empresariales estadounidenses y las delegaciones congoleñas y ruandesas para discutir oportunidades de inversión potenciales en minerales críticos, energía y turismo.
Enfrentamientos en curso
Mientras tanto, en el este del Congo, los residentes informaron de enfrentamientos y avances rebeldes en varias localidades. Tanto el M23 como las fuerzas congoleñas se han acusado mutuamente de violar los términos del alto el fuego acordado a principios de este año. Los combates también han continuado en las mesetas centrales a través de la provincia de Kivu del Sur.
Las dificultades tras el conflicto han empeorado tras los recortes de financiación de Estados Unidos que eran cruciales para el apoyo de ayuda en el conflicto.
En Goma, controlada por los rebeldes, que era un centro regional para los esfuerzos de seguridad y humanitarios antes de la escalada de combates de este año, el aeropuerto internacional está cerrado. Los servicios gubernamentales, como las operaciones bancarias, aún no se han reanudado y los residentes han informado de un aumento en los delitos y en los precios de los bienes.
“Estamos esperando ver qué sucederá porque hasta ahora, ambos lados continúan chocando y atacándose mutuamente”, señaló Moise Bauma, un estudiante de 27 años en la ciudad de Bukavu controlada por los rebeldes.
Tanto el Congo como Ruanda, mientras tanto, han elogiado la participación estadounidense como un paso clave hacia la paz en la región.
“Necesitamos esa atención de la administración para continuar llegando a donde necesitamos llegar”, apuntó Makolo. “No tenemos la ilusión de que esto va a ser fácil. Esto no es el final, pero es un buen paso”.
Causa del conflicto
El conflicto se remonta a las secuelas del genocidio de 1994 en Ruanda, donde las milicias hutus mataron entre 500,000 y uno millón de tutsis, así como hutus moderados y twa, pueblos indígenas. Cuando las fuerzas lideradas por tutsis contraatacaron, casi dos millones de hutus cruzaron al Congo, temiendo represalias.
Las autoridades ruandesas han acusado a los hutus que huyeron de participar en el genocidio y alegaron que elementos del ejército congoleño los protegieron. Han argumentado que las milicias formadas por una pequeña fracción de los hutus son una amenaza para la población tutsi de Ruanda.
El gobierno del Congo ha dicho que no puede haber paz permanente si Ruanda no retira sus tropas y otro apoyo para el M23 en la región. Ruanda, por otro lado, ha condicionado un alto el fuego permanente a que el Congo disuelva una milicia local que, según dijo, está compuesta por hutus y está luchando con el ejército congoleño.
Expertos de la ONU han dicho que entre 3.000 y 4.000 fuerzas gubernamentales ruandesas están desplegadas en el este del Congo, operando junto al M23. Ruanda niega tal apoyo, pero dice que cualquier acción tomada en el conflicto es para proteger su territorio.
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Asadu reportó desde Abuya, Nigeria y Madhani desde Washington. Justin Kabumba contribuyó desde Goma, Congo.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/trump-elogia-a-congo-y-ruanda-tras-firmar-acuerdo-de-paz/
Mokena area man charged with domestic battery after barricading in house
Mokena resident Kenneth Newbauer, 39, was charged with domestic battery Wednesday after an altercation involving a rifle early that morning, Will County sheriff’s police said.
The sheriff’s office responded at about 1 a.m. Wednesday to a domestic violence call involving a reported armed and barricaded man in 18700 block of Marjorie Parkway in Mokena.Newbauer had made violent threats and a rifle was observed, according to a police report.
When sheriff’s police arrived, they found the woman and her three children had left the residence safely. Police issued a shelter in place within a two block radius of the residence. Sheriff’s office negotiators and SWAT personnel responded to the residence and worked to bring the situation to a safe resolution, police reports said.
Newbauer surrendered himself to Will County sheriff’s officers at 5:20 a.m. He was seen by medical professionals at the location of the incident and later taken to Silver Cross Hospital for an evaluation.
Police recovered a loaded AR-15 rifle, but officers later found it was inoperable.
More charges may be forthcoming, according to the the Will County sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office said if residents face a domestic violence situation, they can call the Groundworks Domestic Violence Hotline at 815-729-1228, the Illinois Domestic Violence Helpline at 877-863-6338, or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-787-7233, or go to www.thehotline.org.
awright@chicagotribune.com
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/mokena-barricaded-man-domestic/
Review: A welcome return home of the spoof musical ‘Urinetown’ at Theo Ubique Theatre
More than 25 years have passed since a young University of Chicago graduate named Greg Kotis, having encountered pay-to-pee toilets while traveling in France, hit upon a whacky idea for a musical: What if some nefarious corporate entity managed to ban in-home facilities in a drought-stricken city and figured out how to control the populace by owning their need to answer nature’s call?
He had quite the title in mind: “Urinetown.”
Kotis was at the time a member of the Chicago theater company called The Neo-Futurists, a highly innovative troupe that explored self-aware theater (meaning shows that knew they were shows) long before the practice became more mainstream. He collaborated with his composer friend Mark Hollmann, a fellow Chicagoan who he had met while working at Chicago’s famously innovative Cardiff Giant Theater Company (which was around from 1987-1993) and the two of them conceived the show as (in part) a parody of other musicals, including of “Les Miserables” and “Fiddler on the Roof,” as well as the musicals of the fervent years, like “The Threepenny Opera” and “The Cradle Will Rock.”
One of the great legends of the Chicago theater is that the Neo-Futurists declined to do the show (“Chicago could have been ‘Urine”s kind of town,” I lamented in a 2003 post-mortem) and thus Kotis took it to the New York International Fringe Festival where it hit big, eventually landing on Broadway in September 2001, which was not the best time to open an edgy new musical. Therein, a character called Little Sally, who knows she is in a show, actually says to the show’s narrator, Officer Lockstock, “I don’t think too many people are going to come see this musical.” Given what happened to Broadway in the aftermath of Sept. 11, she proved to be prescient. And not just because of the title.
All of this history was in my mind at Theo Ubique Theatre this past weekend, where “Urinetown” is getting its first local staging in many years; it’s done here as a kind of environmental cabaret with the show happening all over Theo’s small space on the Evanston side of Howard Street, arranged with tables in the center and actors hoping to pee all over the place. So to speak.
Chicago had brief run of the national tour and I recall a Mercury Theater production around 2006. But although Kotis and Hollman did collaborate on a very funny subsequent show “Yeast Nation,” at Chicago’s now defunct American Theater Company, I hadn’t seen “Urinetown” in more than 15 years before director Danny Kapinos’ production last weekend, replete with lively choreography from Brenda Didier.
So your critic mostly was glad to see this smart material again with the same kind of young and enthusiastic cast that worked on it 25 years ago, including a most amusing Little Sally in Maya Tanaka Allwardt; the material was ahead of its time and it still holds up well.
Back in 2006, that aforementioned first Chicago production, along with another in Ohio, was sued by the Broadway team, which claimed that they’d copied New York director John Rando’s copyrighted staging, although the theaters understandably argued that it was hard to know where the staging began and the demands of the material ended. I think that likely put a bit of a chill on future productions and it perhaps explained why some of the parodies that I recalled so fondly did not seem to land this time around.
Luke Nowakowski (right) and the cast of “Urinetown” by Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre. (Liz Stenholt)
In general, this new production struck me overall as a tad too earnest and overplayed, and thus insufficiently dry and sardonic, to really match the original intent (although the excellent Allwardt has the style down). But cast members like Amanda Rodriguez, who plays the faux ingenue Hope Cladwell, and Luke Nowakowski, who plays leading man Bobby Strong, certainly do full justice to Hollmann’s score and the whole company throws itself into the creation of a very fun show, happily returned to what should have been its original home. (Always kinda was, anyway).
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@chicagotribune.com
Review: “Urinetown” (3 stars)
When: through Jan. 4
Where: Theo Ubique Theatre, 721 Howard St., Evanston
Running time: 2 hours, 25 minutes
Tickets: $50-$66 at 773-939-4101 and theo-u.com
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/review-urinetown-theo/
Dem Senator Warner Joins Seditious Chorus: “Military May Help Save Us” From Trump
Dem Senator Warner Joins Seditious Chorus: “Military May Help Save Us” From Trump
Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,
Virginia Sen. Mark Warner has jumped aboard the Democrat bandwagon of undermining President Trump, declaring on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that “the uniformed military may help save us from this president.”
The remark, captured in a clip shared widely on X, comes as leftists ramp up efforts to sow chaos in the ranks, painting Trump as a threat to the Constitution while ignoring their own history of politicizing the military.
Watch:
Sen. Mark Warner: “I think, in many ways, the uniformed military may help save us from this President.”
They’re now just openly calling for military coups against President Trump. pic.twitter.com/JUHiWK0y1o
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) December 3, 2025
Warner made the inflammatory statement while discussing concerns over Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and an upcoming briefing by Admiral Bradley.
“I’m going to want to get answers on what did Pete Hegseth order? Why haven’t we seen the whole unedited video if there’s nothing inappropriate here? You could have cleared this up without the admiral coming in. He’s got a great reputation, I respect him. I want to get the truth. And I’m not sure we’ve had the truth from Hegseth yet,” Warner said.
He then escalated, accusing the Trump administration of “unprecedented disrespect” toward the military. “Remember, this is an administration that has treated the uniformed military with unprecedented disrespect when they were all brought to get a pep rally in front of Hegseth and Trump. This is an administration that’s fired, you know, uniform generals from the head of the NSA, the head of the Defense Intelligence agency,” Warner claimed.
Wrapping up his rant, Warner added, “I think in many ways, the uniformed military may help save us from this president and his lame people like Hegseth, because I think their commitment is to the Constitution and obviously not to Trump. I expect Bradley to adhere to that.”
Fresh reporting from The New York Times has dismantled the overblown narrative pushed by The Washington Post about illegal strikes on a suspected drug boat.
According to five U.S. officials familiar with the matter, Hegseth did authorize a Sept. 2 strike intended “to kill the people on the boat, destroy the vessel, and eliminate its drug cargo.” However, his directive “did not specifically address what to do if a first missile failed to fully accomplish these goals, and it was not based on surveillance showing at least two survivors after the initial blast.”
This directly undercuts WaPo’s sensational claim that Hegseth issued a blanket “kill everybody” order, with officials clarifying the action was to neutralize the threat, not hunt down survivors post-attack.
BREAKING – Pete Hegseth and Admiral Bradley are now being encouraged to pursue defamation charges against the Washington Post after the NYT revealed it blatantly lied about them ordering survivors to be killed, pushing Democrats to slander them as committing “war crimes.” pic.twitter.com/288gGEYkpe
— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) December 2, 2025
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt reinforced that Hegseth simply “authorized Adm. Frank M. Bradley to conduct kinetic strikes, ensuring the boat was destroyed and the threat eliminated,” exposing the left’s smear campaign as another desperate hit job.
The clip of Senator Warner quickly drew backlash for promoting what critics call open sedition.
They are making these comments in greater numbers, partly because they believe that an overwhelming chorus of voices pushing the same message will normalize the calls and remove any consequences for seditious behavior and calls to break the chain of command.
— 21c Global Inclusion and Development Studies (@21cDevelopment) December 3, 2025
They talk about democracy then try to overthrow elected leaders.
— AMIRAN ?? (@Amiran_Zizovi) December 3, 2025
So warner is calling for a military coup. Uhh that seems a bit worse than trespassing in the capital building?
— paul (@Paulroadglide) December 3, 2025
That sounds a lot like treason. pic.twitter.com/xp9vDBfogl
— ChurchsSermons (@churchs_sermons) December 3, 2025
Warner’s comments align with a broader Democrat push to erode trust in Trump’s leadership of the armed forces. Just last week, we covered Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly doubling down on similar rhetoric during appearances on Jimmy Kimmel and Rachel Maddow’s shows.
Kelly, part of the so-called “Seditious Six” – a group of Democrat lawmakers who released a video urging troops to ignore “illegal orders” from Trump – insisted he’s “not backing down” despite a Department of Defense probe into his actions.
In that video, the six Democrats, including Kelly, warned servicemembers to prioritize the law over commands from the president, fueling accusations of inciting mutiny.
Kelly told Kimmel, “You can’t keep track of this guy and what he says. I’ll tell you this though, I’m not backing down. We said something very simple. Members of the military need to follow the law. We wanted to say that we have their backs. His response, kill them.”
He continued, “My oath and every member of the military took is loyalty to the Constitution, not to a person. He is trying to get some fear out there, and fear can be contagious, but what also can be contagious is courage and patriotism.”
Kelly and his seditious friends have all failed to name a single “illegal order” from Trump, reducing the stunt to empty fearmongering. On Maddow’s show, he even conceded Trump has “only given ‘lawful’ orders.”
Former CIA agents have flagged the Democrats’ video as a “handler”-driven op straight from the CIA playbook. Air Force vet Buzz Patterson labeled it “treasonous and seditious,” calling for prosecutions.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt accused Kelly of “intimidating” 1.3 million troops, warning, “You can’t have a functioning military if there is disorder and chaos within the ranks… They can’t identify ‘illegal’ orders because there ARE NO illegal orders!”
Conservatives linked the rhetoric to the tragic D.C. ambush where an Afghan migrant killed U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom and wounded U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe. Patterson raged, “What they did was treasonous and seditious… They are circumventing the chain of command.” Leavitt added, “These officials are trying to sow chaos and distrust, which is a very dangerous thing to do within the military’s rank.”
The Pentagon’s review into Kelly signals potential accountability, but with Warner now amplifying the message, the push to politicize the military shows no signs of stopping. This isn’t about protecting the Constitution – it’s a desperate bid to sabotage Trump before he drains the swamp.
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Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/04/2025 – 14:25
Trump Orders Approval For Mini ‘Kei’ Cars To Be Built In America
Trump Orders Approval For Mini ‘Kei’ Cars To Be Built In America
President Donald Trump, intrigued by the tiny “kei” cars he saw in Japan, announced plans to allow their production and sale in the US, according to Bloomberg. These ultra-compact vehicles are currently barred from US manufacturing because they don’t meet federal standards.
“They’re very small, they’re really cute, and I said ‘How would that do in this country?’” Trump said while revealing plans to loosen Biden-era fuel efficiency rules. He added that “we’re gonna approve those cars,” and said he has instructed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to authorize production.
Kei cars are hugely popular in Japan, making up about a third of new vehicle sales. In the US, they’ve developed a niche fanbase through a law allowing imports of models older than 25 years, but many states restrict or ban them over safety concerns about their size and speed among large American trucks and SUVs.
Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Tatsuo Yoshida noted that Japanese carmakers avoid the US market because “Pricing and costs don’t match,” even if interest exists. Duffy said his agency has now “cleared the deck” for automakers like Toyota to sell smaller, more efficient models in the US. Toyota declined to comment.
Bloomberg writes Trump’s newfound enthusiasm for kei cars mirrors how passenger vehicles have recently been used as leverage in US-Japan trade talks, where the idea of Japan importing more American-made vehicles helped move negotiations forward.
Ultra-compact cars have made several attempts to break into the American market before. In the 1960s and 1970s, models like the Subaru 360 and Honda N600 targeted budget-conscious drivers but struggled against tougher safety standards and American preferences for bigger, more powerful vehicles. The small-car surge briefly resurfaced after the 1970s oil crisis, but most mini-cars failed to stay profitable.
Interest returned in the 2000s with microcars like the Smart Fortwo, which attracted attention in crowded cities but remained a niche purchase due to limited performance and concerns about crash safety in a market dominated by SUVs. Trump’s policy shift could mark the first time ultra-compact vehicles receive broad regulatory support in the US, potentially giving them more than a novelty foothold.
Tyler Durden
Thu, 12/04/2025 – 14:05
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/trump-orders-approval-mini-kei-cars-be-built-america
Naperville News Digest: Fox Valley Mall featuring Peanuts village with Santa; Naper Settlement hosting wedding showcase in January
Fox Valley Mall featuring Peanuts village with Santa
To celebrate the 75th anniversary of Charles M. Schultz’s Peanuts comic strip, Fox Valley Mall on Route 59 has created an immersive Peanuts holiday village, which is on display through Christmas Eve.
The Peanuts Christmas Experience with Santa creates a holiday wonderland that features Snoopy’s doghouse, with screens showing classic Peanuts holiday moments and a corridor of colorful trees, organizers said.
Children and families can visit with Santa at no cost. Professional photo packages are available to buy.
Children also can send letters to Santa in a special mailbox, take photos with life-sized Peanuts characters and dance with the Charlie Brown Band on a light-up dance floor with special effects. Every child receives a free holiday toy after their visit, organizers said.
A sensory-friendly Santa with lights dimmed and music off will be available from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 7. Pet photos can be taken from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, Dec. 8.
Reservations are recommended but not required. For reservations, go to tinyurl.com/PeanutsandSanta2025.
A vendor speaks with potential customers at the 2024 Wedding Showcase at Naper Settlement in Naperville. This year the event will be held on Jan. 17. (Naper Settlement)
Naper Settlement hosting wedding showcase in January
Tickets are now available for Naper Settlement’s annual Wedding Showcase, featuring florists, bakers, photographers, caterers and other wedding professionals from around Naperville and the western suburbs.
It will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 17, throughout the museum campus, 523 S. Webster St. More than 50 vendors are scheduled to attend.
Couples can sample catering options, get exclusive discounts and take a limo ride around the museum, a news release said. There will be a chance to win prizes, including gift cards, hotel room certificates and more from showcase vendors.
The event is free, but tickets are limited, organizers said. Tickets can be obtained at www.napersettlement.org/weddingshowcase.
Naperville Preservation holding holiday photo contest
Naperville Preservation is holding a photo contest for the best holiday decorations on houses or buildings that are at least 50 years old.
The commercial or residential displays must located in Naperville and should celebrate the history, character and festive spirit of the city. Photos should highlight both the building and its decorations, organizers said.
An independent panel will review all entries, and the winning photograph will be featured on Naperville Preservation’s social media pages and its website. The winner will receive a Naperville-themed gift.
The deadline to enter is Dec. 14. An entry form can be found on the Naperville Preservation’s Facebook page.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/naperville-mall-peanuts-santa-wedding-settlement/
Man accused of planting pipe bombs before Jan. 6 attack on Capitol charged with explosives offense
WASHINGTON — A man was arrested on Thursday in the FBI’s nearly 5-year-old investigation into pipe bombs placed outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national parties in Washington on the eve of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol and has been charged with an explosives offense, prosecutors said.
The arrest marks the first time investigators have identified a suspect in an act that had long vexed law enforcement, spawned a multitude of conspiracy theories and remained an enduring mystery in the shadow of the dark chapter of American history that is the violent Capitol siege.
The suspect in custody has been identified as Brian Cole Jr., according to Attorney General Pam Bondi. He has been charged with the use of an explosive device, and more charges are possible as part of the ongoing investigation.
“Let me be clear: There was no new tip, there was no new witness. Just good diligent police work and prosecutorial work,” Bondi said.
Calls to relatives of Cole listed in public records were not immediately returned on Thursday. Hours after Cole was taken into custody, unmarked law enforcement vehicles lined the cul-de-sac where Cole’s home is while FBI agents helped shoo away onlookers. Authorities were seen entering the house and examining the trunk of a car nearby.
FBI says the bombs could have killed people
The pipe bombs were placed on the evening of Jan. 5, 2021, near the offices of the Democratic and Republican national committees. Nobody was hurt before the bombs were rendered safe, but the FBI has said both devices could have been lethal.
In the years since, investigators have sought the public’s help in identifying a shadowy subject seen on surveillance camera even as they struggled to determine answers to basic questions, including the person’s gender and motive and whether the act had a clear connection to the riot at the Capitol a day later when supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the building in a bid to halt the certification of the Republican’s 2020 election loss to Democrat Joe Biden.
Seeking a breakthrough, the FBI last January publicized additional information about the investigation, including an estimate that the suspect was about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, as well as previously unreleased video of the suspect placing one of the bombs.
The bureau had for years struggled to pinpoint a suspect despite hundreds of tips, a review of tens of thousands of video files and a significant number of interviews.
Lack of evidence spawns conspiracy theories
In the absence of harder evidence, Republican lawmakers and right-wing media outlets promoted conspiracy theories about the pipe bombs. House Republicans also criticized security lapses, questioning how law enforcement failed to detect the bombs for 17 hours. Dan Bongino, the current FBI deputy director, floated the possibility last year before being tapped for his job that the act was an “inside job” and involved a “massive cover-up.”
The FBI’s top two leaders, Bongino and Director Kash Patel, sought to breathe new life into the investigation despite having openly disparaged the bureau’s broader approach to the Jan. 6 siege and despite Trump’s pardons on his first day back in office of the rioters who stormed the Capitol, including those who violently attacked police with poles and other makeshift weapons.
In a long Nov. 13 post on X, Bongino wrote that the FBI had brought in new personnel to examine the case and “dramatically increased investigative resources” along with the public reward for information “to utilize crowd-sourcing leads.” He said in the same post, addressed to Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., that “a week of near 24-hour work on RECENT open source leads in the case has yet to produce a break through.”
Investigators hunt for clues
Public attention over the years had centered in part on surveillance video taken the night before the riot showing the suspect spending close to an hour moving through the surrounding blocks, pausing on a park bench, cutting through an alley and stopping again as a dog walker passed.
The person wore a light sweatshirt, dark pants and sneakers, with a dark backpack slung over one shoulder. Investigators have long said the gait suggested the person was a man, but a surgical mask and hood rendered the face all but impossible to see.
Agents paired their video review with a broad sweep of digital records. They gathered cell tower data showing which phones were active in the neighborhood at the time and issued subpoenas to several tech companies, including Google, for location information.
Investigators also analyzed credit card transactions from hobby shops and major retailers to identify customers who had purchased components resembling those used in the two explosive devices — each roughly 1 foot (0.3 meters) long and packed with gunpowder and metal, according to two law enforcement officials familiar with the investigation.
Another avenue of the investigation centered on the suspect’s shoes, believed to be Nike Air Max Speed Turfs. After learning from Nike that thousands of pairs had been distributed through more than two dozen retailers, agents filed subpoenas for credit card records from Foot Locker and other chains as they worked to narrow down potential buyers. Still, for years, they had no solid breakthroughs.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/pipe-bomb-jan-6-capitol/
Gennadiy Golovkin, Antonio Tarver y Nigel Benn ingresan al Salón de la Fama del Boxeo
Por BRIAN MAHONEY
Gennadiy Golovkin, el fajador kazajo que igualó el récord de 20 defensas consecutivas del título de peso mediano, fue elegido el jueves para el Salón de la Fama del Boxeo Internacional.
Los ex campeones Antonio Tarver y Nigel Benn son los otros nombres destacados en la clase que será consagrada en el museo en Canastota, Nueva York. También ingresará la boxeadora mexicana Jackie Nava.
La ceremonia de exaltación se realizará el 14 de junio de 2026.
Golovkin fue elegido en su primer año en la boleta en la votación por miembros de la Asociación de Escritores de Boxeo de América y un panel de historiadores internacionales del boxeo.
Tuvo una foja de 42 victorias, dos derrotas y un empate, con 37 nocauts. Después de conquistar su primer cetro en 2010 en su 19na pelea, se mantuvo como campeón en las 160 libras hasta que el mexicano Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez lo superó en 2018 en su segundo enfrentamiento. Las 20 defensas consecutivas igualaron el récord de la división establecido por Bernard Hopkins, miembro del Salón de la Fama.
“Este es el mayor honor en el boxeo y la última pieza del rompecabezas en mi carrera. Estoy orgulloso de tener un legado en el boxeo”, dijo Golovkin tras ser informado de que será exaltado al Salón.
“Triple G” empató con Álvarez en su primer combatiente y perdió contra el ídolo mexicano en un desafío por el título de peso supermediano en su última pelea en 2022 después de recuperar la corona de peso mediano.
Medallista de plata en los Juegos Olímpicos de 2004, Golovkin fue elegido el mes pasado como presidente de World Boxing, la organización que busca organizar los torneos olímpicos en los Juegos de Los Ángeles 2028.
Tarver (31-6-1, 22 nocauts) tuvo múltiples reinados de título en el peso semipesado, uno de ellos después de noquear a Roy Jones Jr. en el segundo asalto de su combate de 2004. Ganó dos de sus tres enfrentamientos con Jones, quien durante mucho tiempo fue considerado el mejor boxeador libra por libra. Tarver, medallista de bronce de los semipesados en los Juegos Olímpicos de 1996, también interpretó al campeón de peso pesado Mason Dixon en la película “Rocky Balboa”.
Benn ganó títulos en peso mediano y supermediano, manteniendo el último cinturón durante cuatro años, y tuvo un récord de 42-5-1 con 35 nocauts. Hijo del peleador británico Conor Benn, recientemente venció a Chris Eubank Jr. después de que sus padres pelearan dos veces en la década de 1990, con el mayor Eubank obteniendo una victoria y un empate contra Nigel Benn.
Jimmy Clabby, quien acumuló un récord de 86-21-23 con 46 nocauts antes de retirarse en 1923, así como Nava y Naoko Fujioka.
Nava ganó títulos en peso gallo y supergallo en peleas consecutivas en 2005, el momento cumbre de una carrera con foja de 40-4-4 con 16 nocauts.
Fujioka fue la primera campeona de cinco divisiones de Japón y tuvo un récord de 19-3-1 con siete nocauts.
También serán consagrados los entrenadores y cutmen Russ Anber y Jimmy Glenn, el árbitro Frank Cappuccino y el doctor Edwin “Flip” Homansky, quien se convirtió en el segundo médico en ser incluido. La primera es su esposa, la doctora Margaret Goodman.
El periodista Kevin Iole y el difunto locutor Alex Wallau fueron incluidos en la categoría de Observador.
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Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s vaccine advisory committee delays vote on hepatitis B shots for newborns
A federal vaccine advisory committee on Thursday voted to delay a decision on whether newborns should still get the hepatitis B vaccine on the day they’re born.
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, meeting in Atlanta, voted to delay the decision until Friday after committee members voiced confusion about voting language — and some voiced concern about taking such a step.
For decades, the government has advised that all babies be vaccinated against the liver infection right after birth. The shots are widely considered to be a public health success for preventing thousands of illnesses.
But U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s committee is considering whether to recommend the birth dose only for babies whose mothers test positive, which would mark a return to a public health strategy that was abandoned more than three decades ago. For other babies, it will be up to the parents and their doctors to decide if a birth dose is appropriate.
Committee member Vicky Pebsworth said a work group was tasked in September with evaluating whether a birth dose is necessary when mothers tested negative for hepatitis B.
“We need to address stakeholder and parent dissatisfaction” with the current recommendation, she said.
The committee makes recommendations to the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on how already approved vaccines should be used. CDC directors almost always adopted the committee’s recommendations, which were widely heeded by doctors and guide vaccination programs. But the agency currently has no director, leaving acting director Jim O’Neill to decide.
Kennedy, a leading anti-vaccine activist before he became the nation’s top health official, fired the entire 17-member panel earlier this year and replaced it with a group that includes several anti-vaccine voices.
The panel has made several decisions that angered major medical groups.
At a June meeting, it recommended that a preservative called thimerosal be removed from doses of flu vaccine even though some members acknowledged there was no proof it was causing harm.
In September, it recommended new restrictions on a combination shot that protects against chickenpox, measles, mumps and rubella. The panel also took the unprecedented step of not recommending COVID-19 vaccinations, even for high-risk populations such as seniors, and instead making it a matter of personal choice.
Several doctors groups said the changes were not based on good evidence, and advised doctors and patients to follow guidance that was previously in place.
They renewed some of that criticism. Dr. Jason M. Goldman, president of the American College of Physicians, commented during the meeting, calling it “political theater” and adding that “you are basing this on concerns of individuals who don’t want the vaccine.”
Some committee members argued that safety studies in the past were limited and it’s possible that larger additional studies could uncover a problem with the birth dose. But two other committee members — Dr. Joseph Hibbeln and Dr. Cody Meissner — saw no documented evidence of harm from the birth doses and wondered whether the concern behind the discussion is just, as Hibbeln said, “speculation.”
Hepatitis B is a serious liver infection that, for most people, lasts less than six months. But for some, especially infants and children, it can become a long-lasting problem that can lead to liver failure, liver cancer and scarring called cirrhosis.
In adults, the virus is spread through sex or through sharing needles during injection drug use.
But it can also be passed from an infected mother to a baby. As many as 90% of infants who contract hepatitis B go on to have chronic infections, meaning their immune systems don’t completely clear the virus.
In 1991, the committee recommended an initial dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth. Over about 30 years, cases among children fell from about 18,000 per year to about 2,200.
But members of Kennedy’s committee have voiced discomfort with vaccinating all newborns.
Cynthia Nevison, an autism and environmental researcher, presented at the meeting. Nevison has written opinion pieces published by Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine advocacy organization Kennedy previously led. She also co-authored a 2021 article in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders that the publication retracted after concerns were raised about the paper’s methodology and about nondisclosed ties between the authors and anti-vaccine groups.
Another presenter was Mark Blaxill, a co-author of the retracted paper, who spoke about vaccine safety.
In the past, committee meetings have relied on presentations by the CDC scientists involved in tracking vaccine-preventable diseases and assessing vaccine safety. The agenda for this meeting listed no CDC scientists, but rather featured a prolonged public airing of anti-vaccine theories that most scientists have deemed as discredited.
Kennedy is a lawyer by training. Aaron Siri, a lawyer who worked with Kennedy on vaccine litigation, is listed as a presenter on Friday on the topic of the immunization schedule for U.S. children.
U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican who is a doctor, on Thursday posted on social media; “The ACIP is totally discredited. They are not protecting children.”
The current guidance advises a dose within 24 hours of birth for all medically stable infants who weigh at least 4.4 pounds (2 kilograms), plus follow-up shots to be given at about 1 month and 6 months. The committee is expected to vote on language that says when a family decides not to get a birth dose, then the vaccination series should begin when the child is 2 months old.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/04/robert-kennedy-vaccine-hepatitis-b-newborns/
Último rehén retenido en Gaza fue capturado cuando defendía kibutz
Por JULIA FRANKEL
JERUSALÉN (AP) — Había cientos, luego docenas, y después sólo unos pocos. Ahora queda un rehén israelí en Gaza: Ran Gvili.
Gvili, un policía de 24 años conocido cariñosamente como “Rani”, fue asesinado cuando combatía contra milicianos de Hamás durante el ataque del 7 de octubre de 2023 que desencadenó la guerra. Después de una serie de intercambios de rehenes por palestinos detenidos por Israel, como parte de un acuerdo de alto el fuego, el cadáver de Gvili aún no ha sido recuperado.
Sus restos están en algún lugar de Gaza. El jueves, cuando Israel despertó con la noticia de que los restos devueltos por los milicianos el día anterior pertenecían a otro rehén, el país lloró a Gvili como un héroe que murió luchando para salvar un kibutz que no era el suyo.
“El primero en irse, el último en volver”, escribió su madre, Talik Gvili, en Facebook el jueves. “No pararemos hasta que regreses.”
“El Escudo de Alumim”
En la entrada del Kibutz Alumim, uno de los muchos pueblos fronterizos atacados por los milicianos el 7 de octubre, hay un cartel con una foto de Gvili sonriendo en su uniforme, con su nombre debajo.
“Luchó una batalla heroica, salvando las vidas de los miembros del kibutz”, se lee en el cartel. “Desde entonces se le conoce como ‘Rani, el Escudo de Alumim’”.
A diferencia de los de otros kibutzim israelíes atacados ese día, los residentes de Alumim sobrevivieron. Atribuyen eso a hombres como Gvili, quien se unió a un grupo de miembros del equipo de respuesta de emergencia, soldados y policías que repelieron ataques de oleadas de milicianos intrusos.
Sin embargo, los trabajadores migrantes en el kibutz tuvieron un destino diferente. Al ser dejados expuestos en áreas agrícolas fuera del perímetro defensivo del kibutz, 22 ciudadanos extranjeros fueron asesinados, según el periódico israelí Haaretz.
Gvili murió en batalla
La mañana del 7 de octubre, Gvili estaba en casa, dijo su hermana menor Shira Gvili en una entrevista con The Associated Press. Había estado de baja médica de su unidad de policía de élite por una fractura en el hombro.
Aun así, cuando escuchó que hombres armados estaban atacando a asistentes aterrorizados en el sitio del Festival de Música Nova, se dirigió directamente al lugar, junto con otros hombres de la unidad.
Nova se convirtió más tarde en el sitio de la mayor masacre civil en la historia de Israel, cuando los milicianos mataron al menos a 364 personas y tomaron a más de 40 como rehenes.
Gvili y los otros policías nunca llegaron allí, señaló su hermana. En cambio, se encontraron con los combatientes en el Kibutz Alumim.
El sargento Richard Schechtman, un compañero policía que también luchó en la batalla, dijo que Gvili parecía saber inmediatamente qué hacer.
“Rani estaba al frente del equipo, porque así era él”, indicó Schechtman de acuerdo con citas del sitio de noticias israelí Ynet. “Rani y yo estábamos parados en la carretera. Vi a los terroristas, pero dudé porque era la primera vez en mi vida que veía a un terrorista cara a cara, y tuve un momento de, ‘Espera, ¿Qué estoy viendo?’ Entonces Rani quitó el seguro y abrió fuego, y todo el equipo lo siguió”.
En un momento de la batalla, Gvili corrió al flanco occidental del kibutz para enfrentar a milicianos que llegaban en camiones, dijo su madre, quien ha hablado con otros que combatieron con él ese día. Ahí fue donde resultó herido en la pierna.
“Se comunicó por radio con su equipo para advertir que más vehículos con terroristas se acercaban”, dijo su madre en una entrevista con Ynet. “Abrió fuego, y ellos vinieron hacia él. Los enfrentó solo, herido en la pierna y el brazo, y derribó a esos monstruos”.
El ejército de Israel afirma que el cuerpo de Gvili fue secuestrado a Gaza por los milicianos poco después. El ejército confirmó su muerte, basándose en una evaluación de inteligencia, cuatro meses después.
Último paso en primera fase del alto el fuego
El regreso de los restos de Gvili marcará la finalización de la primera fase del plan de alto el fuego de 20 puntos del presidente estadounidense Donald Trump. La primera fase también exige la liberación de miles de palestinos de Israel, tanto vivos como muertos, y un aumento de los envíos de ayuda a la devastada Gaza.
Las siguientes fases del acuerdo de alto el fuego serán mucho más complicadas de cumplir. Los elementos clave incluyen el despliegue de una fuerza internacional para asegurar Gaza, el desarme de Hamás y la formación de un gobierno palestino temporal para gestionar los asuntos diarios bajo la supervisión de una junta internacional liderada por Trump.
La familia teme que restos de Gvili no regresen
La familia de Gvili, que incluye a su hermano, Omri, mantiene la esperanza de que pronto recibirán los restos.
“Vemos a todas las otras familias cuyos hijos regresaron y vemos en sus ojos que tienen alivio”, dijo su hermana. “Por eso es tan importante. Porque queremos seguir adelante con nuestra vida y sólo recordar a Rani”.
Ran fue un héroe, pero era más que eso, recordó su hermana: Era protector y divertido; ocasionalmente contaba chistes malos de los que todos se reían; le encantaba tocar la guitarra y cantar “The House of the Rising Sun”; y en una pierna tenía un tatuaje de su perro, Luna, a quien la familia ahora cuida.
Tanto su madre, Talik, como su padre, Itzik Gvili, dicen que temen un escenario peor, del tipo experimentado por las familias de los soldados israelíes Hadar Goldin o Ron Arad.
Goldin fue asesinado en Gaza en 2014. Su cuerpo fue devuelto a Israel hace aproximadamente un mes como parte del alto el fuego. Arad fue secuestrado en Líbano en 1988 después de eyectarse de su avión. Nunca ha sido encontrado.
“Rezamos, por supuesto, para que no sea otro Ron Arad o (Hadar) Goldin”, dijo Itzik Gvili a Kan News. “Que no lo alarguemos por muchos más años”.
“En lo que a mí respecta, hasta que Ran regrese, está vivo”, dijo el padre. “No tengo nada más por lo que esperar”.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
