The Trump administration is considering the use of U.S. military force against Latin American drug cartels designated as global terrorist organizations, senior U.S. officials confirmed Friday.

In February, President Donald Trump’s administration labeled Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, and other major drug gangs as global terrorist entities, expanding Washington’s options to target them. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday the designation enables the government to employ “other elements of American power” — including the Department of Defense and intelligence agencies — to dismantle cartel operations.

“It allows us to now target what they’re operating and… use the military if we have an opportunity to do it,” Rubio said, urging that such groups be treated as armed terrorist organizations rather than merely drug traffickers.

According to The New York Times, Trump has secretly signed a directive authorizing military force against the cartels. While a U.S. official confirmed the directive, they stressed that military action is not imminent and the specifics of potential operations remain unclear. Another official said the U.S. Navy could be tasked with drug interdiction missions at sea, alongside targeted raids and expanded airborne surveillance of cartel activity.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum insisted Friday that U.S. troops would not enter Mexican territory, saying her government had been informed of an order but that it “had nothing to do” with operations on Mexican soil. She has repeatedly rejected Trump’s offers to send U.S. forces to help combat drug trafficking, calling unilateral action a violation of Mexico’s sovereignty.

Legal experts have warned such operations could raise serious domestic and international law issues. Brian Finucane of the International Crisis Group wrote that U.S. military action in Mexico “would almost certainly be unlawful” and could be seen as an act of war.

Tensions between Washington and Mexico have flared over past U.S. efforts to prosecute cartel leaders and disrupt cross-border trafficking. The latest move comes amid new friction, with Sheinbaum questioning U.S. claims linking Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to the Sinaloa Cartel and urging Washington to share any evidence.

Written By Rodney Mbua

By Michelle Ndaga

Three Thai soldiers were wounded on Saturday when a landmine exploded during a border patrol near Cambodia, just days after the two neighbors reached a detailed ceasefire agreement to end last month’s five-day armed clashes.

According to a Thai army statement, the soldiers were patrolling an area between Thailand’s Sisaket province and Cambodia’s Preah Vihear province when one of them stepped on a landmine. The blast severed the foot of one soldier and injured two others. All three were evacuated for medical treatment.

The incident comes less than a week after Thailand and Cambodia finalized terms of a ceasefire aimed at preventing further violence in the long-disputed border zone. The area, which includes the vicinity of the Preah Vihear temple, has been a recurring flashpoint between the two countries, with sporadic skirmishes and reports of leftover mines from past conflicts.

Thai military officials said they are investigating whether the device was a remnant from earlier hostilities or a newly planted mine and have reinforced safety measures for troops operating in the area.

A major wildfire on the outskirts of Athens was brought under control on Saturday morning, but evacuations in at-risk areas continued as strong winds threatened to reignite the flames.

At least one person, an elderly man, died after being trapped in a burned-out structure in Keratea, southwest of the capital, where the worst of Friday’s fires broke out. The blaze, fanned by wind gusts of up to 80 kph (50 mph), destroyed homes, farmlands, and olive orchards, forcing police to go door to door late at night to ensure residents had evacuated.

The fire brigade confirmed the Keratea fire was contained but warned it was not fully extinguished, with much of the area still smouldering. Images circulating in local media showed gutted houses and charred landscapes.

Other wildfires in the region of Ancient Olympia and on the tourist island of Kefalonia had largely abated by Saturday morning.

Greece, along with other Mediterranean nations, lies in a “wildfire hot spot” identified by scientists, with hot, dry summers fuelling frequent blazes. Experts say climate change has made such fires more intense and destructive in recent years, prompting urgent calls for improved prevention and response strategies.

Large swathes of the Athens region have gone months without significant rainfall, leaving vegetation dangerously dry and highly flammable.

Written By Rodney Mbua

Written by Were Kelly

Nagasaki’s skyline will echo with a sound unheard since 1945 this Saturday — the harmonious tolling of two cathedral bells at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral, also known as Urakami Cathedral.

The moment, scheduled precisely for 11:02 a.m., will mark the exact time the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the southwestern port city eight decades ago, killing tens of thousands and forever altering its history.

The commemorative ringing is part of the city’s annual remembrance of August 9, 1945, when approximately 74,000 people died in Nagasaki, just three days after an estimated 140,000 perished in Hiroshima from the first wartime nuclear attack. Six days later, Japan surrendered, ending World War II.

Urakami Cathedral, located just a few hundred metres from the bomb’s hypocentre, was almost completely obliterated in the blast. Only one of its two original bells survived the devastation. The church was rebuilt in 1959, but for decades, its bell tower remained incomplete, unable to reproduce the sound that once defined its daily rhythm.

That silence will end thanks to an extraordinary act of cross-border solidarity. Funded largely by Catholics in the United States, a new bell has been crafted to replace the one lost in the bombing. The project was spearheaded by James Nolan, a sociology professor at Williams College in Massachusetts, whose grandfather worked on the Manhattan Project, the US programme that developed the atomic bomb.

During research trips to Nagasaki, Nolan heard a poignant wish from a local Japanese Christian: to once again hear the cathedral’s twin bells ring together. Moved by the request, Nolan launched a year-long fundraising campaign, delivering lectures across American churches and community centres on the human toll of nuclear war. His efforts raised roughly $125,000, enough to forge and install the replacement bell, which was unveiled earlier this year.

“The reactions were magnificent,” Nolan said. “There were people literally in tears.”

Kenichi Yamamura, the cathedral’s chief priest, described the bell’s return as a testament to reconciliation and human resilience.
“It’s not about forgetting the wounds of the past but recognising them and taking action to repair and rebuild, and in doing so, working together for peace,” he told reporters.

The restoration project, Yamamura added, embodies “the greatness of humanity” — a message that resonates deeply at a time when global tensions and nuclear fears remain high.

Nearly 100 countries are expected to send representatives to Nagasaki’s commemorations this year. Notably, Russia will attend for the first time since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and Israel, whose ambassador was excluded from last year’s ceremony over the war in Gaza, is also expected to participate.

A Nagasaki city official explained the broad invitations: “We wanted participants to come and witness directly the reality of the catastrophe that a nuclear weapon can cause.”

Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will lead the official ceremonies at Nagasaki Peace Park, where wreaths will be laid in honour of the victims. Survivors, known as hibakusha, will share testimonies of loss, survival, and their ongoing plea for a nuclear-free world.

The Nagasaki event comes just days after Hiroshima marked its own 80th anniversary of the bombing. In both cities, the anniversaries have reignited debates over nuclear deterrence, disarmament, and the ethics of wartime decision-making. Public opinion in Japan remains split, with some advocating for stronger security alliances under the US nuclear umbrella, while others press for more aggressive disarmament diplomacy.

The tolling of Urakami Cathedral’s two bells is intended to rise above that debate — a sound not of politics, but of shared memory and human connection.

For Nolan, the sound will carry personal meaning, connecting his family’s history with a global call for peace. His grandfather’s role in the Manhattan Project placed him on the opposite side of history from the people of Nagasaki, yet his own efforts decades later have become part of the city’s healing process.

“It’s a way of bridging the past with the present,” Nolan said, “and hopefully inspiring a future where this kind of devastation never happens again.”

As the bells ring in unison for the first time in 80 years, they will serve as both a memorial to those lost and a reminder of humanity’s capacity for restoration — even after the most shattering of blows.

And for the people of Nagasaki, their chime will be more than just a sound; it will be the heartbeat of a city that refuses to let its history fade into silence.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES

By Michelle Ndaga.

North Korea has started dismantling some of its propaganda loudspeakers along parts of the inter-Korean border, South Korea’s military said on Saturday, mirroring similar steps taken recently by Seoul.

The announcement marks the first time South Korea has reported such action by Pyongyang since President Lee Jae Myung took office two months ago. Under Lee’s administration, South Korea also began removing its own loudspeakers, which have historically been used to broadcast messages, news, and music across the heavily fortified frontier.

A military spokesperson said further verification was needed to determine whether the dismantling was taking place along the entire border, but added that surveillance of the area would continue.

The loudspeaker systems have long been a tool of psychological warfare between the two Koreas, often switched on or off in response to political or military tensions. The move comes amid cautious signs of easing hostility, though no formal dialogue has been announced between the two sides.