U.S. Military: 32 of 40 Gitmo Detainees Receive 1st Coronavirus Vaccine Dose
The vast majority of the Gitmo prisoners have received the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, the U.S. military announced.
U.S. Southern Command
Top Commander: Northern Triangle Migrants Not Facing Systemic Persecution at Home
Northern Triangle governments don’t engage in the “systemic” persecution of their citizens, the basis for U.S. refugee or asylum status.
Trump Directs Military to Combat Illicit Narcotics Flow into U.S.
The U.S. military has begun operations to stop the illicit flow of narcotics across the country’s southern border at President Donald Trump’s direction, Defense Secretary Mark Esper announced Wednesday at a White House briefing.
U.S. Admiral: Maduro Distrusts Venezuelans So Much He Uses only Cuban Bodyguards
Admiral Craig Faller of the U.S. Southern Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday that Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro no longer trusts his own people, so he has imported a squad of Cuban bodyguards for protection.
Report: China Will ‘Increasingly Project’ Military Power in Latin America
Communist China is seeking to expand its military and political influence across Latin America, warns the Center for a Secure Free Society (SFS) think-tank in a new report, echoing the U.S. armed forces.
U.S. Commander: China’s ‘One Belt, One Road’ a Threat to U.S. in Latin America
China’s decision to expand its ambitious multi-trillion-dollar “One Belt, One Road” (OBOR) initiative to Latin America may create security vulnerabilities for the United States by allowing Beijing to expand its influence over the region, the chief of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) cautioned lawmakers.
DHS Sec. John Kelly: ‘Nexus’ Between Drug Traffickers, Terrorists Like Boko Haram ‘Is Real’
The “nexus” between Latin American drug cartels and Islamic terrorist groups like the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) affiliate Boko Haram, which controls Africa-based smuggling routes towards Europe, “is real” and expected to “get more sophisticated,” declared U.S. Department of Defense Secretary John Kelly.
SOUTHCOM: Islamic State Seeking to ‘Radicalize’ Latin American Gangs
Jihadist groups like the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) are engaged in efforts to “radicalize and recruit” people in Latin American regions home to violent street gangs that maintain links with U.S. counterparts, namely MS-13, according to the top American commander in the area.
Trinidad & Tobago ‘Largest Per-Capita’ Islamic State Hotbed in Western Hemisphere
Up to 125 jihadists and their relatives have traveled from the Caribbean island nation of Trinidad and Tobago to join the Islamic State (IS) in the Middle East, making the country “the largest per-capita source” of recruits for the jihadist group in the Western Hemisphere, reports the Associated Press (AP).
Sen. Joni Ernst: Islamic State ‘Growing More Overt in Latin America’
The Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), as it loses territory in the Middle East, is infiltrating Latin America, warns Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) in a letter sent to President Barack Obama this week.
Russia Debuts Permanent Military Base in Syria
The Russian Defense Ministry announced that it is planning to upgrade its naval base in the Syrian port city of Tartus into a permanent facility, a move that comes as the Kremlin has expressed interest in erecting military bases in Latin America and Egypt, as well as reopening Soviet-era facilities in Vietnam and Cuba.
Expert: Latin American Cartels Paying ‘Hezbollah Tax’ to Move Drugs into Europe
Latin American transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), including Mexican drug cartels, are paying Iran’s narco-terrorist proxy Hezbollah a “tax” to move people, narcotics, weapons and other contraband in and out out of the Western Hemisphere, an expert on Iranian influence in the region tells Breitbart News.
Muslim Population in Latin America Grows 25% Amid Radicalization Concerns
Islam had an estimated 3 million adherents in Latin America and the Caribbean as of the end of last year, marking an increase of nearly 25 percent from the 2.3 million who were residing there in 2010, a Breitbart News analysis of U.S. Department of State (DoS) data shows.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Embarks on Six-Nation Tour in Latin America
Iran’s foreign minister, Javad Zarif, started a Latin American tour in Cuba, the latest effort by the Islamic Republic to maintain its growing relationship with nations in the region.
Report: Illegal Migrants from Terror-Linked Countries Surging at Southern Border
U.S. officials are trying to establish closer cooperation with various Latin American nations to combat an increase in the number of illegal migrants from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East attempting to sneak into the United States.
U.S. Military: ‘Extremist Islamist Movements’ Are Shipping Terror Suspects into Latin America
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. military is confronting an “extremist Islamist movement” in the Americas that has been linked to the use of illicit trafficking networks by criminals and terrorists, likely working together, revealed U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) chief Navy Adm. Kurt W. Tidd during a roundtable discussion with reporters.
U.S. Treasury: Hezbollah Is ‘in Its Worst Financial Shape in Decades’
Iran’s Lebanese terrorist proxy, Hezbollah, finds itself in dire financial straits after years of sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies, a top U.S. Department of Treasury official told lawmakers this week.
SOUTHCOM: ‘Hundreds’ in Latin America, Caribbean Have Joined Islamic State
“Hundreds” of individuals from Latin America and the Caribbean have traveled to Syria and Iraq to join the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), according to U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM).
Zika Virus: U.S. Military Offering to Ship Pregnant Employees Out of Affected Region
The U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) is providing Department of Defense (DOD) personnel with guidance for personal protective measures in response to the mosquito-borne Zika virus outbreak in its area of operation (AOR).
Top U.S. General: Caribbean Mosque Has ‘Associated Itself’ with Islamic State
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) chief has indicated that one of a few “radical” mosques in the Caribbean has linked itself to the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), noting that the number of Islamic extremists in that region intent on attacking Western targets has increased in the last year.
Defense Secretary: We Must Watch Our Borders for ‘Flow’ of ISIS Fighters
The United States must guard against the flow of Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL)-linked foreign fighters across America’s borders, warned U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter.
Iranian ‘Cultural Centers’ Established to Promote Shiite Islam Blossom in Latin America
Iranian “cultural centers,” established across Latin America to enhance the Shiite country’s influence in the region, have proliferated in the last three years, while the Obama administration has been trying to reach a nuclear agreement with Iran.
US General to Senate: Terror Groups Benefiting from Latin American Drug Trade
WASHINGTON, DC — The Iran-backed Lebanese terror group Hezbollah is among the terrorist organizations that are benefiting from the illegal drug trade in Latin America, Lt. Gen. Kenneth Tovo, deputy commander of the U.S. Southern Command (Southcom), told lawmakers.
Southcom: Iran Has Established 80-Plus Cultural Centers Across Latin America to Promote Shiite Islam
Iran has established 80-plus “cultural centers” across Latin America and the Caribbean to promote Shiite Islam, counter U.S. influence in the region, and increase its own, according to the U.S. Southern Command’s 2015 posture statement submitted to Congress.
