Headline

Fearing Deportation, Migrants In US Send More Money Home

Published

3 months ago

April 10, 2025

Central American migrants in the United States sent home around 20 percent more in remittances in the first quarter of 2025, official data showed this week, a trend economists said reflected their fear of deportation by President Donald Trump’s administration.

Nearly one-quarter of the GDP of impoverished Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua is made up of money sent from US-based migrants to relatives in their homelands.

Guatemala’s central bank said this week it had recorded $5.64 billion in remittances in the first quarter, a 20.5 percent increase over the same period in 2024.

Honduras’s central bank, for its part, said the country received $2.62 billion, a 24 percent increase on the first quarter of 2024.

El Salvador and Nicaragua do not yet have complete data for the first quarter, but in January and February, remittances to both countries increased by 14.2 percent and 22.6 percent respectively, compared to the same months in 2024.

El Salvador received $1.4 billion and Nicaragua $909 million in the first two months of 2025, according to their central banks.

In Nicaragua, the figure includes remittances not only from the United States, but also from Costa Rica ($68.2 million) and Spain ($48.6 million).

The president of Guatemala’s central bank, Alvaro Gonzalez, attributed the increase in remittances to migrants’ fear of being deported from the United States.

Guatemalan economic analyst Erick Coyoy took a similar view, telling local media that the surge was “an anticipated reaction by migrants to the perceived risk of deportation.”

It is unclear, however, whether they sent more money home to ensure that, if deported, they would be able to access their savings or whether it was to help their relatives benefit from their situation in the United States while they can.

Trump returned to the White House in January on a promise to conduct the biggest wave of migrant deportations in US history.

Fearing deportation, some migrants from Central and South America have cut short their journeys to the United States and returned home.

Headline

UK Police Charge Ex-Arsenal Midfielder Thomas Partey With Rape

Published

1 hour ago

July 4, 2025

Editor

Ex-Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey has officially been charged with multiple sexual offences by the Metropolitan Police Service, according to a statement released on Friday.

According to the BBC, the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed it has authorised charges after receiving a file of evidence from detectives.

“The Crown Prosecution Service has authorised the Metropolitan Police Service to charge a man after a file of evidence was submitted by detectives. The Met has issued a charge and requisition to Thomas Partey, 32 (13/06/1992), of Hertfordshire, in connection with the following offences: five counts of rape, one count of sexual assault,” the CPS stated.

The former Arsenal midfielder, whose contract ended on Monday, is alleged to have committed the offences between 2021 and 2022.

BBC reports that Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, stressed that the wellbeing of those involved remains a top priority.

“Our priority remains providing support to the women who have come forward. We would ask anyone who has been impacted by this case, or anyone who has information, to speak with our team. You can contact detectives about this investigation by emailing CIT@met.police.uk,” he said.

Partey is expected to appear before Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, August 5.

Headline

Putin Says Will Speak With Trump On Phone Today

Published

1 day ago

July 3, 2025

Editor

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he would speak with US counterpart Donald Trump on the phone Thursday, their first publicly announced call in over two weeks.

The two have been in regular contact since Trump took office in January and have discussed issues like the Ukraine conflict and economic cooperation.

Putin did not say what the two would discuss in Thursday’s call.

“I will talk to the US president today,” the Russian leader told the media during a visit to an exhibition centre in Moscow.

Trump confirmed the call on Truth Social, saying it would start at 10.00am (1400 GMT).

The two leaders have praised each other in recent weeks, despite Moscow’s ongoing assault on Ukraine.

Putin said last week that he had “great respect” for Trump and that US ties were improving. Trump said Putin’s statements were “very nice”.

AFP

Headline

NAFDAC Warns Against Use Of Excess Hydroquinone In Cosmetics

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2025

Editor

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned users of bleaching creams to refrain from using products containing excessive hydroquinone to safeguard their health.

NAFDAC Bauchi State Coordinator, Mr Hamis Yahaya, advised in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bauchi on Tuesday.

Hydroquinone is a skin-lightening agent used to treat hyperpigmentation, such as melasma and age spots.

Yahaya said that the approved quantity of the chemical substance in cosmetics was only two per cent.

According to him, NAFDAC conducts checks on market products to ensure public health and safety.

“The black colour provides natural protection against harmful radiation due to melanin content.

“Applying creams with hydroquinone contents more than two per cent is harmful. Mixing creams by non-experts is wrong.

“Hydroquinone affects the health of the users gradually, including causing cancer,” he said.

Yahaya urged the media to raise awareness about the dangers of cosmetics that could endanger consumer lives.