Panama's ex-president Martinelli departs for asylum in Colombia
PANAMA CITY - Colombia granted asylum to Panama's former President Ricardo Martinelli, Colombian authorities said on Saturday, and two sources close to the ex-president said that he had departed the Nicaraguan embassy in Panama City for Colombia.
Martinelli, who was sentenced to over a decade in prison in Panama for money laundering, has been living in the Nicaraguan embassy in Panama City since February last year, after Panama's Supreme Court confirmed his sentence.
Panamanian authorities said in a statement that they offered the ex-president safe passage from the embassy to a local airport in "full compliance with the obligations set forth in the 1928 Convention on Asylum and the 1933 Convention on Political Asylum."
Colombia's foreign ministry said the granting of asylum to Martinelli was "part of Colombia's humanist tradition of protecting people who are persecuted for political reasons." REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
24 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Motorcyclist dies after multi-vehicle collision on TPE
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The SCDF and the police were alerted to the accident on the TPE at about 9.20am on Aug 15. SINGAPORE – A motorcyclist died in an accident involving another motorcycle and a lorry on the TPE on the morning of Aug 15 . The police said in an updated statement on Aug 17 t hat the 30-year-old man died in a hospital, which they did not name. He was unconscious when he was taken there. The other motorcyclist, 25, was conscious when he was taken to a hospital. The Singapore Civil Defence Force said on Aug 15 that it took one person to Sengkang General Hospital and another person to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. The Straits Times understands the man who died was taken to Sengkang General Hospital. The police were alerted to the accident on the TPE towards the PIE, before the exit to Seletar Link, at about 9.20am on Aug 15. Dashcam footage posted on SG Road Vigilante's Facebook page shows a lorry travelling on a wet road before it appears to skid across the expressway from the left-most lane and hit the two motorcyclists. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Life These cats may have disabilities, but they are resilient and capable of being affectionate Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day Following that, a helmet can be seen rolling on the road from the accident site. Debris can be seen at the site. Police investigations are ongoing.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Power plant south of Yemeni capital hit by 'aggression', Houthi-run TV says
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox CAIRO - A power plant south of the Yemeni capital Sanaa was hit by an "aggression", knocking some of its generators out of service, the Houthi-run Al Masirah TV reported on early Sunday. The Yemeni channel did not identify the source of the reported "aggression". Teams were working to put out a fire caused by the incident, Al Masirah added, citing a source in civil defence as saying. At least two explosions were heard earlier in Sanaa, residents said. Israel has been bombing Yemen in what it says is in response to the Iran-aligned Houthis' attacks on Israel. The Yemeni group has been firing missiles towards Israel, most of which has been intercepted, in what they describe as support to Palestinians during the war in Gaza. The U.S. and the U.K. had also previously launched attacks against the Houthis in Yemen. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Life These cats may have disabilities, but they are resilient and capable of being affectionate Singapore Minor Issues: Are ghosts real? And other pesky questions kids ask Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day In May, the U.S. announced a surprise deal with the Houthis where it agreed to stop a bombing campaign against them in return for an end to the group's shipping attacks, though the Houthis said the deal did not include sparing Israel. REUTERS
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Ukraine drone attack injures train station employee in Russia's Voronezh, governor says
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A railway employee was injured and a power line damaged by a Ukrainian drone attack at a station in Russia's Voronezh region, the regional governor said on Sunday. "According to preliminary information, a railway station track technician was injured in one of the municipalities," Alexander Gusev said of the overnight attack on the Telegram messaging app. "He has been hospitalised." Gusev said the attack caused train delays, but by Sunday morning trains were running back on schedule. The Russian defence ministry, which reports only how many drones its units destroy not how many Ukraine launches, said on the Telegram messaging app that nine drones were downed over the Voronezh region in Russia's southwest. In total, the ministry said, its defence systems destroyed 46 Ukrainian drones overnight, all of them in regions west of Moscow. Reuters could not independently verify the Russian reports. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Kyiv says that its strikes inside Russia are in answer to Moscow's continued attacks on Ukraine and are aimed at destroying infrastructure key to Russia's war efforts. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Life These cats may have disabilities, but they are resilient and capable of being affectionate Singapore Motorcyclist dies after multi-vehicle collision on TPE Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean Singapore Singapore congratulates Indonesia on 80th Independence Day The reports of the attacks came after a summit between the U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin yielded no agreement on ending Russia's war in Ukraine. Trump said on Saturday that Kyiv should make a deal with Moscow to end the war because "Russia is a very big power, and they're not." REUTERS
