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Vance accuses EU of ‘foreign interference’ in upcoming Hungarian election while endorsing Orbán – Europe live

It is absolutely baffling how JD Vance is determined to insist that he is absolutely not telling the Hungarians who to vote for as he literally speaks in Budapest, five days out from the election, and delivers a straight stump speech / laudation for Viktor Orbán, including everything he (says) he has achieved in government, and how well he sees his actions in sharp contrast to what he believes is corrupt and rotten Europe and the EU. Oh, and he repeatedly directly said he wants him to win the election, too. It is obviously highly unusual for a senior US leader to intervene in a foreign election like this, and it would have once been unthinkable. But I think we know really well by now that the world has changed since January last year beyond any recognition. But since he is doing it anyway, why not lean in, but instead keep pretending he is not doing the very thing he is doing?

Trump says ‘a whole civilisation will die tonight’ if Iran does not make a deal – Middle East crisis live

At least three people were killed and five others wounded on Tuesday when rockets fired from the direction of Kuwait hit a house in Khor al-Zubair near Basra, security and health officials told Reuters on Tuesday. Police said the death toll could rise as some family members remained under the debris.

JD Vance accuses EU of ‘interference’ as he visits Hungary to help Orbán win election

JD Vance has railed against the EU, accusing it of blatantly interfering in Hungary’s upcoming elections, even as the US vice-president said he had travelled to Budapest to “help” Viktor Orbán win Sunday’s vote. Speaking to reporters shortly after landing in Budapest on Tuesday, Vance’s tone was combative as he alleged that the EU was responsible for “one of the worst examples of foreign election interference” he had ever seen. “The bureaucrats in Brussels have tried to destroy the economy of Hungary,” he said. Gesturing to Orbán, he added: “They have tried to make Hungary less energy-independent. They have tried to drive up costs for Hungarian consumers. And they’ve done it all because they hate this guy.” Vance, however, made no effort to conceal the reason he had arrived in the country five days before a heated election in which Orbán is facing the possibility of being ousted after 16 years in power. “Of course, I want to help, as much as I possibly can, the prime minister as he faces this election season,” said Vance. On Sunday, Hungarians are due to cast their votes in a pivotal parliamentary election, in which Orbán is facing an unprecedented challenge from Péter Magyar, a former top member of the ruling Fidesz party. The election has pitted two distinct versions of Hungary’s future against each other, as Orbán and Fidesz seek to convince voters that the war in Ukraine poses a deep threat to the country and that Orbán is best placed to handle this risk, while Magyar and his Tisza party have urged voters to focus on domestic issues such as economic stagnation, fraying social services and corruption. Tuesday’s press conference saw Vance drawn into Orbán’s efforts to paint Ukraine as the country’s top threat, with Vance telling reporters that he was aware of Ukrainian intelligence services trying to “put the thumb” on the scale of American elections. “This is just what they do,” said Vance, as he stood alongside Orbán. He singled out “people in the Ukrainian system” who had campaigned alongside Democrats before the 2024 US presidential election. Vance’s attack on Brussels came amid mounting scrutiny over Budapest’s ties to the Kremlin. On Tuesday – after previous allegations that Russian intelligence agencies, along with disinformation networks with links to Russia, were working to sway the election in Orbán’s favour – it was reported that Orbán had told Vladimir Putin: “I am at your service” in an October call. On Tuesday, Bloomberg News said it had obtained a Hungarian government transcript of a call that took place between Orbán and Putin on 17 October, in which Orbán reportedly compared the relationship to that of a “mouse” standing ready to help the Russian “lion” as needed. “Yesterday our friendship rose to such a high level that I can help in any way,” Orbán reportedly told Putin in the call. “In any matter where I can be of assistance, I am at your service.” Orbán has long been the EU’s most Moscow-friendly leader, maintaining Hungary’s heavy reliance on Russian oil and gas while his foreign minister reportedly regularly updated his Russian counterpart with details of confidential EU meetings and worked to amend the EU sanctions list to Moscow’s liking. On Tuesday, Vance praised Orbán for being a “great example” in Europe on energy security and independence, in what appeared to be a reference to Hungary’s continued reliance on the imports of Russian oil and gas. Vance said European leaders, in contrast, had made a “huge mistake” in cutting off oil and natural gas from the “east”. A report last month showed that Hungary’s reliance on Russia had increased since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with Russia now accounting for 93% of the country’s crude oil imports compared with 61% in 2021. In the transcript of the October call revealed on Tuesday, Putin reportedly praised Hungary’s “independent and flexible” stance on his war against Ukraine. “It is incomprehensible to us that such a balanced, middle-ground position only generates counterarguments,” said the Russian president, according to the transcript. Hungary’s stance on Ukraine was also praised by Vance. “Your leadership has been a far, far more important and constructive partner for peace than almost anyone, anywhere else in the world,” the US vice-president told Orbán. He lauded Orbán – whose “illiberal democracy” has caused the country to plunge in press freedom rankings, face accusations of no longer being a full democracy and become the most corrupt in the EU – as an ally to Donald Trump in the defence of western civilisation. When asked whether the US administration would be willing to work with another Hungarian government if Orbán failed to win another term, Vance said yes, but that he did not expect a change in government. “Viktor Orbán is going to win the next election in Hungary, so I feel very confident about that and about our continued positive relationship,” he said. As Orbán and Fidesz lag in the polls, rightwing leaders from around the world have sought to rally behind him, catapulting the election in this central European country of about 9.5 million people on to the global stage as it becomes a wider symbol of the resilience of far-right movements. On Tuesday, Magyar, whose Tisza party is leading in most polls, directly addressed Vance’s visit to Budapest. “No foreign country may interfere in Hungarian elections,” he said on social media. “This is our country. Hungarian history is not written in Washington, Moscow or Brussels – it is written in Hungarian streets and squares.”

What are reparations for slavery and colonialism – and will the UK pay?

The rightwing Reform UK party has said it would stop issuing visas to people from any country that seeks reparations for the transatlantic trafficking and enslavement of Africans, at a time when the global battle for reparative justice is intensifying. Reform’s home affairs spokesperson, Zia Yusuf, this week claimed the UK was being “ridiculed on the world stage” and said the “bank is closed” to anyone who wanted to “use history as a weapon to drain our Treasury”. This is a characterisation that Caricom – the political bloc of Caribbean nations – has long argued is wrong, stressing that nations seeking reparative justice want a mutually beneficial partnership. Last month a resolution spearheaded by Ghana passed at the UN general assembly. It described the slave trade as “the gravest crime against humanity” and called for reparations as “a concrete step towards remedying historical wrongs”. While 123 nations voted in favour, the US voted against it and the UK abstained. Here, the Guardian looks at what reparations campaigners are asking for – and why. Why do colonialism and slavery still matter? More than 100 countries were colonised by European nations, in a process dating back to the 15th century. Britain’s empire was biggest – peaking at about a quarter of the world by the 1920s. Colonialism gave European nations the overseas workforces, raw materials, captive export markets and soldiers to fuel their economic and social development. Defenders of empire argue there were positive impacts as well as harms to colonised peoples. The transatlantic trade in enslaved people was central to European colonialism. Millions of Africans were trafficked to the Americas to grow cash crops, and subjected to violence, torture, sexual abuse and the denial of basic human rights. This lasted for about 300 years, including illegally. Colonised nations in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Oceania suffered harms including genocide, loss of ancestral lands, cultural destruction, the impoverishment and dispossession of populations, and ongoing racial, economic and ecological disparities within and between nations, including the neocolonial order that followed postwar independence movements. What are reparations? Reparations are an acknowledgment of harm and a commitment to repair. Victims of crimes under international law have a right to reparation, which can include an apology, guarantees of non-repetition, compensation, rehabilitation, full disclosure of the facts, and restitution. Caricom has joined forces with the African Union to seek reparations. They stress their intent is not to break Britain by demanding trillions, but to create a mutually beneficial restorative justice programme. Caricom’s 10-point plan for reparatory justice includes: A full formal apology. An Indigenous peoples development programme. Repatriation to Africa for those who wish. Establishment of cultural institutions and the return of cultural heritage items. Remedying public health crises linked to historical trauma. Education programmes. Historical and cultural knowledge exchanges. Psychological rehabilitation to address intergenerational trauma. Technology transfer. Debt cancellation. At November’s Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Antigua and Barbuda, it is expected that King Charles will face calls for an apology. Meanwhile, Jamaica, and lawyers in the UK, are pursuing legal routes to redress. Has any nation ever paid or received reparations for slavery? The UK compensated plantation owners the modern equivalent of £17bn after slavery’s abolition in 1833, but enslaved people and their descendants were not compensated. After enslaved people rose up in the Haitian revolution, ending French colonial rule at the turn of the 19th century, France demanded 150m francs in reparations, with payments only ending in 1947. What does the British public think about reparations? In 2024, a poll found six in 10 people believed Caribbean nations and descendants of enslaved people should receive a formal apology. However, a YouGov poll in March found 60% of the public as a whole were opposed to reparations, while 71% of Black adults were in favour. Have any non-government organisations committed to reparations? The Scott Trust, owner of the Guardian, committed in 2023 to a programme of restorative justice for its founders’ 19th-century connections to transatlantic enslavement in Jamaica and the US. This includes building partnerships with descendant communities, and an investment of more than £10m. The Church of England is launching a £100m project to address its historical connections. The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust this month appointed a head of reparations, after admitting Rowntree’s – the confectioner who endowed it – benefited from slavery, indenture and apartheid. Lloyd’s of London said it was committing £52m towards a “programme of initiatives” in 2023, having apologised for its significant historical involvement, but stopped short of reparations. The University of Glasgow agreed to spend £20m in 2019, while the University of Cambridge established a £1.5m Legacies of Enslavement Fund in 2020, after research found it had benefited significantly from slavery. What does the UK government say? The UK has never formally apologised for slavery or colonialism, and says it will not pay reparations. In a statement after the UN resolution, the Foreign Office said that, while slavery had “inflicted untold harm and misery on millions” and left “deep scars”, there was “no duty to provide reparation” because it had not been illegal at the time. What do experts say? The Jamaican jurist Patrick Robinson, a former judge of the international court of justice, has said the UK will “not be able to resist” the movement for reparations, which are “required by history and law”, adding: “reparations have been paid for other wrongs and obviously far more quickly.” Cristina Duarte, a Cape Verdean politician and special adviser on Africa to the UN secretary general, has said: “The structures that enabled colonialism, enslavement, and racial domination have morphed into new forms. “Africa remains trapped in a global economic system characterised by the permanent extraction of value … Ghana exported $9.58bn in gold in 2024, yet it only retained 14% of the value due to the nature of multinational agreements … Reparations are not about charity; they are about fairness.” The Green party of England and Wales says there will be “no true peace and justice” until Britain and other European countries “atone for the crimes they are still benefiting from … and the ongoing impact”.

Spanish politicians clash over request to move Picasso’s Guernica

A row has broken out between the Madrid and Basque regional governments in Spain over the latter’s request for Guernica, probably Picasso’s most celebrated work, to be housed temporarily in the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao to mark the 90th anniversary of the bombing of the Basque town. The work has hung in the Reina Sofía museum in Madrid since 1992 and repeated requests for it to be moved to the Basque Country have been refused. The latest request has led to Isabel Díaz Ayuso, Madrid’s outspoken, conservative president and Aitor Esteban, the leader of the Basque nationalist party, trading insults, each accusing the other of being “provincial”. “It makes no sense for everything to be returned to its origin,” Ayuso said. “In that case we should send all of Picasso’s works to Málaga,” referring to the city where he was born. “It represents a provincial mindset when culture is universal,” she said, adding that the Reina Sofía insisted that moving Guernica risked damaging the work. Esteban retorted that if anyone was provincial, it was Ayuso whose idea of national identity “is to drink beer on the terrace of a bar”, a reference to the Madrid president’s insistence on keeping bars open during the pandemic. Imanol Pradales, the Basque president, asked: “Does the Spanish government have the courage to move Guernica? They dragged Franco out of his tomb and aren’t capable of moving a painting from Madrid to Euskadi [the Basque region]? The ball is in their court.” The Basque government wants the painting to be hung in the Guggenheim from 1 October until 30 June to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the bombing of Guernica. Picasso’s black-and-white masterpiece depicts the violence of the attack carried out by the German Condor Legion and the Italian air force on 26 April 1937 during the Spanish civil war. Italy was an ally of the Spanish general Francisco Franco and the attack was an early experiment in what would soon become a commonplace of warfare: the aerial bombardment of civilians. Estimates of the number killed in Guernica vary widely, from 126 to 1,654, but in any case Picasso’s work became an international symbol of the horrors of war. He painted it shortly after the event and it was exhibited at the Paris International Exposition in 1937. After that it toured Europe and the US. As Picasso opposed its return to Spain during the Franco dictatorship, for many years it was hung in the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. The art historian Francisco Chaparro said that although the Spanish government could not rule out moving the work to the Basque Country, the risk of damaging the painting should take precedence over political motives. “Guernica is in a delicate state, it’s been rolled and unrolled on numerous occasions,” Chaparro said in support of the museum’s refusal to move it. “The Mona Lisa doesn’t leave the Louvre, Las Meninas by Velázquez doesn’t leave the Prado,” he said. “Guernica isn’t just the centrepiece of the Reina Sofía, the museum has grown up around it.” In regard to it staying in Madrid, the artist José Manuel Ballester said it should be remembered that Picasso himself wanted Guernica to be hung in the Prado museum, of which he was appointed director during the civil war although he never took up the post. In 2000, the Reina Sofía turned down a request from MoMA to borrow Guernica, saying “the great icon of our museum must remain, without exception, separate from the policy on lending works to other museums”. • This article was amended on 7 April 2026 because an earlier version referred only to the Italian air force’s role in the attack on Guernica, omitting to mention the German Condor Legion.

Donald Trump says ‘a whole civilisation will die’ if Iran ignores demands

Donald Trump warned that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Tehran does not accept his demands, amid a wave of bombing as Israel told Iranians their lives would be at risk if they used the country’s railways. A rail bridge in the central Iranian city of Kashan was one of the first reported bombed on Tuesday by Iranian state media, with two people reportedly killed as Israel’s military said it had launched “a wide-scale wave of strikes targeting dozens of infrastructure sites”. A bridge over a railway line near Karaj, to the north-west of Tehran, was hit, according to Iranian media, and power outages were reported in the same city after a substation and transmission lines were bombed. Bridges near Qom and Tabriz were also reportedly hit. The US also struck 50 military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island, the home to its main oil export terminal, as attacks on Iran escalated markedly in advance of an 8pm ET (1am BST) deadline set by the US president. “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump posted on Tuesday morning, before expressing hope that “less radicalised minds” would take over the country. The extraordinary threats came hours before an ultimatum set by the US president expires at 8pm ET on Tuesday – 4.30am on Wednesday in Iran (1am UK time) – in an attempt to force major concessions from Iran. Trump had repeatedly said the US was prepared to bomb Iran’s power plants and bridges in a concentrated attack on the country’s civil infrastructure if Tehran did not reopen the strait of Hormuz and abandon any effort to make nuclear weapons, though it appears some of the attacks may have already begun. The prospect of bombing Iran’s infrastructure has been condemned by lawyers and experts as a probable war crime because its impact on civilians would be disproportionate to whatever notional military advantage was gained, a conclusion that has been dismissed by the Trump administration. Israel’s military, writing in Farsi on social media, said on Tuesday morning that “from this moment” – 8.50am Iran time – until 9pm, Iranians should refrain from “travelling by train throughout Iran” for the sake of their own security. “Your presence on trains and near railway lines endangers your life,” the statement continued in a clear warning that stations and tracks normally used by civilians would be bombed on Tuesday. Iran on Monday rejected a proposal to implement an immediate ceasefire followed by peace negotiations brokered by Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey, arguing that it wanted a permanent end to the war. It issued a 10-point counterproposal, which Trump acknowledged but said was “not good enough”. Negotiations continued on Tuesday morning, though there were few clear developments. On X, Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said: “Over 14 million proud Iranians have, up to this moment, declared their readiness to sacrifice their lives in defence of Iran. I too have been, am, and will be a sacrificer for Iran.” One Iranian source told Reuters that Iran also wanted compensation paid for damages and to be left in control of the strait, allowing it to impose fees on ships that use it, a condition that would be unacceptable to the US. On Monday, Pete Hegseth, the US secretary of defence, said that “today will be the largest volume of strikes” on Iran and that attacks on Tuesday would be “even more than today”. Iranian media reported on Tuesday that Khorramabad airport, in western Iran, had been attacked, and Israel said it had conducted another wave of strikes on Tehran overnight. Israel’s military said it had bombed a petrochemical facility in Shiraz, where it said nitric acid used to make explosives was produced, as well as a ballistic missile launch site in north-western Iran. Iranian media also reported that a synagogue in Tehran was destroyed in the bombing, though Israel said it did not target synagogues. US officials told Fox News and the Wall Street Journal that B-2 stealth bombers had dropped 30,000lb “bunker buster” bombs on an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps compound in Tehran on Saturday. The bombs were GBU-57 munitions, the type used in last June’s attack by the US on Iran’s underground nuclear facility at Fordow. Israeli media reported that Benjamin Netanyahu told members of the country’s security cabinet on Sunday that the war against Hezbollah in Lebanon would continue regardless of what happened in the negotiations between the US and Iran. There was, the prime minister said, a “separation of theatres”. An attack on Saudi Arabia had hit a petrochemical complex in a sprawling industrial area in the eastern city of Jubail and workers at the site were evacuated. Sirens were repeatedly sounded in Israel as missile attacks continued. Five impacts were reported in the Tel Aviv area as Israel said Iran had fired ballistic missiles with cluster warheads, but no casualties were immediately reported. The price of Brent crude oil increased marginally to just above $110 (£83) a barrel in morning trading.

Row over ‘virtual gated community’ AI surveillance plan in Toronto neighbourhood

A row has broken out in one of Canada’s wealthiest neighbourhoods over plans to use an AI-powered surveillance system to create the country’s first “virtual gated community” to combat surging property crime. Crime rates in Toronto as a whole are dropping but residents of Rosedale have been left on edge by a sustained rise in home invasions, with robbers targeting the tree-lined neighbourhood at a rate more than double the city average. Break-ins and thefts remain the third highest per capita in Toronto. Growing unease is reflected in the community’s WhatsApp group, where as many as 60 out of about 350 members are already contributing to fund private security. “My friends experienced a horrific home invasion here in the community – their children were held at knifepoint, and they will be traumatised for the rest of their life,” said Craig Campbell, the Rosedale resident who proposed the plan. “Other friends aren’t sleeping well at night because they’re anxious about the crime that’s going to occur. Almost everyone knows someone who has been affected. Something has to be done.” In late March, residents attended a virtual meeting led by Campbell, who runs a security company. He outlined a plan in which an initial group of 100 residents would pay a C$200 (about £110) monthly subscription for technology that scans the licence plates of cars passing through the virtual “gate”. The US-based company Flock says the AI underpinning the technology can learn which cars belong to residents and which ones are suspicious. A rollout in the neighbourhood would mark Flock’s entrance into the Canadian market. Campbell emphasised that the cameras did not use facial recognition, instead collecting licence plate data to create “whitelists” (known) and “blacklists” (suspicious) of vehicles entering the neighbourhood. Data collected by the camera is retained for 30 days and police would only be able to access data with legal authorisation. The system would work alongside the unarmed security guards who are already paid to patrol the area. Campbell holds the Canadian licensing rights for Flock, and told the Guardian he “absolutely has a commercial interest in creating a viable business” around the security system. But he also said he was motivated by a feeling of frustration from friends and neighbours that not enough was being done. “For my family’s safety, I’m not waiting around for the government to fix this. Yes, it’s a complex issue. But there’s things that we can do today to help ourselves instead of waiting around,” he said. The Guardian reviewed the March meeting in Toronto and found that many of the residents who spoke were enthusiastic about the project, as were members of the WhatsApp group. But others were less certain, citing concerns over AI bias, profiling and the broader spectre of surveillance. Flock boasts that its network of more than 90,000 cameras has helped communities reduce crime by “up to 70%”, a figure researchers say is difficult to verify independently. The company has faced mounting scrutiny from activists in the US after local police shared data from schools with ICE agents and a police officer used the system to search the country for a woman who had had a self-administered abortion. One investigation found more than a dozen errors when reading a vehicle licence plate or a lack of verification by officers, resulting in people who had not committed crimes being stopped at gunpoint, sent to jail or mauled by a police dog. Flock has clashed with the American Civil Liberties Association in recent years over allegations of mass surveillance. A website, FlockHopper, has been set up specifically to helps user avoid the system. One user posted a video on YouTube that showed how he hacked a Flock camera in less than 30 seconds. Privacy laws in Canada are far stricter than south of the border and a plan like the one proposed in Rosedale would probably face a legal challenge if it were deployed. Regulators are likely to view the network of cameras as a data collection system, not just home security, triggering Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (Pipeda). “We’re very comfortable that we will be in compliance with all privacy regulations,” Campbell said. “Nothing about the cameras and the technology is any different than any private citizen standing on a corner taking a picture with their iPhone, except in this case it’s only the licence plate being recorded.” Toronto police acknowledged that when residents felt unsafe from crime, they “may look for ways to increase their sense of security”, but they did not comment on the legality of the proposed Flock system. A spokesperson for the force said “any technology that captures images, video or licence plates raises important considerations around privacy, data storage” and how that information was used or shared. Police said people wanting to use systems “may wish to seek guidance on applicable privacy laws and municipal regulations”. In the Rosedale WhatsApp group, there were tensions over how to view the project. “Is there a reason why everyone wouldn’t want this level of safety and security?” wrote one user who said he had pre-registered for Flock’s system. Another responded: “AI is one of the most unethical tools of our time,” citing its impact on the environment, bias and cases of wrongful arrest. François Hébette, who moved to the neighbourhood with his family a year and a half ago from California, said he understood the feelings behind the plans. When he was younger and living in Belgium, he experienced a break-in and the jarring anxiety that follows. “A private initiative like this might be quite effective and fix this issue,” he said. “But if you wanted to live in a gated community, you can move to one. The idea of changing a neighbourhood into this ‘virtual’ one just doesn’t feel right. We have young kids and I’m not sure this is the kind of world I’d like for them.” A spokesperson for Ontario’s privacy commissioner said because the office had not examined the matter, it was not in a position to offer specific comment. But they did say that companies that provided surveillance technologies for profit must inform individuals and obtain consent in a meaningful way and “use or disclose personal information for purposes that a reasonable person would consider are appropriate in the circumstances”. The company would also need to ensure the public was informed that video surveillance was taking place, and explain the use of the cameras. It would also need to ensure personal information (including in recordings) that was no longer required was destroyed, erased or made anonymous. The city of Toronto does not require permits for security cameras but recommends a series of “best practices”, including minimising the footage gathered outside a property. The city notes that the information and privacy commissioner of Ontario suggests a retention period of 72 hours – far shorter than the 30 days proposed at the Rosedale residents’ meeting. Signs would be posted in the neighbourhood warning that surveillance was taking place and giving residents (or anyone passing through) access to a QR code linking to the privacy policy and opt-out process. Anyone can request their licence plate be removed from the system. While drivers can reduce their presence in the system, they cannot fully avoid being recorded. With commuters, delivery drivers and maintenance workers travelling through the neighbourhood, it is unclear if this would satisfy the regulator. Campbell said: “We’ve had questions from the community about what happens if the bad guy opts out of their licence plate being covered. And yes, that’s a possibility. There are valid questions about this and about the databases. But what you can’t do is stop progress and innovation. Instead, you have to be thoughtful and be very public about what your values are.”

#MeToo movement brings wave of harassment claims across Colombia

Juanita Gómez was reporting on an international assignment for Caracol, a Colombian television channel in 2015, when an older colleague attempted to forcibly kiss her by inside a lift. She only managed to break free from him by pushing him away several times. Fearing any complaint would come down to the word of a “girl” against that of a senior presenter, she did not report the incident. But when news broke last month that Caracol had suspended two journalists after sexual harassment allegations against them, Gómez decided to publicly share what had happened to her 11 years ago. Without naming her aggressor, she wrote in a social media post that the fact that others were now able to report cases of abuse gave her “what feels like a sense of divine justice”. Dozens of other female journalists in the country have also reported that they had been victims of sexual harassment at other media outlets, using the #MeTooColombia hashtag and sharing each other’s reports with #YoTeCreoColega, or “I believe you, colleague”. A few days later, Caracol announced it was terminating the contracts of two of the country’s most famous journalists: Jorge Alfredo Vargas, 59, and Ricardo Orrego, 51. Both denied the allegations. But the repercussions extended far beyond the country’s newsrooms, proving more impactful than the country’s first wave of #MeToo nearly 10 years ago. “These conversations have already happened elsewhere, so it was about time to put this on the table here as well,” said Gómez, 38, who left Caracol in 2022 to join the weekly news magazine Semana. She prefered not to say whether or not her abuser was one of the two dismissed journalists. Given the volume of reports being shared, Gómez and four other journalists decided to create an email address for secure submissions: yotecreocolega@gmail.com. Another member of the group, Mónica Rodríguez, 52, a former Caracol presenter who now hosts an interview show on YouTube, said that the more than 220 emails they received did not only include accounts from journalists. “There are reports of harassment in the medical field, from school and university teachers, multinationals, and even NGOs. So, I believe this [movement] is opening up a conversation … because systematic and structural harassment exists in all public and private companies in the country,” she said. The aftershocks have also reached the government of the country’s leftwing president, Gustavo Petro, ahead of elections on 31 May. Paloma Valencia, the rightwing opposition candidate, released a screenshot in which the vice-minister of equality sent an unsolicited nude to a subordinate employee. He said the image had been sent in error and was meant for his partner but resigned after the backlash. The women’s caucus of Petro’s party in Congress released a statement demanding the immediate removal of the director of the state-run media network RTVC, Hollman Morris, a close ally of the president. Morris has been formally accused of sexual harassment by two women, one of them a journalist, but he sued both for libel and slander. “Women who claim to be victims of sexual harassment are being criminally prosecuted while the alleged aggressor remains the director of the largest public media network in the country,” said Colombia’s human rights ombudsman, Iris Marín Ortiz. “Victims of violence and sexual harassment still face enormous challenges in accessing justice here,” she added. Spurred on by the #YoTeCreoColega movement, the attorney general, Luz Adriana Camargo, issued a directive allowing investigations to begin, based on social media or press reports, removing the requirement for victims to file a formal complaint. She also created an email address for submitting reports privately, denuncia.acoso@fiscalia.gov.co, and opened an investigation into the Caracol case. When announcing the termination of the two journalists’ contracts – with Orrego, unilaterally; with Vargas, by mutual agreement – Caracol stated that it did “not constitute a judgment”, but “responds to the need to protect the integrity of all persons involved … and preserve the trust that society places in our organisation.” Vargas posted a statement saying that he faced this moment “with the peace of mind of having maintained the parameters of respect and good behaviour” throughout his career. “If at any moment someone had a different feeling, I respect it, while stating that my actions never had that intention,” he wrote. Orrego posted a statement signed by his lawyer that claimed his right to the presumption of innocence: “To date, there is no final decision, sentence, or pronouncement from a competent authority establishing any responsibility on the part of my client.” A 2020 survey of 160 Colombian female journalists by the University of the Andes found that 60% had reported experiencing some form of gender-based violence at work. Most of the victims, 79%, identified their superiors as the aggressors. “I’m going to give every day of my life to ensure this movement is not in vain nor just a Twitter trend,” said Paula Bolívar Pinilla, 33, co-director of the website Brava News, which is also a part of the group that is receiving the #YoTeCreoColega allegations. “These women have trusted us,” said Catalina Botero, 30, a former Caracol presenter now at RTVC. “I sincerely hope that silence is no longer an option for anyone, for any young journalist who enters a media outlet with so many dreams in her head and heart. I hope no one ever again steals that dream from any woman,” she added.