Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - October 28, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba REMEMBRANCE DAY TRIBUTES WILL PUBLISH ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2025 Deadline to submit your Tributes is 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 4, 2025. “ In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row ” – John McCrae email wfpclass@winnipegfreepress.com call 204-697-7100 drop off or mail to: c/o Classified Department, Winnipeg Free Press, 1355 Mountain Ave., Winnipeg, MB R2X 3B6 TO PLACE YOUR REMEMBRANCE DAY TRIBUTES MESSAGE: REMEMBRANCE DAY Celebrate the memory of a Veteran this Remembrance Day A8 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS I WORLD TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2025 T HE Nicolás Maduro regime says Venezuela has captured a group of alleged mercenaries with ties to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and accused Washington and Trinidad and Tobago of co-ordinating military exercises intended to provoke an armed confrontation in the Caribbean. In a statement released Sunday by Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez, the socialist government said the arrests revealed what it described as a “false- flag operation” planned from waters bordering Trinidad and Tobago, or from Trinidadian or Venezuelan terri- tory, “to generate a full-scale military confrontation” against Venezuela. The regime’s announcement comes amid the fast-growing buildup of U.S. forces in the Caribbean launched by U.S. President Donald Trump to com- bat drug cartels. The administration has signalled that it might soon author- ize ground incursions into Venezuela to target the so-called Cartel de los Soles, a narco-trafficking organization the U.S. claims is led by Maduro himself. The Venezuelan government did not release any evidence or details about the alleged arrests, such as the number of suspects, their nationalities or when and where they were detained. It also linked the alleged plot to mil- itary drills it claims are being carried out this week by Trinidad and Tobago “under the co-ordination, financing, and control” of the U.S. Southern Com- mand, calling them “a hostile provoca- tion and a grave threat to the peace of the Caribbean.” The statement accused Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister Kamla Per- sad-Bissessar of having “renounced the sovereignty” of her country to act as a “military colony subordinated to U.S. hegemonic interests. “By aligning herself with Washing- ton’s militarist agenda, Persad-Bisses- sar not only seeks to attack Venezuela and break our historical bonds of brotherhood, but also violates the United Nations Charter, the CELAC declaration of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, and the principles of CARICOM,” the statement read. The Maduro government said the al- leged military manoeuvres are part of an effort to “turn the Caribbean into a space for lethal violence and U.S. im- perial domination.” The Miami Herald could not in- dependently confirm the arrest of any group or the existence of co-ordinated operations involving the CIA or the Doral-based U.S. Southern Command, which oversees military operations in Latin America. In its statement, the Maduro govern- ment compared the supposed plan to events such as the USS Maine explosion in Cuba in 1898 — one of the causes of the Spanish-American war — and the Gulf of Tonkin incident near Vietnam in 1964, both of which preceded major U.S. military interventions. The government said the alleged provocation follows the same pattern and accused the U.S. of seeking “a pretext for war” in the region. The statement also accused Trinidad and Tobago’s government of human rights violations, alleging that “inno- cent fishermen have been victims of extrajudicial executions in the Carib- bean Sea.” Maduro warned that Venezuela “does not accept threats” and said its armed forces would remain “alert and mo- bilized in perfect civil-military-police unity” in response. The accusations come at a time of strained relations between Venezuela and the U.S., following the Trump ad- ministration’s decision to amass the largest U.S. military presence the Caribbean has seen in decades to com- bat drug cartel operations in the re- gion. The task force has launched dead- ly strikes against boats the U.S. says were transporting drugs to Caribbean islands and into the United States, most of them originating in Venezuela, leav- ing at least 43 people dead. The buildup of U.S. forces in the re- gion continues. Over the past two months, the Penta- gon has deployed close to 10,000 troops — most of them based in Puerto Rico — along with a contingent of Marines aboard amphibious assault ships. The U.S. Navy has positioned at least 10 warships and a submarine in the Caribbean as part of the expanded pres- ence, and last week Trump directed the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, into the region. In addition, Trump has indicated the United States is now considering ground operations, while his adminis- tration has granted the CIA new powers to conduct covert activities in the South American country. “We are certainly looking at land now, because we’ve got the sea very well under control,” Trump told re- porters in the Oval Office earlier this month. “We’ve almost totally stopped it by sea. Now we’ll stop it by land.” — Miami Herald Venezuela accuses U.S. of plotting false-flag attack Claims to have captured CIA group JESUS VARGAS / GETTY IMAGES FILES Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro says the country does not accept threats. ANTONIO MAR ÍA DELGADO Accused Kirk assassin can wear street clothes in court amid ‘extraordinary’ attention SALT LAKE CITY — The 22-year- old Utah man charged with killing Charlie Kirk can appear in court wearing street clothes but must be physically restrained due to secur- ity concerns, a judge ruled Monday. Attorneys for Tyler Robinson argued images of him shackled and in jail clothing would spread widely in a case with extensive press cover- age and public interest, which they said could prejudice future jurors. Judge Tony Graf agreed to make some allowances to protect Robin- son’s presumption of innocence be- fore a trial, agreeing the case has drawn “extraordinary” public and media attention. “Mr. Robinson shall be dressed as one who is presumed innocent,” Graf said during a virtual court hearing. Utah prosecutors have charged Robinson with aggravated murder in the Sept. 10 shooting of the con- servative activist on a Utah college campus and plan to seek the death penalty. While Robinson has no prior crim- inal history, Graf said the charges he faces are extremely serious and present safety concerns in the courtroom. It’s the court’s highest priority to protect the attorneys, court staff and Robinson himself during what could be emotional hearings, Graf said before denying Robinson’s re- quest to appear without restraints. He did, however, prohibit members of the media from photographing or filming Robinson’s restraints. Robinson is accused of firing a fatal gunshot at Kirk, a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump who worked to steer young voters toward conservatism, from a rooftop over- looking a crowded courtyard at Utah Valley University in Orem. He was arrested the following night when he showed up with his parents at his hometown sheriff’s of- fice in southwest Utah, more than a three-hour drive from the site of the shooting, to turn himself in. As law enforcement agencies were scouring the state for the shooter, Washington County Sheriff Nate Brooksby said he received a phone call from a retired deputy saying he knew who killed Kirk. Robinson’s family had reached out to the retired deputy, who they knew through their involvement with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and worked with him to help negotiate a peaceful surrender. “Part of the negotiation of getting him to bring himself in was that we would treat it as delicate and as soft as possible to make him feel com- fortable to where he would show up at my office,” Brooksby said just af- ter the arrest. Prosecutors have since revealed incriminating text messages and DNA evidence that they say connect Robinson to the killing. Robinson reportedly texted his romantic part- ner that he targeted Kirk because he “had enough of his hatred.” Graf appeared Monday from jail on a blacked out screen and spoke only to confirm he was present. — The Associated Press HANNAH SCHOENBAUM WRIGHTSVILLE, Ga. — A police of- ficer who was talking to a firefighter outside a Georgia convenience store shot and killed a man who drove up and began attacking the firefighter with a machete, authorities said Monday. After arriving at the store in a vehicle, the man walked over to where the police officer and firefighter were talking and suddenly began swinging the weapon, authorities said. “Fearing for the life of the firefighter and in defence of himself and the fire- fighter, the officer was left with no other option than to use deadly force to stop the threat,” Wrightsville police said. The firefighter has severe injuries to his arms, but is expected to survive, police said. The 32-year-old man shot by the Wrightsville police officer was taken to a hospital, where he died. The officer was not injured, police said. — The Associated Press Man who attacked firefighter shot dead ;