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Q&A: Elizabeth Smart on survival, advocacy and the power of sharing her story

Kraig Pakulski 0 28 Article rating: No rating

By Chris Boyette, CNN

(CNN) — Elizabeth Smart became a household name when she was abducted at age 14, held captive for nine months and then found safe. Now 38, she is married with children and devotes her time to advocating for survivors of abduction, abuse and sexual violence.

With the release of the new Netflix documentary “Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart” on Wednesday, CNN sat down with Smart to talk about how her experience shaped her and what her life is like now. The interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

CNN: Are you happy with the new documentary? What motivated you to revisit your story now? Do you hope the audience learns anything specific from it?

Elizabeth Smart: I am very happy with it. Absolutely — when I first got home, I didn’t hear of anyone else who’d been kidnapped, didn’t know of anyone else who’d been held captive. I didn’t feel like rape, sexual violence and abuse were common conversation. So, I ended up feeling very isolated, very alone.

I didn’t want to talk about it with anyone. I felt a great sense of shame over what happened, even though in my mind I knew it wasn’t my fault. But I just couldn’t separate myself, or I couldn’t change my emotions. My emotions still made me feel embarrassed and shameful. And as years went by, I had more and more survivors share their stories with me. And finally, after the trial came out, I felt like, if all of this information about what happened to me was gonna be out there, then I wanted it to serve a purpose, which is when I really got into advocacy.

And I just feel that sharing stories is so important. I feel like it’s one of the best ways we learn, because we can share statistics and they can be awful and terrible and just shocking, but until you start connecting faces with them, it doesn’t quite have the same emotional impact otherwise. And so, when this opportunity came along, I just felt like this was worth doing.

It is important to share my story — important so that if anyone watching is going through something similar, they don’t feel alone and hopefully they don’t feel the same shame and embarrassment that I feel.

CNN: Do you feel like there were any new revelations or anything that you shared during this documentary that you haven’t really touched on before?

Smart: I feel like two stories were being told in parallel to each other. My dad, my uncles, my sister are all going through sort of their side of the story and what was going on. And then at the same time, I was able to go through my story and what was going on because both sides had a story to tell.

When I got home, I remember feeling like, ‘Well, it wasn’t that bad for you guys. You were all together. You had each other. I was alone.’ But now, as a parent myself, I’m like, ‘My goodness, I would do anything. I would gladly go through another kidnapping to protect my children from ever experiencing that.’ So, I think now I have a newer, fresher perspective than I certainly did back then.

CNN: Have you ever talked with your kids about what happened?

Smart: Yes, my kids all are aware of what happened, and they couldn’t tell you details about what happened, but they know that I was kidnapped, and they know that I was held captive for nine months and they know that I was rescued. And they also know that when I say no to them about, like, sleepovers or anything else that I feel like is a risk, they understand why I say no. Well, I don’t know if I would say they understand, but they usually sigh and say, ‘I know it’s because you want to protect us.’

CNN: How has your experience shaped you as a parent?

Smart: I think it just makes me so much more aware of what really is out there, t

Trump afirma que las tierras raras forman parte de su acuerdo con Groenlandia. Es “una auténtica locura”

Kraig Pakulski 0 18 Article rating: No rating

Análisis por Matt Egan, CNN

El presidente Donald Trump dijo este miércoles que alcanzó un marco para un acuerdo con la OTAN sobre el futuro de Groenlandia que incluirá derechos sobre minerales de tierras raras.

“Ellos van a estar involucrados en los derechos mineros, y nosotros también”, dijo Trump sobre la OTAN y Estados Unidos en una entrevista con CNBC después del anuncio inicial en Truth Social .

No especificó ningún término preliminar. Pero la riqueza mineral sin explotar de Groenlandia ha contribuido a que la isla encabece la lista de deseos de Trump para construir un imperio.

Los funcionarios de Trump ven las riquezas subterráneas de Groenlandia como una forma de debilitar el control de China sobre los metales de tierras raras que son fundamentales para todo, desde aviones de combate y láseres hasta vehículos eléctricos y escáneres de resonancia magnética.

Trump ha restado importancia a los recursos naturales de Groenlandia, incluso en su discurso ante el Foro Económico Mundial en Davos, Suiza, el miércoles, cuando dijo que la adquisición de minerales de tierras raras no era la razón por la que Estados Unidos necesitaba el territorio.

“Todo el mundo habla de los minerales. Hay muchísimos”, dijo Trump. “No existen las tierras raras. Existe el procesamiento de tierras raras. Pero hay muchísimas tierras raras. Y para llegar a estas tierras raras, hay que atravesar cientos de metros de hielo. No las necesitamos por eso. Las necesitamos para la seguridad nacional estratégica y la seguridad internacional”.

Pero horas después, Trump declaró que el acuerdo para Groenlandia incluía dos partes: su concepto de defensa antimisiles “Cúpula Dorada” y minerales. Esto coincide con lo que su ex asesor de seguridad nacional, Mike Waltz, declaró a Fox News en 2024, cuando Waltz afirmó que el enfoque de la administración en Groenlandia se centraba en “minerales críticos” y “recursos naturales”.

La realidad es que la posesión danesa de Groenlandia no es lo que impide a Estados Unidos explotar el tesoro de la isla. Es el rigor del entorno ártico .

Los investigadores dicen que sería extremadamente difícil y costoso extraer los minerales de Groenlandia porque muchos de los depósitos minerales de la isla están ubicados en áreas remotas por encima del Círculo Polar Ártico, donde hay una capa de hielo polar de una milla de espesor y reina la oscuridad durante gran parte del año.

No solo eso, sino que Groenlandia, un territorio autónomo de Dinamarca, carece de la infraestructura y la mano de obra necesarias para hacer realidad este sueño minero.

“La idea de convertir Groenlandia en la fábrica de tierras raras de Estados Unidos es ciencia ficción. Es una auténtica locura”, dijo Malte Humpert, fundador e investigador principal del Instituto Ártico. “Es como si se explotara la Luna. En algunos aspectos, es peor que la Luna”.

A pesar de su nombre (que significa “verde” en inglés), aproximadamente el 80 % de Groenlandia está cubierta de hielo. Y la extracción de minerales —o prácticamente cualquier cosa— en el Ártico puede ser de cinco a diez veces más cara que en cualquier otra parte del

¿Qué es la “Junta de la Paz” de Trump y quiénes se unen?

Kraig Pakulski 0 32 Article rating: No rating

Por Helen Regan, CNN

El presidente de EE.UU., Donald Trump, está luchando por atraer aliados occidentales a su “Junta de la Paz”, pero hasta ahora ha conseguido el apoyo de los monarcas de Medio Oriente, del hombre conocido como el último dictador de Europa y de al menos un líder buscado por presuntos crímenes de guerra.

Trump ha invitado a decenas de países a unirse a la junta que busca resolver conflictos globales, pero su cometido ha alarmado a varios aliados de Estados Unidos, como también lo ha hecho el comentario del líder de EE.UU. de que “podría” reemplazar a las Naciones Unidas.

La junta, presidida indefinidamente por Trump, se concibió originalmente como un organismo limitado encargado de supervisar la reconstrucción de Gaza, devastada por la guerra de dos años de Israel.

Sin embargo, su propósito se ha ampliado desde entonces para abordar conflictos en todo el mundo, y el borrador de la carta, enviado junto con las invitaciones para unirse, ni siquiera menciona a Gaza.

Rusia y China, adversarios de EE.UU., así como Bielorrusia, un estado históricamente represivo, se encuentran entre los invitados a unirse a la junta, ofreciendo puestos permanentes por un precio de US$ 1.000 millones.

Aliados europeos, estados petroleros del Golfo, antiguas repúblicas soviéticas e incluso el papa también han recibido ofertas para unirse.

Se espera que alrededor de 35 de los 50 países invitados asistan a una ceremonia de firma el jueves en el marco del Foro Económico Mundial en el balneario suizo de Davos, según un alto funcionario de la administración.

Esto es lo que debe saber sobre la junta, quién se une y quién no.

Trump había propuesto inicialmente la Junta de Paz como parte de una segunda fase del plan de cese del fuego de 20 puntos en Gaza negociado por Estados Unidos en septiembre.

El Consejo de Seguridad de las Naciones Unidas respaldó el plan en noviembre, dándole legitimidad internacional, con un mandato para que la junta supervise la desmilitarización y la reconstrucción de Gaza.

Pero Trump tenía planes a largo plazo. El borrador de la carta constitutiva, obtenido por CNN, describe a la Junta de Paz como una “organización internacional” que promueve la estabilidad, la paz y la gobernanza “en zonas afectadas o amenazadas por conflictos”.

Trump servirá como presidente indefinido de la junta, y posiblemente ocupará el cargo más allá de su segundo mandato, según el estatuto.

La “Junta de la Paz” se sentará por encima de una “Junta Ejecutiva fundadora” que incluye al yerno de Trump, Jared Kushner, al secretario de Estado Marco Rubio, al enviado especial Steve Witkoff y al ex primer ministro del Reino Unido Tony Blair.

Los Emiratos Árabes Unidos, Arabia Saudita, Egipto, Qatar, Bahrein, Pakistán, Turquía, Hungría, Marruecos, Kosovo, Argentina y Paraguay han aceptado la invitación de Trump. Al igual que Kazajstán y Uzbekistán, estados de Asia central, e Indonesia y Vietnam.

El primer ministro de Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, también está a bordo, aunque está furioso por la inclusión de funcionarios turcos y qataríes en el comité ejecutivo de Gaza y enfrenta una orden de arresto de la Corte Penal Internacional.

Armenia y Azerbaiyán, que firmaron el año pasado un acuerdo de paz negociado por Estados Unidos que daría a este país acceso exclusivo para el desarrollo de un corredor de tránsito crítico en la región, también han llegado a un acuerdo.

El líder de Belarús, Alexander Lukashenko, a

Federal authorities have called those who monitor ICE ‘domestic terrorists.’ Here’s what we know

Kraig Pakulski 0 27 Article rating: No rating

By Isabel Rosales, Karina Tsui, Ray Sanchez, CNN

(CNN) — One day after the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis earlier this month, a Minnesota immigrant advocacy group reported a threefold increase in the number of people signing up to become legal observers.

“To say this: The killing of Renee Good lit a fire under the community, would be an understatement,” said Ryan Perez, a leadership and organizing director with the advocacy group COPAL, part of a network of 5,000 trained civilians who monitor immigration enforcement. “It really is a remarkable moment.”

As the Trump administration deploys thousands of federal officers to carry out turbocharged immigration operations across the country – with the Minneapolis area now the epicenter – growing networks of volunteers who call themselves ICE observers appear to be intensifying their efforts.

Volunteers document arrests, some tail ICE agents in vehicles, while others blow whistles warning community members of ICE enforcement –– tactics under increased scrutiny since the fatal shooting, which has led to more aggressive enforcement operations and sparked protests across the US.

Good, who served on the board of her son’s school, was linked, in school documents, to similar activities encouraging parents to monitor and possibly disrupt ICE operations –– an association Trump officials are placing at the center of their review into the incident as the activist and mother of three partially blocked ICE agents with her car.

An ICE officer who was filming Good shot her after she started to accelerate her SUV on January 7. Videos of the encounter show Good was turning her vehicle away from the agent as she pulled forward, but it is unclear whether she made contact with him before he fired.

Experts say while some practices by volunteers are acts of nonviolent civil disobedience, others may fall into murkier legal territory. Here’s what we know.

Who is involved in the ICE observer groups?

Across the country, thousands of parents, teachers, clergy members and community organizers have sought training on what they can legally do when they see an immigration arrest. They have been trained on documenting federal immigration agents’ actions with cell phone video and quickly warning migrant neighbors with whistles and car horns.

“People that look a lot like Renee Good, we have a lot of moms. We have a lot of retirees, people that would be volunteering at the ballot box,” Perez said of the volunteers.

Kateri Heymans, a 29-year-old Spanish teacher in Minneapolis, registered as an observer the day after Good was fatally shot. She said she was alarmed by the number of federal agents flooding her hometown and the violent scenes that have accompanied their presence.

In North Carolina, the immigrant worker group Siembra NC operates an ICE watch hotline and a verification system tracking the operations of federal agents in the community.

“Safety concerns are a daily reality,” said Andrew Wills Garces, a senior strategist with Siembra NC. “After the killing of Renee Nicole Good, our volunteers are asking, ‘Can they get away with this?’ They see an administration labeling legal observers as ‘domestic terrori

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