Current Events of Week 1: July 5 - 13

Locals say celebrities are ruining their town

Locals of Chipping Norton say the arrival of celebrities like Jeremy Clarkson and David Beckham has ruined their town. 

The beautiful small town known as Chipping Norton has become the new home for celebrities such as Kate Moss, Jamie Oliver, and David Cameron. With their arrival, prices have been jacked up and the town has been overdeveloped. 

The picturesque pastoral life depicted by Jeremy Clarkson's farm is driving demand for housing and straining local infrastructure and public services. 

Ms. Webb (49) says in regards to Clarkson’s farm, “I think Clarkson is good in the way he’s bringing money in, but the thing is, the prices are going up, there isn’t the infrastructure to cope with all the new people coming.”

Because of the high demand for housing, a bid has been put in by Rainer Developments to look at potential housing developments between London Road, Banbury Road, and A3400, neighboring the Chipping Norton Cricket Club. 

Town locals say the latest housing project is an example of overdevelopment driven by its high status. Ms. Hancox (49) said: “We have had new houses built up the road from us, and all we smell is sewage because the sewers can’t take it. It has gotten worse over the years with all the houses and people coming through. The roads are not big enough; it has gotten ridiculous. The traffic is a nightmare. We can’t even get to the doctors.”

Some even say it is more expensive than London. 

Many locals complain about the hordes of tourists that come through, saying Clarkson’s farm is at fault for ruining their town. 

While Clarkson’s farm is bringing in many tourists in hopes of seeing his farm, tourists are subsequently disappointed when they realize they are not allowed into the pub and farm. 

As the town of Chipping Norton continues to attract the rich and famous, locals are left wondering how much longer their community can withstand the pressures of fame. While the celebrities may have brought attention and money, many feel the true cost has been the quiet charm and livability of their home.

Journalist: Finley Hamilton

ICE Raids: human impact

The ICE raids are a series of events occurring exponentially more frequently and more families are being caught in crossfire and have to suffer the aftermath. On June 8th, Andrea Velez, a graduate of Cal Poly Pomona, was arrested during an immigration raid in Pasadena, California. She was being dropped off to work by her mother and sister when suddenly her mother saw in the rear view mirror as her daughter was being taken by the infamous ICE police force. This is but one of the many tragic and distressing cases of ICE coming into offices, shops, public spaces and even schools.

ICE is defined as Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security. This agency operates under three principal branches: Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) and Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA). Specifically on ERO it “manages all aspects of the immigration enforcement process, including identification and arrest, domestic transportation, detention, bond management, and supervised release, including alternatives to detention” Taken from ICE website.

In the raid of June 8th when Andrea Velez was captured, her family members alongside witnesses stated that the ICE did not even ask her for any identification before arresting her and that she had done nothing wrong. Many also state that the ICE is now simply targeting people for the color of their skin or as Velez’s mother, Margarita Flores puts it “The only thing wrong with her … was the color of her skin,”. A video of Andrea’s family depict their anguished cries as they shout at the enforcement officers “ella es ciudadana porfavor” or “she is a citizen, please”. Velez’s family is still unaware of her whereabouts and they have yet to be informed of anything regarding Andrea.

In another case a family of four, the mother and three daughters, had the ICE enter their home in the middle of the night and started taking their belongings under the justification that they were doing a seizure warrant which is defined as being when law enforcement officers enter a specific location and are allowed to seize evidence or property related to a criminal investigation.

Again, there are countless stories both equally or more alarming of families being torn apart and the remaining members are left wondering about the fate of their loved ones, where they are and whether or not they are safe.

In more than one case of these raids the witnesses claim that the ICE is not actually verifying any credentials and simply taken people away based on their appearances. Nevertheless, the government and the police force themselves state that they are only capturing illegal citizens, people who pose threats to the area or people trying to interfere with their legal processes.

Going back to the story about the raid in the middle of the night, this family that remains anonymous states that they too were legal and certified but this didn't seem to stop the ICE, they were described as “dismissive, rough, and careless”. The family says that they thought they were being robbed at the beginning of the raid and to some extent they weren’t wrong. The reason for the seizure warrant was for the prior owners of the household

The sloppiness of certain ICE operations cause families to be caught in crossfire and as a result be traumatised and oftentimes ripped apart. It is vital to remember that the people being affected by these raids are human and they deserve the same rights and respect as anyone else.

Journalist: Isabella Vélez

Need a Ride? Watch Your Back

Two girls get assaulted by their driver and an unannounced passenger driver after ordering a ride through the application inDrive.

On Sunday, June 29th, in Rabat near Méga Mall, a violent assault involving an inDrive driver took place. The victim was a young woman who was accompanied by her friend. They ordered a ride via the inDrive app at 7:39 PM. At 7:44 PM, a driver arrived claiming to be the one picking up the passenger. However, the car was a different model, colour, and license plate than what was shown in the app. In addition to that, the driver had a passenger, a woman, with him which was not communicated in the trip details given on the application.

Worried about the mismatched information, the young woman denied being the customer. Without warning, the driver came out of the vehicle, violently grabbed the victim's phone and verified her identity. After confirming she was the right customer, the driver lost his temper, throwing insults at her. He even told his female passenger to come and beat her, then threatened to do it himself.

The student told Hespress FR: "I tried to stay calm and explain to him that I couldn't get into a different car than the one I had ordered, especially accompanied by unidentified people." After the driver ignored her explanation, she attempted to get a picture of the license plate. He then punched her in the abdomen. With intent to turn the tables around, the driver began filming her, presenting himself as the victim. Her friend tried to verbally defend herself and got slapped by the driver's companion. They were then both physically assaulted by the attackers until the main victim lost consciousness.

An ambulance arrived taking them to the hospital where the main victim was found to have a fractured jaw, four broken teeth and persistent abdominal pain. Security guards at the mall who witnessed the assault reported that the driver later came back and was talking with witnesses on site, possibly manipulating them into thinking he is the victim. After recovery, the victim filed a police complaint.

When Aicha, one of inDrive's many student users, was asked what her reaction was to finding out about the incident, she mentioned: "I was appalled that something like this could happen so close to where I live, especially considering that I am also a young girl that uses inDrive." Due to inDrive operating on a peer-to-peer negotiation model without centralised monitoring, safety concerns continue to rise within inDrive users, particularly female inDrive users, over the lack of oversight and accountability.

As a result of various similar incidents going around, Aicha mentioned taking various precautions when ordering an inDrive: "Before I get into a car, I'll either text my brother, my sister, my mom telling them 'for the next 30 minutes I'll be in this ride. Here is my live location.'" With more stories like this emerging, users are calling for better safety policies and more accountability from the company.

Journalist: Yusra Khalil

Man found by his family after being stolen by Argentina’s military government as a newborn.

A man who was stolen from his family by Argentina’s military forces during their de facto government has been recovered by his family after 48 years. 

He was found after his sister, Adriana Metz, the CONADI (National commission for the right to identity) and the UFICANTE (Specialised unit for cases of child appropriation during state terrorism) conducted an investigation and offered the man a DNA test to confirm his identity in April 2025.

His appearance was announced in a press conference on July 7th by Estela de Carlotto, the president of Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, the association in charge of recovering stolen children by the military regime. He was not present at the conference.

His parents, who were left-wing activists, were kidnapped by the military dictatorship in their family home in Cutral Có, in the province of Neuquén and taken to “La Escuelita” (Little School), a clandestine detention camp in Bahía Blanca, over 500km away from their home. There, they were tortured and eventually murdered. Graciela Alicia Romero, his mother, was 5 months pregnant and gave birth while in captivity. 

Graciela Alicia Romero and Raúl Eugenio Metz are still missing - or “desaparecidos”-  since their kidnapping on December 16th, 1976

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Graciela Alicia Romero and Raúl Eugenio Metz were affiliated with the ERP-PRT, a Marxist guerrilla group. Their leftist views and activism made them immediate targets for the regime.

Adriana, who was one year old at the time of her parents' disappearance, was present when task groups raided the family home and took her parents away. The perpetrators took the girl and gave her to the family’s neighbour, advising him to “raise her as his own”. Nonetheless, he decided to contact her family, and she was sent to live with her paternal grandparents in Bahía Blanca.

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Adriana’s grandfather passed away shortly after her parents disappeared. Her grandmother, Elisa Kaiser, raised her until she became too ill to take care of her when she was 14. She died in 1992, missing the chance to meet her grandson and give him the hug she yearned for.

Raúl’s whereabouts were lost in January 1977. Graciela gave birth to her son in April of the same year. After a few days, he was taken from her. She met another detainee, Alicia Partnoy, in the camp’s bathroom and managed to tell her about her son and that one of the interrogators had taken him away.

After being liberated, she sent a letter to Adriana’s grandparents revealing the birth of their grandson, which the girl managed to hear while her grandfather Óscar read the text out loud. Since then, she decided to find her lost brother.

Adriana began participating in activism during the trials for crimes against humanity committed by the military junta. Today, she serves as a referent for the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo and is part of the directive commission, presided over by Estela de Carlotto.

The military junta aimed to eliminate any opposition to the regime by establishing a state of terror through state terrorism, kidnapping, torturing, murdering and disappearing thousands of people.

The Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo celebrated his recovery, a new milestone in the pursuit of all the stolen children during the military dictatorship and the values of memory, truth and justice. 

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Estela de Carlotto and Adriana Metz in the press conference where her brother’s recovery was announced.

Adriana “has always been looking for him” and is eager to meet him in person to finally hug him after her family was destroyed by state terrorism 48 years ago. They had a phone call last week, where he explained that he had been raised as an only child. “I told him ‘hey, here I am’,” she explained at the press conference.

Estela de Carlotto emphasised the significance of this event in continuing the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo’s mission to locate their grandchildren, even 48 years later. Her own grandson was found in June 2014, at 36 years old.

Journalist: Regina Pannunzio

Rising seismic activity raises concerns across Guatemala

Multiple reports about seismic activity have been reported throughout the Central American country, starting on Tuesday of this week. According to the National Coordinating Agency for Disaster Reduction (CONRED), around 2,788 people have been severely affected, while 608 are being treated in shelters.

On Tuesday, July 8th, at around 3:12 p.m. (GUA), the scientific institution of Guatemala recorded a strong earthquake of a 5.2 magnitude and many other aftershocks in several departments within the country, where the mainshock was recorded near Palín, Escuintla. The earthquake significantly affected the capital city and its surrounding municipalities, shaking tall buildings and sounding sirens for over ten minutes.

INSIVUMEH, the National Institution of Seismology, Volcanology, Meteorology, and Hydrology reported 40-53 seisms during the day, causing the entire nation to declare an orange alert and activate evacuations for private and public buildings in the departments of Guatemala, Sacatepéquez, and Escuintla. Videos of the activity were widely spread through social media, where users recorded these continuous seismic activities and expressed as “it felt like seven degrees” and “very strong”. 

CONRED reports state that the unpredictable series of earthquakes caused roadblocks, landslides, and provoked the collapse of adobe houses located on the outskirts of the capital city. Records dating back to this Wednesday (July 9), at least 43 homes have been revealed with severe structural damage, and more than 300 people were affected.

Guatemalan president Bernardo Arévalo announced that the sequence of seismic events “is not of volcanic origin” and stated in a press conference that “It is a tectonic earthquake, and no volcanic activity has been recorded in the area”.

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Photo taken by the Guatemalan Volunteer Firefighters

Due to the upcoming risks citizens may face from these erratic natural disasters, the Guatemalan government suspended classes and in-person learning in the departments of Escuintla, Sacatepéquez, and Guatemala City. CONRED coordinators urged local, municipal, and departmental authorities to activate their “Response Plans”, have their 72 hour backpack ready filled with basic resources and necessities, remain calm, and stay informed through the official channels of the country.

“Taking care of our families is the priority. Before the #temblorgt take precautions, follow the instructions of the authorities and protocols. We will be deployed attending to the population, calmly and responsibly.Report any damage to 119 of @ConredGuatemala.”, according to President Bernardo Arévalo’s post on X.

The cumulative counting from Tuesday (July 8) to Thursday (July 10) reached between 348 and 425 episodes, most of which were aftershocks and minor activity. Central American residents have to be cautious and alert due to the unsettlement of these constant geological disasters putting lives and infrastructure in danger, as seismic activity has been also reported from parts of neighboring country, El Salvador.

Journalist: Mariann Morales