Após o resultado das eleições presidenciais no domingo, indígenas da etnia Guarani Kaiowá do Mato Grosso do Sul fizeram diversas denúncias de casos de violência que envolvem tentativas de assassinatos e até ameaça de envenenamento da água da comunidade.
Segundo o Conselho Indigenista Missionário (Cimi), ao menos cinco casos de assassinatos de indígenas na região desde sábado (24) estão sendo investigados.
O coordenador do Cimi em Mato Grosso do Sul, Matias Benno Rempel, diz que os indígenas relataram diversos casos de intimidações durante a eleição. “Caminhonetes que rodavam pelo território e algumas agressões aos indígenas para tentar causar pânico na comunidade e evitar que eles fossem votar”.
Mas ele ressalta que a violência no estado é constante.
“Agora temos holofotes para a região. Mas o que aconteceu essa semana, as tentativas de assassinatos, elas ocorrem o tempo todo com a população indígena Guarani Kaiowá. Essa violência que está sendo chamada de violência pós eleitoral, ela é um componente permanente de milícias do campo”, disse.
A Fundação Nacional do Índio (Funai), o Ministério dos Povos Indígenas (MPI) e a Articulação dos Povos Indígenas do Brasil (Apib) encaminharam pedidos ao Ministério Público Federal e à Polícia Federal para investigar os casos. Um deles envolve um atropelamento de indígena de forma proposital na cidade de Coronel Sapucaia, no sudoeste do estado, na fronteira com o Paraguai.
Segundo dados da Apib, entre 2022 e 2026, seis indígenas da etnia Guarani Kaiowá foram assassinados no estado de Mato Grosso do Sul.
Envenenamento da água
Outra denúncia investigada pelo MPF é a de uma ameaça de envenenar a água usada pela comunidade em retaliação ao resultado da eleição presidencial.
Em um áudio que foi atribuído a um funcionário da prefeitura de Tacuru, no extremo sul do estado, o homem diz ao interlocutor que os indígenas deveriam ser mortos por terem votado no candidato Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT): Na gravação ele fala: “ponha (sic) veneno na água, (vamos) matar essas praga na água”.
Segundo o coordenador do departamento jurídico da Apib, Ricardo Terena, a água na região é difícil e as comunidades indígenas dependem de caminhões pipa. E após a divulgação dos áudios, muitos passaram a não consumir mais essa água. O MPF de Mato Grosso do Sul deu um prazo de 24 horas para que a prefeitura de Tacuru esclareça se os áudios são verdadeiros, quem é o autor das ameaças e quais medidas estão sendo tomadas.
On Wednesday’s broadcast of “CNN News Central,” Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) responded to a question on if he supports Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) leading the party if Democrats take the majority in the midterms by saying that
Republican Iowa gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn vowed to protect girls’ sports, keep age-inappropriate books addressing transgender topics out of elementary schools, and safeguard unborn children during a recent gubernatorial debate, emphasizing the importance of protecting vulnerable populations and preserving Western cultural institutions.
Jagadish Krishnan faced media outside his Riverton electorate office, reading a statement and taking several questions before being whisked back into his office by a staff member as those questions became heated.
Jagadish Krishnan faced media outside his Riverton electorate office, reading a statement and taking several questions before being whisked back into his office by a staff member as those questions became heated.
New restrictions on the bauxite miner include increasing protection buffers for water reservoirs by prohibiting mining within two kilometres, and increasing protection buffers for black cockatoo nesting trees.
Federal Member for Fremantle Josh Wilson has become the first Labor minister based in WA to reveal he has concerns over the possibility of fracking being undertaken in the Kimberley.
Federal Member for Fremantle Josh Wilson has become the first Labor minister based in WA to reveal he has concerns over the possibility of fracking being undertaken in the Kimberley.
On Wednesday, the Office of Energy Dominance Financing at the U.S. Department of Energy announced it had closed a $5.1 billion loan package to Alliant Energy—a utility company with over 1.5 million customers across Iowa and Wisconsin—to "lower electricity costs, expand firm power generation, and strengthen grid reliability" in the Midwestern states.
The loan package is part of the Energy Department's response to President Donald Trump's April 2025 executive orderdirecting the agency and its secretary, Chris Wright, to ensure the nation uses "all available power generation resources" to expand and secure America's electric grid amid growing demand.
In a press release, Alliant said the 30-year loan package will finance 1.6 gigawatts of new natural gas generation, 240 megawatts of increased capacity at its existing natural gas facilities, and a gigawatt of energy storage. The loan package will also allow Alliant to add 2 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas storage. All told, these upgrades and additions will generate enough electricity to power 2 million homes annually, according to the Energy Department.
Alliant estimates the deal will result in "up to $1.2 billion in cumulative customer savings," as well as the creation of "more than 1,600 local jobs" through construction projects financed by the loans. Of course, some of the savings likely stem from Alliant receiving more favorable loan terms from the Energy Department than it would from an open-market lender.
A report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission outlining the deal's terms shows that the interest rate to be charged on each loan aligns with the government's borrowing costs. However, the markup on each loan will remain a fixed percentage, regardless of whether lending to Alliant becomes riskier or more expensive. Under the deal's terms, Alliant has until May 15, 2056, to repay the loan, but it is only responsible for paying interest until the first principal payment is due in 2052.
The Energy Department said the deal is the Trump administration's 10th financial close and its "sixth and seventh utility financing completed through the Energy Dominance Financing Program." As of September 30, the department had issued $132 billion in loans and guarantees through the program, including $47.5 billion announced in conditional commitments, and disbursed $53.2 billion.
While the Trump administration is taking credit for the deal, the loan is essentially a repackaging of a $3 billion conditional commitment offered by the Biden administration in 2025 as part of its last-ditch effort to spend as much taxpayer money on green projects as possible before Trump took office. Under the terms of the Joe Biden-era deal, Alliant would have used the loan to "finance multiple clean energy and battery energy storage system projects." Instead, the company will now receive an additional $2.1 billion in funding, without the climate goals the Biden administration stipulated.
Gregory Beard, director of the Office of Energy Dominance Financing, said the agency is "putting capital to work." The deal is perhaps better described as the Energy Department usurping a role that should be reserved for private-sector, institutional lenders. "This type of government involvement is only another example of the current Energy Department distorting the power generation market," says Tom Opdyke, director of energy and environmental policy at the R Street Institute.
The agency's meddling seems even more unnecessary given that Alliant's revenue is expected to grow 6.8 percent annually over the next three years, with its profit margins increasing from 18.4 percent to 22.2 percent, according to the stock research and portfolio-tracking platform Simply Wall St.
The timing of the announcement also raises some red flags. While an Alliant spokesperson tells Reason they spent "months reviewing the details and finalizing contracts" before the loan package "was finalized this week," the money is conveniently being directed to energy projects in two fairly competitive states in this year's midterm elections. The Cook Political Report has the Iowa Senate race as a toss-up and several incumbent House Republican seats in Iowa and Wisconsin leaning Democrat.
The loan package could be a ploy to boost Trump's and Republicans' favorability with the electorate in Iowa and Wisconsin by appearing to address a cost-of-living issue high on voters' list of concerns. "Even if that's the case, those things aren't going to happen by Election Day, and voters' opinions aren't likely to shift on the promise of future jobs and savings," says Opdyke. "So it might be too little, too late."
Trump is scheduled to speak this weekend in an Iowa-Wisconsin border town.
Whatever the reasoning, the loan package is effectively a subsidy for Alliant to expand its operations and grow its customer base at a lower cost. It's cronyism that enriches Alliant and disadvantages its competitors, at American taxpayers' expense.
Scientists believe there is a likely correlation between poorer conditions and the number of whale carcasses that have washed up along Perth beaches over the past month.
Scientists believe there is a likely correlation between poorer conditions and the number of whale carcasses that have washed up along Perth beaches over the past month.
Riverton MLA Jagadish Krishnan has vowed to defend the lawsuit, and has countersued the US businessman behind it with defamation proceedings in the WA Supreme Court.
Riverton MLA Jagadish Krishnan has vowed to defend the lawsuit, and has countersued the US businessman behind it with defamation proceedings in the WA Supreme Court.
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