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- [00:15]
Amy Goodman
From New York. This is democracy now.
- [00:19]
Donald Trump
They hit a couple of ships and so we hit them much harder. When they hit, we hit 10 times harder. Anything that happens is going to be over very quickly and we'll only and we'll only make it safer, including for oil.
- [00:32]
Amy Goodman
U.S. and Iran have returned to open conflict, trading airstrikes for a second day. We'll talk to Iranian American analyst Trita Parsi with the Quincy Institute. Then to Houston, where family and community are reeling after ICE agents shoot and kill Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52 year old father of three US citizens.
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Ronaldo Salgado
I am Ronaldo Salgado, the eldest son of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. I want to tell you about my dad. He was a hard working family man who never wanted his name to be known by anyone outside of his family. He wanted nothing else in life but to provide for his wife and see his sons become great people.
- [01:18]
Amy Goodman
We'll hear from his son Ronaldo and go to Houston for the latest. Then to the case of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a Cuban immigrant whose death in ICE custody was ruled a homicide. We'll look at a ProPublica Texas Tribune investigation called He didn't need to Die, how an immigration detention center repeatedly failed to address a mental health crisis. Finally, to Albania. Thousands have filled the streets to protest a luxury resort development deal with Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. It's been too long with this kind
- [01:58]
Perla Trevizo
of political culture where the prime minister
- [02:02]
Amy Goodman
and the political parties of this country
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Perla Trevizo
think they can do anything.
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Amy Goodman
There are no barriers to what they
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Perla Trevizo
think acceptable in politics.
- [02:11]
Amy Goodman
It's called the Flamingo Revolution. Could it take the Albanian government down? All that and more coming up. Welcome to Democracy now, democracynow.org, the War and Peace Report. I'm Amy Goodman. The United States bombed Iran for a second consecutive night after President Trump declared the ceasefire over. Blasts were reported near the Basheir nuclear nuclear power plant and in multiple cities across Iran, with the US saying it struck 90 targets, including near the Strait of Hormuz. According to the Iranian Health ministry, at least 14 people have been killed since the US resumed bombing. Meanwhile, Iran says it's retaliated by attacking US bases and strategic centers in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. And Jordan's military said it intercepted eight missiles in its airspace. Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Barrel Ghalibaf, says the United States, quote, still hasn't learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost free, unquote. On Wednesday, President Trump spoke at the NATO summit in Turkey and threatened to strike Iran's civilian infrastructure saying quote, they really deserve it.
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Donald Trump
Their electric manufacturing facilities, right? Their electric plants where they make their electricity and their we will, if we have to, we'll take them out. I don't want to do that, but if we have to, we'll take them out. They have desalinization plans. We'll take them out if we have to. I hate to do that. That's probably the one I would like not to do at least. We attacked Cargill and last night we knocked out a piece. I said don't touch the oil.
- [04:04]
Amy Goodman
President Trump was speaking alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the same news conference. Trump mistakenly confused Iran and Japan.
- [04:14]
Donald Trump
I told the story Yesterday we had 111 missiles shot by the Islamic Republic of Japan.
- [04:22]
Amy Goodman
We'll have more on Iran after headlines with Quincy Institute Vice President Trita Parsi. The body of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is being laid to rest today at a shrine in the city of Mashad. It's the culmination of a multi day funeral procession that's drawn millions of mourners including foreign dignitaries and at least eight heads of state. On Wednesday, massive crowds joined funeral processions in Iraq's holy cities of Najaf and Karbala for Khamenei who was killed in a U S Israeli airstrike on February 28 along with his daughter, son in law, daughter in law and 14 month old granddaughter. Israel is continuing its attacks on southern Lebanon with reports of heavy bombings in the town of Tebbi on Wednesday, Lebanon's national news agency reported two men were killed in an Israeli drone str in Nabatiya, Israel's latest violation of its ceasefire deal with Lebanon. This follows an Israeli strike on Monday that killed four people, including public school principal Esperanza Kandur and her mother. Kandor had returned to Nabatea to check on repairs at her war damaged home following months of displacement when Israel bombed her vehicle in Gaza. Health officials report at least nine Palestinians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes and gunfire over the last 24 hours. Among the victims Ahmad Nasser Saleem, a driver who was delivering food for the U S based nonprofit World Central Kitchen and Khan Younis. An Israeli missile hit a tent for displaced people in the Al Musi area killing at least four people, including a ten year old child. One survivor said he was asleep when the strikes hit.
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Trita Parsi
We were staying in the tents on the understanding that this area was safe and people live in tents by God, I was asleep when suddenly a missile struck. We came here and found the impact. There were martyrs and wounded. People were carrying them to ambulances and they loaded them onto carts and took them all to the hospitals. A friend of mine whose tent was next to mine was injured and his mother was injured too.
- [06:36]
Amy Goodman
Meanwhile, human rights groups say a photo apparently taken by an Israeli soldier and shared on social media corroborates widespread reports of torture. The image shows a man stripped to his underwear, blindfolded and bound face down to a pole with his arms tied painfully behind his back. The soldier captioned the photo Good morning in Hebrew and later deleted the post. On Wednesday, Amnesty International appealed to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, asking him to secure the immediate and unconditional release of Dr. Husam Abu Safiyah. The prominent Palestinian pediatrician. Director of Gaza's Kamal Erdogan Hospital, has been held by Israel without charge since his abduction by Israeli troops 18 months ago. Amnesty says Abu Safiyah faces an imminent threat to his life due to torture and medical neglect by his Israeli captors. It's calling on the State Department to bring the U.S. into compliance with the Leahy law, which prohibits U.S. financial or military aid to foreign security forces that commit gross human rights abuses. To see our coverage of Dr. Abu Safiyah, go to democracynow.org Russian missiles and drones rain down on Ukraine's biggest cities overnight. Officials in Kyiv report three people were killed and several others injured. Among civilians Sites hit was a 25 story residential high rise. Elsewhere, Russian strikes killed four people in Odesa and three others in Kharkiv. Dozens were injured by the bombings. Elsewhere, Ukraine's military said its drones attack three more Russian oil refineries, along with pipeline pumping stations and Russian tankers operating in the Black Sea. Ukraine's attacks on Russian energy sites have triggered acute fuel shortages. On Wednesday, the Kremlin announced a deadline ban on diesel exports to support the domestic fuel market. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a series of high level meetings at the NATO summit in Ankara on Wednesday, including with President Trump, who said the US Plans to license Patriot missile technology to Ukraine. Trump also said the US Would support Ukraine's efforts to strike deeper inside Russian territory. Russia's Foreign Ministry denounced the decisions made at the NATO summit, saying they could lead to a catastrophe. At one point, President Trump called Zelensky President Putin In Maine, Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner has suspended his campaign following a report he raped a former girlfriend in 2021. In recent days, most of Platner's most high profile supporters withdrew their endorsements, including Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren as as Congressmember Ro Khanna. Democrats had been hoping the populist Marine veteran, an oysterman, would unseat Republican Senator Susan Collins in November. In a video message posted Wednesday night, Platner denied the rape allegations, said it was part of an effort to crush his campaign. We live in a political system that is not built for normal people. It is a system that is built structurally to make sure that movements like ours cannot flourish, that if they begin to succeed, they can be crushed. The Maine Democratic Party says it's planning a nominating convention of hundreds to choose a new Senate nominee. The party has until July 27 to name a candidate. Possible senatorial contenders include Maine Governor Janet Mills, Maine Secretary of State Shena Bellows and Dr. Nirav Shah, a public health official who Maine's response to Covid, as well as progressive Troy Jackson, a lifetime logger and former president of Maine's state Senate. In other Senate news, questions continue to swirl about Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell's health. He's been hospitalized since June 14th. McConnell heads the Senate Defense Appropriations subcommittee and is the former Senate majority leader. McConnell is set to retire after his term ends in January. On Wednesday, Kentucky's Democratic governor, Andy Beshear, sent a letter to Senator McConnell demanding he provide a health update. Meanwhile, McConnell's wife, Elaine Chao, the former U.S. labor and Transportation secretary, has returned home from a trip to China. She had faced criticism for remaining in China after McConnell was hospitalized. In a statement, she wrote, quote, the senator's health did not warrant an immediate return to the U.S. she said. A federal judge has ruled that E. Jean Carroll can collect $5.8 million from President Donald Trump. The money has been held in escrow since a jury found Trump sexually abused and defamed her. The judge's ruling comes a week after the US Supreme Court declined to hear Trump's appeal of the verdict. E. Jean Carroll had sued Trump, sexually assaulting her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s. The family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo is demanding an independent investigation into his death. The Mexican father was fatally shot in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday by an ICE agent who was driving an unmarked vehicle. Lorenzo Salgado Araujo had lived in the United States for decades and was driving a construction crew to a job site. His son, Ronaldo spoke Wednesday.
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Ronaldo Salgado
He did not deserve to die. He did not deserve to be reduced to a headline of Mexican Man Shot and Killed by ice. He deserved to quit to live a quiet life as Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a husband, a father and a job creator for dozens of men who also wanted the American dream. I would be doing his memory a disservice if I didn't recognize the other three men who were with him, one of which was my uncle. All three men were rounded up. Have not heard from them.
- [13:18]
Amy Goodman
We'll go to Texas for more on the story later in the broadcast. In Tennessee, a DEA agent shot and killed a man at a Memphis motel Wednesday as members of a federal task force attempted to serve him a arrest warrant. The U.S. marshals Service alleges the suspect had pointed a gun at agents. The victim has not been identified. It's the fourth deadly shooting by agents with the Trump administration's so called Memphis Safe Task Force, which includes members of the Tennessee National Guard and officers from more than a dozen federal agencies. On Monday, two National Guard soldiers fatally shot 20 year old Tyron Johnson as he was being pursued by Memphis police. His family is demanding video evidence corroborating the police claims that Johnson first attempted to fire a gun at the soldiers. Just weeks earlier, a Homeland Security Special agent shot 25 year old Jonah Neal in his Memphis home. Neal's family had called 911 to report he had a gun and was threatening to harm himself. He was pronounced dead at the scene. And on May 13th, the DEA agent fatally shot 41 year old Darren Pegram as he worked his shift at a Memphis Burger King. Authorities say the officer opened fire after Pegram reached into his waistband for a gun. His family says he was unarmed and shot in the back. And a former Wisconsin county judge has been spared prison time after she was convicted in federal court of obstructing federal agents from arresting an undocumented immigrant. Hannah Dugan was accused of helping the immigrant leave her courtroom in April 2025 to avoid arrest by agents waiting in the hallway instead of serving prison time. Former Judge dugan was fined $5,000. And those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now, democracynow.org, the war and Peace Report. I'm Amy Goodman. The United States bombed Iran for a second consecutive night after President Trump declared the ceasefire over. Blasts were reported in multiple cities, with the US saying it had struck 90 targets across Iran, including sites along the Strait of Hormuz. Blasts were also reported near the Bushehr nuclear power plant. According to the Iranian Health ministry, at least 14 people have been killed since the US resumed its attacks. Another 78 people were wounded. Meanwhile, Iran says it's retaliated by attacking US Bases in strategic centers in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. In addition, Jordan's military said it intercepted eight missiles in its airspace. Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagar Galibaf, says the United States, quote, still hasn't learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost free, unquote. On Wednesday, President Trump spoke at the NATO summit in Turkey and threatened to strike Iran's civilian infrastructure, saying, quote, they really deserve, unquote. On the flight back to the United States, Trump spoke more about the US Attacks.
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Donald Trump
We just hit them very hard and I say we hit up 20 to 1. Every time they hit us, we're going to hit them 20. And we did it last night. It did a little something today, but it was really retribution for last night. They hit actually three boats, not two. And when they hit, we hit back much on them. We have many ways we can win, but we've already won militarily. They have very little. They have very little left. And they want to make a deal so badly. They called a little while ago. They want to make a deal so badly. I just don't know if they're worthy of making a deal. I don't know that they're going to honor the deal. That's the problem.
- [17:13]
Amy Goodman
Meanwhile, during a press conference on Wednesday at the NATO summit, Trump mistakenly confused Iran and Japan.
- [17:22]
Donald Trump
I told this story yesterday. We had 111 missiles shot by the Islamic Republic of Japan.
- [17:31]
Amy Goodman
President Trump was sitting next to the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as he confused Iran and Japan and then referred to Zelensky as President Putin. We're joined now by Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. His latest piece on Substack headlined How the U. S. Iran Fight in the Strait of Hormuz can be resolved before it Blows up the mou. That's the memo of understanding. Trita, talk about what's happened. And President Trump saying the ceasefire is over. What does this mean?
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Trita Parsi
Well, this is obviously a disastrous development and a huge risk to the survival of the MoU and the entire diplomatic track that could put an end to this war and also give birth to a completely different relationship between the United States, United States and Iran, if it was successful. I'm not entirely sure as to whether this is completely over or not, because at the end of the day, both countries are in dire need of an end to this war. We have seen an exchange of fire before, after which they did return to talks, but this time, obviously it is worse because the United States is now escalating beyond just striking Southern Iran has also started striking civilian targets in other parts of Iran. And there's a significant risk, of course, that there will be massive further Iranian retaliation against this. What is really frustrating with all of this is that prior to all of this, after the first round of exchange of fire, the two sides were converging towards an understanding on how to handle this strait. The Iranians did not want to see any ships travel through any corridor of the strait without coordinating with them. That's their interpretation of the mou. The US Has a different interpretation, but they were converging towards an understanding in which essentially all ships would have to notify both the Iranians as well as one party in the gcc. And if that were to happen, both sides would essentially walk away and the strait would be open without any problems. But before they managed to get to that agreement, the Iranian funeral of the former Supreme Leader took place and talks were suspended. In the meantime, additional ships, with their transporters off, traveled through the southern corridor without coordinating with the Iranians. The Iranians gave them several warnings, eventually shot at them. And that's what then precipitated this exchange of fire that we see right now in which the US first struck Iran two nights ago and then again last night. But this has now gone to such a high level that it is much worse than the previous exchange and may very well be the end of the MOU altogether.
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Amy Goodman
The front page of the New York Times says U.S. bombs are on again as Truce breaks down. Trump Muls blockade. Talk about exactly what that would mean. And that clip we just played of him saying he's going after the civilian infrastructure. We don't know how many people have died in Iran, but there are a number in these latest attacks. And then, of course, you have Bahrain, Kuwait, perhaps Jordan is saying that they intercepted Iranian missiles.
- [20:52]
Trita Parsi
Yes, we have seen a pattern in which the Iranians do strike back at American bases in the region. I believe that last night they also struck at the base outside of Doha in Qatar. Creeping process back to the US Were to reimpose the blockade of the Persian Gulf, then we will see the Iranians probably not only closing the straits, but also pushing the Houthis to close the Red Sea as well. And that would not only be a return to war, but that would be a worse situation than what we saw before. Moreover, if Trump follows through on his threats of targeting energy infrastructure in Iran, that's when the Iranians are likely to start striking, not just at bases in the GCC countries, but at their energy infrastructure as well. And that would again make the situation worse than what it was during the war itself.
- [21:46]
Amy Goodman
Now, apparently, special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Trump's son in law, who's being massively protested in Albania for his and Ivanka Trump's development project with the Albanian government on an island there are in Geneva, although the high stakes talks there apparently are for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Yes, I'm sorry, that's old information, but let me go to a clip of President Trump describing to reporters the kind of airstrikes and damage he's considering in Iran. What I was talking about earlier.
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Donald Trump
Look, we're not attacking at the highest level. The highest level are the bridges there, which we can knock down. I would say in one day we knock down every single bridge in Iran. There's not a thing they can do about it. They're electric manufacturing facilities. Right? Their electric plants, where they make their electricity in there. We will, if we have to, we'll take them out. I don't want to do that, but if we have to, we'll take them out. They have desalinization plants. We'll take them out if we have to. I hate to do that. That's probably the one I, I would like not to do at least. We attacked Cargill and last night we knocked out a piece. I said don't touch the oil because maybe we'll take over Carg Island. We may take over Carg Island. There's not a thing they can do about it.
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Amy Goodman
So Trita Parsi, President Trump also referred to the people that are negotiating as scum. He was asked by reporters why he is saying that now, given he didn't say that before. And he boasted about taking out the first lever of Iranian negotiators and the second level of Iranian negotiators. And now he's on the third level, I think he said.
- [23:53]
Trita Parsi
First of all, I think it's important to recognize that a lot of these different things that Trump is threatening are war crimes. Taking out the civilian infrastructure, desalination plans, etc, all of this would constitute war crimes. And of course, we already have seen plenty of war crimes in this war already. Again, if the United States were to go in that direction, it's important to note Trump made similar threats due during the war and stopped short of doing it and executing it. And the key reason for that is if the United States were to do this, the Iranians likely will retaliate against similar targets in the GCC countries. And if you go after the energy infrastructure in the GCC countries, then we're not just talking about an oil crisis as a result of a bottleneck in the Persian Gulf and in this rate, but a production problem which would take much longer to recover from and most likely would throw the entire economy into a recession. And this is the key reason as to why he didn't do it last time, probably the reason why he won't do it this time either. But the threats themselves nevertheless are further undermining the atmosphere that is necessary to be able to make diplomacy work and ultimately lead to a deal. Now the Iranian attacks against the ship from the US Perspective is also actions that are undermining that atmosphere. But this is escalating at a speed at this point in which is very from the last escalation, but also one that makes it much more difficult to find an exit ramp from.
- [25:27]
Amy Goodman
I also wanted to ask you about a CNN expose, more about the Manob Girls school where over 175 people were killed, overwhelmingly little girls going to school. CNN reporting that military officials knew within days that, quote, senior U.S. military commanders bypass warnings in critical databases that intelligence about potential targets in Iran was severely out of date and approved some strikes anyway, including the strike on the school. Unnamed sources also cited to CNN that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's previous decision to cut the civilian harm mitigation and response staff at the Pentagon by over 90%. Only one full time staffer was left to work with development strike team. Can you talk about the ongoing significance of this? Because we're talking about the US Continuing to strike Iran now.
- [26:29]
Trita Parsi
Yeah, this is one of the darkest moments of American military history, I would say, in recent history. What happened to the schools in Minob and the young schoolgirls who were all killed. And we've seen how that had a profound impact on the Iranians. This is all part of a larger effort by Secretary of War Hexed in which he wants to undo the norms around the use of force, what he calls no longer fighting woke wars, essentially taking away most of the guardrails that have been put into place by the United States itself over the course of the last couple of decades after the Second World War, to protect civilians in war. Now there's a systematic effort both by the Israelis and by the United States under Peter Hexad to undo these norms and make it permissible to do things that over the course of the last couple of decades have been considered unlawful in war. And this is one of the first examples. The results of something like that in which after cutting so many people who would actually review these things, going through all the type of mechanisms and protocols to make sure that these targets were not going to be civilian, after having undone that, we've seen the direct result of it. And it's important to also understand this happened on the first day of the war. This was not after two weeks, not after two months in which statistically something atrocious could happen. This happened on the very first day of the war. And I think it is an indication of the direction we will be going in if this is not reversed, if these efforts to undo these norms around the use of force are not undone.
- [28:05]
Amy Goodman
Finally, the funeral of Khamenei. How massive it's been. Millions of people going from Iran to Iraq. And if you can talk about the significance, what this means for the future of Iran.
- [28:21]
Trita Parsi
One thing I think we saw saw through these funeral proceedings, particularly the massive crowds that were also showing up in Iraq, is the influence that Iran has in the region, particularly in the Shia community, but not just limited to that. This is something that I think is consistently underestimated in Washington in which it is not fully appreciated the degree to which Iran is interconnected and has massive influence in many of the neighboring countries. And as a result, any effort to try to completely isolate Iran and cut it off from the rest of the region is not going to work and has not worked so far. And I think the funeral proceedings in Iraq in particular showed what an impossible task that is. And one reason as to why that approach needs to be set aside because the end result of it is now become clear that type of an effort of isolating Iran only leads to a war. And we've already seen what a disastrous outcome that war was.
- [29:25]
Amy Goodman
I want to thank you for being with us. Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. We'll link to your piece on Substack headlined How the U. S Iran Fight in the Strait of Hormuz can be resolved before it Blows up the MOU Coming up, we go to Houston, Texas, where a family and community are reeling after ICE agents shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado, Iraq. A 52 year old father of three U.S. citizens. He's been in the United States for decades. Stay with us.
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Donald Trump
Sa.
- [31:00]
Amy Goodman
Performed by Julieta Venegas in our Democracy now studio. This is democracy now, democracynow.org, i'm Amy Goodman. In Texas, immigration and civil rights advocacy groups are demanding an independent investigation into the fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado around a Mexican immigrant and father of three U.S. citizens who was killed by an ICE agent in Houston during an attempted traffic stop. He'd been living in the United states for nearly 35 years. Lorenzo Salgado Araujo worked in construction On Tuesday morning. He was starting his workday by picking up other workers in Magnolia park, historically Latino neighborhood, when ICE targeted him. This is his son speaking at a news conference Wednesday.
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Ronaldo Salgado
I want to tell you about my dad. He was a hard working family man who never wanted his name to be known by anyone outside of his family. He wanted nothing else in life but to provide for his wife and see his sons become great people. He was also a man of routine for the majority of a third of the last 35 years of his life in the United States States. He began the day the same way and always ended it by coming home, sitting on the porch, eating a hearty meal made by my mother, going to sleep and doing it all over again the next day. Let me tell you about my father's last day alive with as much detail as possible because it's vividly replaying in my head over and over again. At 5 at 5am my mom and dad woke up before the rest of the world did. My dad brushed his teeth, he showered. My mom cooked him a huge meal for him to eat that day. At 5:50, my dad got dressed, grabbed his lunch and coffee, hugged and kissed my mom goodbye, slipped on his hat for the day, loaded his lunch, his work boots, his coffee and his work van. He patted our dog on his head goodbye and drove off to pick up his crew for work. At 6:45am he should have been picking up the last of his guys before heading to North Houston to finish up construction on some houses. Five minutes later, unbeknownst to me, at 6:55, unbeknownst to all of us, my dad had been shot inside his van near the intersection of Wayside and Canal by ICE agents in unmarked cars.
- [33:25]
Amy Goodman
That's Ronaldo Salgado, the son of Lorenzo Salgado Ra. Ronaldo also said that the three other people in the car, including his uncle, were taken into custody and have not been heard from since following the shooting. ICE claims Salgado Araujo had ignored verbal commands and rammed their vehicle and that an agent fired on him in self defense. Local elected officials and civil rights advocates are demanding the release of the video footage and an independent investigation. This is Roman Palomares, the national President of lulac. That's the League of United Latin American Citizens speaking at Wednesday's news conference in Houston.
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Roman Palomares
We are here today because in the absence of facts from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ice, we are left with no choice but to conclude that a man was unlawfully killed in the union the streets of Houston yesterday morning, barely 24 hours ago. His name was Lorenzo Salgado Arajudo. Say his name because no one else. ICE does not want you to say that name today. We stand here as a community and we demand.
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Perla Trevizo
Okay.
- [34:46]
Roman Palomares
LULAC today is demanding. Okay. We are not asking asking, we're not requesting. We are demanding the truth. It is unacceptable, it is un American to use lethal force against a human being, then lock away the evidence, hide the video, silence the record and expect his family, the people of Houston and the American public to simply nod and say, we believe you because we don't. We do not believe you. You have not earned that trust. ICE has not earned that trust from the American people. Your pattern has been one of inaccuracies, of prejudicial leaks before the facts are known, of twisting the narrative to fit your version of events.
- [35:41]
Amy Goodman
The fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo came on the six month anniversary of the ICE killing of Renee Goode in Minneapolis. For more, we go to Houston to speak with Cesar Espinosa, executive director of the civil rights group fiel. Immigrant families and students in the fight. He was at Wednesday's news conference. Thanks for joining us. Our deepest condolences for the whole community. Cesar, talk about what you know and how the federal government has responded. Why haven't you been able to see the video, video of what happened?
- [36:20]
Cesar Espinosa
Well, I mean, it's been really complicated and we've seen time and time again after ICE does these killings, after they do these acts, which they start, by the way, all of a sudden everything is hush hush. They don't want to release anything. We don't even know if there's body cam footage that exists because ICE agents are not mandated to wear body cameras. Cameras or have them running. And so there's, at this point, there' sand being this soon. There's so many questions that are left unanswered. And at the end of the day, the community, the family and the United States and every single person in this country deserves an answer.
- [37:03]
Amy Goodman
If you can talk about what Rinaldo said, that his father was being followed by unmarked cars, likely a freight for his life, that if he had known he was being followed by law enforcement, he would have followed the protocol, but he had no idea what was going on.
- [37:25]
Cesar Espinosa
Amy, we hear this all the time. People are saying, well, why don't People comply. Why don't they just stop? But I want people to put themselves in these immigrants shoes or these people, they, all of a sudden they are being approached by unmarked vehicles. These vehicles many times often start ramming vehicles, trying to get them to stop, trying to get them, force them to stop. And when people jump out, they're not wearing insignia, you know, saying federal agents or ICE or a badge. They're wearing a lot of the times plain clothing with vests that just say police. I mean, I mean, we've heard in this entire time that there's people impersonating ICE agents and things like that. So I cannot imagine the fear that a lot of people feel when they are being persecuted by somebody that's unknown. And I ask people, put yourself in these folks shoes and ask yourself, how would you react?
- [38:29]
Amy Goodman
So, Cesar, there were three other people in the vehicle with Lorenzo reportedly rounded up after the fatal shooting. Where are they? Who are they?
- [38:43]
Cesar Espinosa
We know that one of them is Lorenzo's brother or, you know, Ronaldo's uncle. The other two gentlemen, we don't know who they are and we don't know where they are at right now. As it happens, a lot of the times with immigrants, once they get put into the system, it can take anywhere from 48 to 72 hours to sometimes even weeks, weeks for us to be able to find them. What we have heard though from, and it's very troubling to hear this from some of the other family members, is that they're being told to sign voluntary departures. They're being told to cooperate with the version that ICE has released so that they can basically threatening them, they're gonna file charges if they don't, or that they're gonna be deported expeditiously. And what we fear is that this is another effort, effort from ICE to cover up something that they did very, very wrong.
- [39:39]
Amy Goodman
And finally, if you can talk about the rising deployment of federal immigrant agents to Houston and surrounding areas and the role of the Trump ally, the Texas governor, Greg Abbott.
- [39:53]
Cesar Espinosa
Well, you know, one of the things that we've seen over the last year and a half is we've really seen a ramping up of state troopers and forces that are mandated by the governor of Texas trying to emulate what the federal government is doing. And we've seen that rise in our area in the last couple of weeks. We had heard reports of more ICE sightings and it was just a matter of time before this happened. And we don't want these things to happen. We don't, you know, it's unfathomable what this family's going through. And our condolences go to Lorenzo's family. But at the end of the day, day, we must do everything we can to make sure that they get the transparency and justice that they deserve.
- [40:36]
Amy Goodman
Cesar Espinosa, executive director of FIEL Immigrant Families and Students in the Fight, speaking to us from Houston. We're going to stay in Texas. This is Democracy Now. Democracynow.org, i'm Amy Goodman. As we continue on the issue of immigration enforcement, we're going to talk about the family of Geraldo Lunas Campos. He was a 55 year old Cuban immigrant whose death in ICE custody was ruled a likely homicide. The family is suing four guards and the companies that oversaw Camp East Montana, a sprawling immigration detention tent camp at the Fort Bliss military base in El Paso, Texas, at the time of Campos death. The Washington Post reports his family seeking more than a million dollars in damages from From Acquisition Logistics, the company that oversaw Camp East Montana when Campos was killed. Akima, which employed the guards accused of killing Campos and Nana Regional Corporation, Akema's parent company. Earlier this year, an autopsy report released by El Paso county medical examiner's office concluded Campos died from asphyxia caused by neck and torso compression, ruling his death Bahamas. Before his death, Campos had complained of not getting the right dosage of medication to treat his bipolar disorder and anxiety. He'd also expressed having suicidal thoughts. But instead of receiving proper care, Campos was placed in solitary confinement where guards shackled and handcuffed him repeatedly putting pressure on his neck and chest until his body went limp. For more, we go to Philadelphia, where we're joined by Perlet Treville, Reporter with the ProPublica Texas Tribune investigative Unit. Her recent piece headlined He didn't need to Die, how an Immigration Detention Center Repeatedly Failed to Address a Mental Health Crisis. Perla, thank you so much for joining us. Tell us what you know.
- [42:38]
Perla Trevizo
Yeah, so we thank you for having me. First of all, we've reviewed nearly 300 pages of an extended medical examiner report that has not not been published or had not been published before. And in it, you know, as you mentioned, we had heard that Geraldo had continued to ask for his medication. That's actually what led to the altercation, according to witnesses, the day he died. But for the first time, we can see in writing how, you know, we counted at least eight times from the day he entered Campeace, Montana in September to the day he died. He had requested medication that was helping him, you know, with his anxiety with Depression that would help him sleep better, and yet he was not getting it. Including in one of the medical notes. A medical provider notes that it's on November 10th and he hadn't received his medication since November 6th. We also see that there was a previous suicide attempt in October, and we include more details in the story. But basically he had been put in segregation. He had tied a bedsheet to, you know, wrapped it around his neck and they were able to talk him out of it. And one of the medical experts we talked to said that, you know, he. Based on the notes, it seems that that case was minimized instead of taken as seriously as it should have.
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Amy Goodman
So the coroner found homicide by asphyxiation. Explain how Geraldo Lunas Campos died.
- [44:09]
Perla Trevizo
Yeah, so what we know, again, the FBI is actually investigating the case. So, you know, there's still a lot of details that are, that are, you know, that should be coming out. But what we know from witness statements and what has been reported is that he was brought into the segregation unit. They say that he grew combative. He, you know, once they were about to go in, he refused. Witnesses say that they believe he was shackled. There were several guards. They took him down and as you said, asphyxias, it means like they put some pressure on his chest and he stopped breathing. Then medical providers were called, nurses arrived. Eventually they called 911. 911 came and they tried to do CPR and revive him, but at that point it was too late.
- [45:01]
Amy Goodman
Howif you can talk about the medical providers who work there and now who the family is suing, the levels of responsibility here and what they're suing for?
- [45:18]
Perla Trevizo
So they're suing the guards that you mentioned and the companies. I think, you know, it's been very hard to get information from people who work at the facility. And you, you have the main contractor that you mentioned, acquisition, who's no longer, who has been since replaced, and then contractors under them that take care of cleaning, food, medical. We've tried to reach for months to people who either work there or work there. They've been signing non disclosure agreements. We weren't able to reach most of them. We were able to talk to one, a medical provider who used to work at the facility as well, to a current government official. And I think, you know, one of the biggest takeaways for us is that from the very beginning you could see that there were concerns about mental health and suicides. Very early on you start Getting calls to 911 Talking about people who try to commit suicide and Thisyou know, the workers, they're notthe medical providers are not part of the lawsuit. But you know, our understanding is that they were complaining about based on this cause that sometimes they didn't have oxygen, they didn't have AKG paper, that they were having minimum resources. So we know from the beginning that the facility was not fully equipped to deal with the issues that it was facing.
- [46:41]
Amy Goodman
Talk about the companies that are being sued, all the different levels of the sprawling detention camp.
- [46:52]
Perla Trevizo
So acquisition, I mean most of the companies have not had prior experience dealing with detention centers. So this was a Department of Defense or work contract. Acquisition was the one that was hired. It was a small company out of Virginia I think. I believe veteran owned had gotten them in contract. Aquimao is a company that mostly is known for guard services. So they were providing the guard services for Campe's, Montana as well as other detention centers. Loyal Source is not part of the lawsuit, but Loyal Source is a company that was providing the medical care. And so yes, I think the issue with private detention is that you have multiple players that each play a role and in this case the families decided to switch to some of them, including the main contractor. And as you mentioned, the guards that we know were directly involved with the moment he died.
- [47:51]
Amy Goodman
Perela, we're going to link to your piece. Perela Treviso is a Reporter with the ProPublica Texas Tribune investigative Unit. Her recent piece headlined He didn't need to how an Immigration Detention Center Repeatedly Failed to Address a Mental Health Crisis. Joining us from Philadelphia, this is democracy now, democracynow.org could the Albanian government fall over massive protests that are taking place there called the Flamingo Revolution over a deal the Albanian government made with Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump for a luxury resort on an Albanian island? Stay with us. I dreamed I saw Jo Hill last
- [48:44]
Bora Memma
night alive as you war me
- [48:52]
Perla Trevizo
says
- [48:52]
Bora Memma
I, but you your 10 years death. I never died says he.
- [49:05]
Amy Goodman
I never died says he. All the copper bosses kill you Joe. They shot you.
- [49:21]
Bora Memma
Joe says all
- [49:26]
Amy Goodman
that was Joan Baez singing Joe Hill in 2005 at Camp Casey in Crawford, Texas. This is democracy now, democracynow.org, i'm Amy Goodman. We end today's show with the latest from Albania where thousands have taken to the streets in the capital Tirana for over a month in the biggest unrest since the collapse of communism 30 years ago. The so called Flamingo Revolution began last month over environmental and transparency concerns related to the development of a multi billion dollar luxury resort linked to President Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner. The massive development would turn an abandoned Soviet weapons base known as Sazan into a luxury island resort and threaten one of the last wild areas and its lagoon that hosts more than 2,500 species. What began as an environmental protest has turned to anger at the entire political system. System. Over the July 4th weekend, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Albania's capital, Tirana. It's been too long with this kind of political culture. Well, where the prime minister and the political parties of this country think they
- [50:39]
Trita Parsi
can do anything, there are no barriers
- [50:41]
Perla Trevizo
to what they think is acceptable in politics.
- [50:46]
Amy Goodman
I'm here because I want and an
- [50:48]
Perla Trevizo
end to this Machiavellian political culture where power and greed justify anything.
- [50:56]
Amy Goodman
As calls mount for the resignation of the Albanian prime minister who won a fourth term last year, he's refused to budge on the Kushner Trump linked development. This is Prime Minister Rama speaking to Reuters last month defending the luxury resort project.
- [51:14]
Roman Palomares
Checked.
- [51:15]
Amy Goodman
It has never been a question if this will go ahead or not. This is a bless for the country. An investment of 4 billion euro in a country that has 27 and a bit more billion euro GDP speaks by itself. For more on what's unfolding in Albania, we go to the capital, Toronto. We're joined by 2 guess. Riti Moochie is a member of the Albanian Parliament representing Tirana, member of the left wing political party Lavizia Bashk, and its sole representative in the Albanian parliament. And we're joined by Bora Mimma, longtime labor organizer, researcher and activist, also a founding member of the left wing political party Lavizzi Abashq. We welcome you both to Democracy Now. Reddy Moochie, if you can talk about these massive protests, why they're called the Flamingo Rubber Revolution and what this island is all about and what Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump's interest is here.
- [52:24]
Reddy Moochi
Thank you, Amy. So the reason why it's called the Flamingo Revolution, it relates to the fact that part of the project for the development of the resort is the lagoon where many flamingos visit every year and which had to be removed from an area that is environmentally protected with a special law in 2024. In order for the project to carry on today is actually the 40th continued day of protests in Tirana. And what started as a wish, let's say, by Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner to, let's say, invest in the island of Sazan as well as the lake goon precipitated into a protest that has the potential, potential, we feel, to bring down the government, and not just the government of Prime Minister Di Rama, but the whole system that has been built for the past 35 years in Albania.
- [53:32]
Amy Goodman
And explain who Prime Minister Rama is.
- [53:37]
Reddy Moochi
So the story involves, let's say, money laundering from drug traffickers, the stripping away of property rights of local residents, as well as environmental destruction. Because the resort in this lagoon in Zvrnets is a typical case of touristic mega resorts along the Albanian coastline, as well as skyscrapers in the city center designed by famous international architects, but allegedly used for money laundering by drug traffickers. Prime Minister Edirama is at the same time time head of this National Council on Territory Planning, which means that he's the one that signs all these construction permits. And this special anti corruption unit that we have recently in Albania has issued 20 arrest warrants for people related to drug trafficking who have acquired more than 1 million square meters of construction permits by a diorama. At the same time as what I would call a process of accumulation of wealth by disappropriation of local residents who are stripped by their property claims, either by falsifying documents, such as the case of Zwernet, in which the person who claims to be the rightful owner is actually under investigation for drug trafficking and living in United States, or through this special law on strategic investors, as it's called, through which the government can strip away the property rights for the benefit of the country, all the while destroying the environment. As I mentioned earlier, that is why there were these amendments made in 2024 to remove this lagoon area from the environmentally protected areas of Albania. In order to pave the way, let's say, for this construction project.
- [55:38]
Amy Goodman
Before we end, I want to bring in Bora Mem, a longtime labor organizer, researcher and activist. If you can talk about the violence that the protesters have been left with and the fact that the Prime Minister Eddie Rama says that this project, the Trump Kushner project, is going to happen.
- [56:05]
Bora Memma
Hello. So as it was mentioned before, this is a project that is being influenced not just by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, but also it's a money laundry operation, international money laundering operation. And of course that the Prime Minister Di Rama will say this not just because he wants to still be in power and to held his position, but also due to the fact that many foreign and not only interests are engaged in this, are engaged and involved in this project process. When it comes to the violence of the process, the protest, it was not only in the first day when the community protesters and different Activists were protesting in the fences that were enclosed in the area of Zerneti, which is a protected area, but also part of it belongs to the community, where one of the when one of the community members was dragged down by private security and a gun was held in his hand, and the police was not intervening, which shows where the state's police loyalty lies. And it's not with the Albanian people and it's not with the law, but it's with the ones who actually are dispossessing us from our private, our public lands and our environment and islands or natural protected areas. There was also a protest held just last week at the Parliament of Albania where some protesters were throwing eggs at the MPs cars because the MPs of the both main political parties, such as the Socialist Party or the Democratic Party, they are both pro supporting Trump's and Kushner's project in Albania. So after this, the police use this as an excuse to attack and to violently intervene and arrest. And not only this, but there were cases of protesters being arrested and beaten up in the police stations, which is a breach of human rights. There are many institutions, international organizations, but also our MP or other activists who are trying to engage with with this. I believe that Edirama is going to say this due to the fact that he's actually in his worst political position he has ever been in the last three decades, that he's actually in power in Albania in different positions. I believe that the protests will go on and the people are very determined. So whatever he's saying, if not tomorrow, but quite soon, this is going to be the end of Edirama's political career, but of a whole political system which is actually serving toward the oligarchy. If I can just ask, we're going
- [58:25]
Amy Goodman
to have to leave it there because the show is ending. I want to thank you both for being with us. Bora Memma, longtime labor organizer and founding member of the Lovisia Bashk Party, and Reddy Moochi, member of the Albanian Parliament, representing Tirana. That does it for our show. I'll be in Kansas City on July 17th and 18th for the screening of Steal the Story, please at the Glenwood Arts Theatre in Overland Park. Check our website@democracynow.org I'm Amy Goodman. Thanks so much for joining us.