Episode 61: Costa Rican authorities arrest the fifth suspect in the murder of prominent Nicaraguan exile Roberto Samcam, in a brazen case underscoring fear and insecurity for refugees in Costa Rica. Some have decided to leave the country.

A Guatemalan court orders —yet again— the release on house arrest of newspaperman Jose Rubén Zamora in the second of two cases that had kept him in prison awaiting retrial on internationally condemned charges of money laundering.

Over 94,000 Salvadorans have been arrested and at least 470 died in prison under the state of exception, per an independent count. Polls show Bukele’s high popularity, but also growing fears of voicing opinions in public, for fear of arrest.

This episode was produced with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. It was written by Yuliana Ramazzini and Roman Gressier with sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and YouTube.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 60: The Trump administration sends mixed signals to Nicaragua on trade, sanctions, and anti-narcotics while the Ortega-Murillo regime signs new commercial agreements with Russia and China.

Costa Rican President-elect Laura Fernández wins the election by sweeping margin and promises continuity with the Rodrigo Chaves administration’s agenda. She says she will consider a state of exception modeled after El Salvador. 

Guatemala signs a trade agreement with the United States, promising to buy 50 million gallons of ethanol every year. Guatemala and El Salvador agree to replicate Trump trade sanctions on third countries. 

This episode was produced with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. It was written by Yuliana Ramazzini and Roman Gressier with sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and YouTube.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 59: In exchange for select exemption from Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, Bukele signs a trade deal promising the U.S. mining and energy access and calling on El Salvador to co-sign Trump’s trade sanctions.

In Honduras, Tito Asfura takes office on promises to cut back the state, while the National Party proposes Bible readings in schools. Honduras asks to return to a World Bank forum to resolve disputes with international investors. 

Nicaragua and Spain expel each others’ ambassadors in Managua’s escalating feud with international bodies. Stepping up its passport repression against dissidents and their relatives in Nicaragua, the Sandinista regime prohibits dual citizenship.  

This episode of Central America in Minutes was produced with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. It was written by Roman Gressier with sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and YouTube.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 58: UCR pollsters place Laura Fernández, Minister of the Presidency under Rodrigo Chaves, with 40% of the vote. If that lead holds on February 1, Chaves’ “heir” will win the presidency outright without a runoff.

Days before the transfer of power in Honduras, the National Party takes the reins of Congress and President-elect Tito Asfura meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The National and Liberal Parties set the groundwork for a legislative alliance.

Spanish authorities release Salvadoran photojournalist and asylum seeker Diego Rosales after his detention at the Bukele regime’s request. The Salvadoran Journalists’ Association calls for an end to persecution of journalists under the state of exception.

This episode of Central America in Minutes was produced with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. It was written by Roman Gressier with sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and YouTube.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 57: Honduran President Xiomara Castro orders a controversial last-second electoral recount and calls for dialogue with Trump. Meanwhile, President-elect Tito Asfura meets with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Israeli ambassador in Washington.

Before the February 1 election iBefore the February 1 election in Costa Rica, the electoral tribunal rejects a request to prevent Bukele from attending the ground-breaking of a CECOT-style megaprison while President Rodrigo Chaves claims the tribunal is pursuing his allies.

This episode of Central America in Minutes was produced with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. It was written by Yuliana Ramazzini and edited by Roman Gressier. Sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and YouTube.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 56: After the U.S. invasion of Venezuela, the Nicaraguan dictatorship tightens state surveillance, Nayib Bukele mocks Maduro to settle a score, and Panama calls for the Venezuelan opposition to be put in charge.

The White House declares a “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine, shaking up its envoys to Central America. Trump taps a billionaire couple who donated to his 2020 campaign for Costa Rica and a top deportations official for El Salvador.

A new report in Plaza Pública shows the number of undocumented migrants passing through Tapachula, the Mexican town bordering Guatemala known in the Biden years as “prison city,” dramatically fell by three quarters between 2024 and 2025.

This episode of Central America in Minutes was produced with support from the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives. It was written by Yuliana Ramazzini and Roman Gressier. Sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and YouTube.

Ep. 55, SPECIAL with LATINO USA: This year, the White House falsely claimed that millions of U.S. taxpayers’ dollars were funding “sex changes” in Guatemala — a lie used to justify gutting USAID, which has provided aid worldwide for over 60 years.

In this episode produced with Latino USA, we travel to Guatemala to uncover the truth, hear from local organizations caught in the controversy, and learn how losing USAID funding has affected these LGBTQ+ organizations and damaged U.S. credibility abroad.

This episode was produced by Reynaldo Leaños Jr. It was edited by Mitra Bonshahi and Peniley Ramírez and mixed by Julia Caruso. Fact-checking by Roxana Aguirre. Fernanda Echavarri is the managing editor of Latino USA.

Production for El Faro English by Omnionn, with editing by Roman Gressier and photography for the web version by Carlos Barrera.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 54: On Thursday, four days after the Honduran election, representatives of two major parties denounced irregularities in the preliminary vote tally, which as of Friday morning gave the lead to Trump’s candidate Tito Asfura over Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party.

In Honduras, electoral disputes have been waged with violence for almost two decades. Why has that not happened yet? El Faro English reports from Tegucigalpa that seven political, electoral, and diplomatic sources point to party negotiations to avoid violence, in exchange for a majority alignment in Congress.

This episode of Central America in Minutes was written by Yuliana Ramazzini and Roman Gressier, with additional reporting from Sergio Arauz. Sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, YouTube, and iHeart podcast platforms.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 53: One woman had no family left in Guatemala. Some men were snatched from their jobs. Every deportee was distraught, confused, or angry. When Guatemalans flip the coin of abandonment, they often find brutality on the other side.

This seventh issue of Central America Monthly seeks to answer the question: What comes after deportation?

In our podcast today, we present the Letter from the Editor.

CENTRAL AMERICA IN MINUTES, Ep. 52: Nayib Bukele has dealt with three U.S. administrations. He went from conservative darling to pariah under the early Biden years’ anti-corruption agenda. Outlasting and outmaneuvering the Democrats, Bukele bet on Trump’s return, catapulting him back to the seat of U.S. power.

This special November episode of Central America in Minutes was written by Roman Gressier. Sound design by Omnionn. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, YouTube, and iHeart podcast platforms.