It was full pomp and circumstance today at the B.D.F.’s Price Barracks Compound, as the best and the brightest of its new recruits were recognized. Weeks of intense physical and mental training have prepared the new soldiers for life in the Belize Defense Force. Andrea Polanco was at today’s passing out ceremony. Andrea Polanco, […]
Ladyville Police and the Belize Defence Force are investigating a robbery of thousands of rounds of military ammunition. That’s right, military ammunition stolen from a guarded B.D.F. facility on the Lord’s Bank road. The heist was discovered early this morning at what the B.D.F. call an echelon, a storage base for ammunitions and explosives. The […]
The annual Christmas luncheon of the Belize Defense Force is an event to look forward to. Today, the soldiers gathered not only to celebrate the season, but also to honor over twenty soldiers who have lived up to their motto, “Shoulder to Shoulder.” One of the most outstanding soldiers is Selvin Nunez, a father of […]
There has been an increase in police presence on the streets of the Old Capital since mid-November in preparation for the hustle and bustle of the Christmas Season. Traditionally, it is the time of year when burglaries and robberies spike. Today, we asked Senior Superintendent Edward Broaster about police preparedness in Belize City. Sr. […]
Following the directive of Director of Public Prosecutions on Wednesday, this afternoon Belmopan Police charged eighteen year old Wilser Echevarria for the crime of murder. Echevarria was on remand at the Belize Central Prison while the D.P.P. reviewed the file. According to the Criminal Code, where the suspect claims self-defence in any murder, Police cannot […]
A pair of coastguard officers who reportedly have had a history of enmity with each other is heading to court to resolve a criminal matter resulting from a physical assault at the headquarters a few days ago. Seaman James Stephenson was reportedly inside his quarters when he got into a verbal exchange with an ensign. […]
The Belize National Coast Guard held a passing out ceremony today where forty-four young recruits joined the ranks of the organization. Dozens of invited guests, including family and friends, as well as members of the diplomatic corps, converged on Williamson Complex in Ladyville this morning for the exercise. News Five’s Isani Cayetano was on hand […]
On Tuesday, News Five had an opportunity to speak with Minister of foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington on a variety of issues, including the murder of the Panamanian diplomat. We also asked for, and got, an update on the Coast Guard Forward Operating Base on Hunting Caye. Last we heard, at a press conference hosted by […]
A mortar is a military weapon that fires explosive projectiles or bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. For about three weeks now, construction works have been ongoing on the Victor Galvez Stadium in San Ignacio Town and the workmen on site unearthed one such missile within the construction site. The San […]
This afternoon, forty exhausted soldiers who are being pushed to the limits of their endurance completed in day-two of the Coast Guard’s Best Warrior Competition. There are five teams of eight members each, selected from the Coast Guard and the Belize Defence Force, which must undergo an intensive round of exercises designed to test their […]
Caracol reopened on October twenty-seventh after being closed for an entire month. There was much hype about enhanced security protocols – beefed up B.D.F. presence and Tourism Police presence ramped up from two officers to six. News Five was at Caracol for the reopening and there were no Tourism Police Special Constables there. And when […]
Government has with some regularity boasted that its coffers are bulging with Petrocaribe funds to the tune of hundreds of millions. And that money can apparently be used for all sorts of things, from infrastructure and bridging budget shortfalls to buying helicopters, hams and turkeys. Well today News Five was in Caye Caulker and passed […]
On October ninth, the construction of the Coast Guard’s forward operating base on Hunting Caye came to an abrupt stop. Following public outrage and outcry at the news that a Guatemalan company using Guatemalan workers was building the military facility, U.S. Southcom issued the stop order. In the days following that order, the Coast Guard […]
The press conference by the Ministry was called for two reasons – first to update on the forward operating base, which could classify as bad news, depending on how you look at it. But there is also good news. After years of analysis, discussion, and a steadily growing need, the government has an offer which […]
In addition to the four point one million acquisition cost, there is also the matter of what had previously been described as prohibitively expensive operating costs. But those costs, including training, parts, service and maintenance have already been factored in, and pending a physical inspection to verify the airworthiness of the craft, all lights are […]
Along the western and southern borders for some time now, B.D.F. soldiers are deployed to deter encroachments, illegal logging and xaté harvesting, as well as gold panning and the cultivation of marijuana, primarily at the hands of Guatemalans. Since the execution of Danny Conorquie, Brigadier General David Jones of the B.D.F. says the force is […]
On October third, the nation was shocked and outraged by news that Guatemalan villagers had confronted B.D.F. soldiers at Camp Valentin, a newly constructed conservation post. Those villagers had threatened to burn down the post, and apparently had come to make good on that threat. The volatile situation was defused by the soldiers, but it […]
While the eyes of the nation are fixated on a departing cruise ship and a perceived threat, on Saturday the organizers of a telethon are hoping that you’ll keep the Chiquibul in mind, and wallet in hand. The Friends for Conservation and Development are seeking funding to help them in monitoring and managing the massive […]
At least four times for the year, the Belize Defence Force carries out a large-scale operation called incisive gallop. Approximately one hundred soldiers, acting on intelligence, focus on one area of the Chiquibul to deter illegal activities. Working with the Police, the Friends for Conservation and Development and the Forest Department, the operation is geared […]
A delegation from Belize, including government and opposition representatives as well as B.D.F. and Police commanders, travelled to Guatemala this past weekend to meet with their counterparts. At the end of what has been termed a successful session, there was a twelve point agreement. Some of those agreements are by nature diplomatic, designed to cool […]
As we said, the Chiquibul has been on centre stage – or perhaps we could more accurately say that all territorial and border issues have become the ten thousand pound gorilla in the room. While the foreign ministry plays diplomatic tic-tac-toe with its Guatemalan counterparts, the B.D.F. has been put on high alert on our […]
The Belize Coast Guard held a press conference on Tuesday with a dual purpose – firstly to speak on the forward operating base in Hunting Caye, and secondly to provide a briefing on the unit’s development strategy. Tonight we take a look at that strategy, and at a naval force which has grown in leaps […]
The Coast Guard’s duties can be broken down into its military, law enforcement, and humanitarian functions. In fulfilling the law enforcement mandate, the unit has been deployed to assist the Belize Police Department with the ‘Not in My City’ campaign. That campaign is not only targeting crime in violence ridden hot zones in the city, […]
On Tuesday, the US Embassy, through its Office of Public Affairs, issued a press release in which it announced the discovery and destruction of marijuana with a street value of twenty-seven million U.S. dollars; that’s fifty-four million Belize dollars. The joint five-day operation included participation from the B.D.F., the Belize Coast Guard, the Anti-Drug Unit […]
Construction of a Coast Guard forward operating base on Hunting Caye was brought to an abrupt close last week after a stop order issued by the US Southern Command. That same day, Thursday, all Guatemalan workers on site jumped in their boat and departed the premises. Government’s response to the breaking news that Guatemalans were […]
