2025News

FIFA suspends San Cristobal FC for one year

The Disciplinary Commission of the International Federation of Football Association (FIFA) has kicked the Athletic San Cristobal team out of the Dominican Football Federation’s First Division, prohibiting them from completing this year’s competition, and relegating the team to the second-tier Expansion Division for 2026. According to the international soccer federation, the team had violated Article …
2025News

Abinader welcomes new US Ambassador Leah Campos, and six others

President Luis Abinader formally received the credentials of seven new ambassadors, including the new United States envoy, Leah Francis Campos, in a ceremonial act at the Presidential Palace on Wednesday, 19 November 2025, officially marking the start of their diplomatic missions in the Dominican Republic. The ceremony was held in the Salon de Embajadores (Ambassadors’ …
2025News

Atlantic Council urges DR-CAFTA modernization to counter China and secure supply chains

A recent analysis by the Atlantic Council strongly asserts that modernizing the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA) is a critical, dual-purpose mission for both Washington and Santo Domingo, framing the update as a geopolitical imperative necessary to secure regional stability and economic advantage. The findings emphasize that the current agreement is functionally outdated, …
2025News

Minister of Public Health Victor Atallah calls obesity the new local epidemic

The Dominican Republic is grappling with one of the most pressing public health crises of recent decades, with newly released data showing that over 70% of the country’s adult population is now classified as overweight or obese. The alarming figures were presented by the Ministry of Public Health (MSP) at the International Forum on “Public …
2025News

Historic prison transfer begins, first 2,400 relocated to Las Parras

The Penitentiary and Correctional Services Agency (DGSPC) initiated a landmark transfer this Wednesday, 19 November 2025, moving the first inmates from the congested La Victoria National Penitentiary to the new Las Parras Correction and Rehabilitation Center (CCR) in the municipality of San Antonio de Guerra in Santo Domingo province. The first stage of the new …
2025News

Dominican Constitutional Court strikes down bans on homosexual relations in Police and Armed Forces, churches criticize the ruling

In a landmark ruling, the Dominican Constitutional Court (TC) has invalidated articles from the Police and Armed Forces justice codes that criminalized homosexual relations among service members. The ruling, issued on 18 November 2025, removes long-standing penalties that defined “sodomy” as same-sex intercourse, ensuring that members of the military and national police can engage in …
2025News

Lottery stands proliferate, while city and central government officials look the other way

Santo Domingo is grappling with escalating visual contamination and urban disorder, fueled by the relentless proliferation of lottery booths (bancas de loterías) across its streets and avenues. Diario Libre’s Adalberto de la Rosa reports that these small, highly-visible businesses are not only cluttering the capital city’s aesthetic but are also, in many cases, outright violating …
2025News

Dominican contemporary art exhibition opens in Rome

The Embassy of the Dominican Republic to the Holy See, in coordination with the Instituto Cervantes in Rome, is presenting “Routes of Hope: Contemporary Dominican Art” (Rutas de Esperanza), a major collective exhibition celebrating the creative power and dynamism of modern Dominican artists. The exhibition is strategically timed to coincide with the highly significant 2025 …