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The City Hall of the National District says it needs to find another location for discarded debris and items that are being stored in their location in the Mirador del Sur Park. Listin Diario had denounced that residents of the city park area had complained the area was growing as a garbage dump. The City Hall responded and removed much of the garbage that had more than 90 days but says it needs to find a new location and thus will continue to storage new garbage.
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President Luis Abinader said his administration is monitoring the worsening of the crisis in the Middle East “hour by hour.” The President said the conflict between Iran and Israel can significantly impact hydrocarbons and fuel prices in the DR. The President made the remark when addressing a journalist question during the 23 June 2025 weekly press conference.
Speaking during the press conference, the President said that the DR only imports 20% of its total hydrocarbon imports from the Middle East.
Already shipping fares are up, as shipping lines are applying the shipping contingency charges. Minister of Industry and Commerce Victor (Ito) Bisono said that the cost of cargo shipping is up. “Nobody wants their ship to be sunken and the normal insurance does not cover war contingencies,” he explained.
A report in Noticias SIN explains that even when the conflict is thousands of km away in the Middle East, the country could suffer from increases in hydrocarbon prices, food...
The Dominican Republic is a leading regional cacao producer and exporter. The challenge ahead is to increase local consumption and export more finished products, a report in El Dia reveals.
Meanwhile, stimulated by rising international prices, cacao exports have experienced a significant increase in revenues for their crops. From January to May 2025, raw cacao and cacao byproduct exports reached US$128.98 million, marking a 56.48% increase compared to the same period in 2024, when exports totaled US$82.43 million, according to the Customs Agency (DGA), as reported in El Dia.
This surge helped consolidate cacao as the country’s second most exported product under the national trade regime, contributing to an overall export total of US$5.64 billion—an 8.62% year-on-year growth.
Data from ProDominicana, the national export center, presents an even more optimistic figure: US$247.7 million in cocoa-related exports, representing a 76.6% year-on-year increase.
Between January...
Everybody can do their part and not buy or order dishes with conch, locally known as lambi. The molusk needs the time from 1 July to 31 October to breed so that the species still continues to be available locally.
The Dominican Council of Fishing and Aquaculture (Codepesca) has announced a nationwide ban on the capture and commercialization of Strombus gigas (also known as Lobatus gigas or queen conch).The ban covers all individuals of the species at any stage of their life cycle, as well as their shells.
The scientific and common name for the banned species are:Charonia variegate (caracol fotuto), Cassis tuberosa (Pata de Mulo), Cittarium pica (Burgao), Astraea coalata (Burgao Santa Maria).
The ban applies to the owners and managers of supermarkets, hotels, restaurants, fishery and fishermen. These should abstain from consuming, fishing, storing, purchasing or trading in the sea food from 1 July to 31 October.
Codepesca asks people to report the sale of conch via cell...
Anibal de Castro, executive editor of Diario Libre, has editorialized against the Dominican Republic continuing to be part of the Central American Parliament. Politicians and legislators receive cushy perks and generous wages in US dollars for their participation. People have always asked what the DR gets out of this. Costa Rica many years ago chose not to participate. Other regional participants are Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama. Each country appoints 20 legislators to the regional entity.
Anibal de Castro writes in the editorial on 23 June 2025:“For the Dominican Republic, the Central American Parliament (Parlacen) is like a wicker chair in a fire: purely decorative and utterly useless. Its existence has no impact on real political life, plays no role in the region’s meaningful debates, and certainly doesn’t respond to the urgent needs of its citizens. It’s an ornamental body—one that doesn’t legislate, oversee, decide, or truly represent. A hall of...
The Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic in May 2025 issued a landmark ruling banning the public use of nicknames to identify high-profile corruption cases in the judiciary.
In Ruling No. TC/0225/25, the court upheld a constitutional appeal filed by Jean Alain Rodríguez Sánchez, former Attorney General, effectively prohibiting the Office of the Prosecutor (Public Ministry) from using the label “Caso Medusa” to refer to his criminal case. The decision is binding across the judicial system and must be applied to all individuals facing criminal proceedings.
The ruling clarifies that code names or aliases may still be used internally by investigators to prevent information leaks during pre-trial investigations. However, once cases enter the public domain, all defendants must be referred to by their legal names.
“Throughout all stages of the criminal process, individuals must be identified by their real names—except in special cases involving security or...
Educa, the pro-education private non-governmental organization, has named Yahaira Sosa Machado as the new director. She replaces Enrique Darwin Caraballo who served in the role for 13 years.
Sosa Machado is an expert in public policies and international trade. She holds a Law degree from the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM), graduating Cum Laude. She also earned a Master’s in International Business from Aix-Marseille University in Provence, France. Her academic background includes studies in Trade Negotiations at Florida International University (FIU) and International Arbitration at American University in Washington, DC. She is certified in quality management of production processes (Calidena) and in Leadership for Creating Public Value from HarvardX. She is fluent in Spanish, English, and French.
She built her career at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC), where she served from 2002, eventually becoming Vice Minister of Foreign Trade. She...
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off the Dominican Republic coast on Monday, 23 June 2025, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said. The quake was at a depth of 2 km (1.24 miles), USGS said. The earthquake occurred off the coast of Miches, in central eastern Dominican Republic.
The USGS reported the M 5.7 earthquake occurred 77 km NNE of Punta Cana.
The epicenter, with a depth of 2 km, was initially determined to be at 18.86 degrees north latitude and 68.02 degrees west longitude.
The earthquake occurred after 10:45pm when most people had gone to sleep. Witnesses say it was felt as far west as in the capital city of Santo Domingo. No damages were reported.
Diario Libre reports there have been more than 75 replicas of lesser magnitude were reported.
The state university, Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) National Seismology Institute registered an earthquake with a 5.4 magnitude with its epicenter in the Mona Channel, 103.9 km from Miches, El Seibo...
Torrential rains and powerful gusts of wind battered several areas of Puerto Plata on the north coast of the Dominican Republic on Tuesday, 24 June 2025, causing damages to roofs of homes and downing trees and signs, sparking fear among residents, CDN reported.
Whascar García of the Civil Defense in Puerto Plata reported multiple incidents. Notably, fallen trees blocked sections of the Luperón Tourist Highway, particularly near the La U area between Tubagua and Yásica Arriba, as well as in El Choco, in the municipality of Sosúa.
In the town of Los Hidalgos (El Mamey), high winds ripped zinc roofs off several homes, leading to significant material losses. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.
Other affected areas included the Puerto Plata–Navarrete highway, where fallen trees disrupted traffic in sectors such as Las Avispas in Maimón. Damage was also reported in La Colorada (Imbert), Quebrada Honda, and Cañada Bonita in Altamira, as well as along the road to the Barrabás...
The Ministry of Culture, in collaboration with the General Fine Arts Agency (DGBA) and the National Gallery, is inviting the general public to Arte en Bellas Artes, a special exhibition showcasing a representative selection of works from the Palace of Fine Arts’ permanent collection, N Digital reports.
The exhibition opens Thursday, 26 June 2025, at 6:30pm at the National Gallery of Fine Arts located in the Palace of Fine Arts on Av. Independencia and Av. Máximo Gómez. The inaugural event will be attended by cultural authorities, artists, and prominent figures from across the Dominican arts community.
Organized by the Arts Management and Outreach Department of Bellas Artes, the exhibition is part of the DGBA’s 85th-anniversary celebrations, which officially take place on 19 July.
Arte en Bellas Artes is described as a journey through iconic pieces that highlight the aesthetic richness, stylistic diversity, and historical evolution of Dominican art. The show pays tribute...
President Luis Abinader unveiled that a historic public-private investment of US$531.5 million has been invested recently in the Dominican Republic’s port infrastructure, describing it as a transformative step toward making the country a regional maritime and logistics hub.
Speaking during his weekly press briefing La Semanal con la Prensa held at the Presidential Palace under the theme “De Frente al Mar”, on 23 June 2025 Abinader detailed the government’s coordinated efforts with private stakeholders to modernize key ports, boost the fishing sector, and position the nation as a competitive player in international trade.
The President hailed the Dominican Port Authority (Apordom) as a model of financial recovery and efficiency. Under his administration, the institution cleared debts totaling RD$1.3 billion, more than doubled its revenues (from RD$56...
The President submitted a new bill to Congress for a new regulatory authority that would oversee all gambling and betting activities. Major gaming companies are said to be owned by past and present legislators and politicians in the country. The betting ventures have multiplied and are more common than grocery stores in the smallest of towns and in every urban center neighborhood.
The proposal, sent to the National Congress this week, places heavy emphasis on tax collection. It creates a new General Gaming Agency under the Ministry of Hacienda, which will look at registration, control, oversight and licensing.
In a new attempt to regulate the gaming industry, this will cover everything from sports betting and casinos to online betting, slot machines, raffles and electronic lotteries.
Diario Libre reports that it was only last year that the country issued...
The Dominican Republic is one of six Latin American countries that have joined the preliminary studies to implement a project for shared space-based telecommunications infrastructures. The DR joins Colombia, Brazil, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Paraguay, and the 21 countries – 15 member states and six associate members – of the Caribbean Community (Caricom). The governments seek improved connectivity to support the development of key sectors such as distance education, telemedicine and other vital digital services.
The local telecom regulator, the Dominican Telecommunications Institute (Indotel) signed the memorandum of understanding with the government of Spain and the Spanish company Hispasat. Satellite connectivity overcomes the limitations of terrestrial infrastructure by providing coverage in areas where traditional telecommunications networks are either unavailable...
Ruling political party government officials and politicians of the government party and opposition political parties have prematurely announced their intentions to seek their party’s candidacy. The next presidential election will be held in May 2028.
The prohibition for candidates to campaign and parties to act in favor of choosing candidates is already in the Dominican electoral law. Now the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) has ruled rejecting that political parties take shortcuts in their Presidential candidate selection.
In its landmark ruling, the Tribunal Superior Electoral (TSE) prohibits all political parties from selecting or proclaiming presidential candidates before the legally established timeline. The ruling annuls a plan by the opposition party Partido de la Liberación Dominicana (PLD) to hold an early internal consultation, El Dia reports.
The TSE’s...
Find out about the new mass transport vehicles the Abinader administration is assigning to key routes in Greater Santo Domingo and the country’s second largest city, Santiago. The government has programs for expanding mass transit rail and skylift service and bus services.
Follow the story: DR Transport
24 June 2025
The Dominican Republic’s public debt has surged by more than US$3.75 billion in the first four months of 2025, marking a 6.52% increase so far this year, according to official data from the General Public Credit Agency under the Ministry of Hacienda, N Digital reports.
As of April 2025, the country’s non-financial public sector (NFPS) debt — which includes both external and domestic liabilities — reached US$61.34 billion. This figure underscores a sustained upward trend in public borrowing, particularly since 2022.
Between 2022 and 2025, the Caribbean nation’s public debt has grown by US$9.49 billion, an increase of over 18% in just three years. When including the US$16.29 billion in liabilities held by the Central Bank, the Dominican Republic’s consolidated public debt now totals approximately US$77.63 billion.
In recent years, the trajectory of the NFPS debt has...
On Monday, 23 June 2025, the Social and Economic Council (CES) has begun the meetings to discuss matters related to Haiti with representatives of different sectors in the Dominican Republic
In a landmark session held at the Universidad del Caribe (Unicaribe), the Dominican Republic’s Economic and Social Council (CES) opened the national dialogue on the Haitian crisis and its far-reaching implications for the country. The initiative aims to shape a unified and institutional response to the growing fallout from Haiti’s ongoing collapse.
Backed by representatives from the government, former Presidents, and the country’s social, labor, and business sectors, the CES established six working groups to address key issues: Migration, Bilateral Trade, Development of Border Communities, National Security, International Relations, and Labor Affairs.
The discussions are...
The collapse of the roof of the JetSet Club in Santo Domingo on 8 April 2025, with 236 reported deaths and more than 180 seriously injured, has brought to the open the topic of how much the victims can expect to be compensated with. The case has left around 170 children orphaned. So far the case has been categorized as involuntary homicide, which if maintained means the two leading accused, the siblings Antonio and Maribel Espaillat, could be sentenced to three months to two years in prison, at most.
Car insurance companies are known to pay less than RD$500,000 for the death of a young person, while one lawyer claims to have won RD$20 million for his client, but admits this is an exception.
On average the lawyers say people can expect RD$1 million to RD$3 million in compensation for the death of a person in cases of involuntary homicide.
Read...
Wander Franco / Diario Libre
The Attorney General Office prosecution arm, the Public Ministry has requested a five-year prison sentence for professional baseball player Wander Samuel Franco Aybar, who is on trial for the alleged sexual abuse of a then 14-year old minor.
In addition, prosecutors are seeking a 10-year prison sentence for the teenager’s mother, who is a co-defendant in the case. She is facing charges of child sexual exploitation and money laundering.
The request was made during the ongoing trial at the Puerto Plata Collegiate Court, where the prosecution presented 165 pieces of evidence, which they argue are sufficient for a guilty verdict against both defendants.
Franco Aybar is accused of engaging in an inappropriate relationship with the minor. Prosecutors have requested that he serve his sentence at the San Felipe Correction and...
Metereologist Jean Suriel has been reporting on the solar halos that have been visible in different places in the Dominican Republic this year. A search online shows people have been talking about them since they began appearing in January 2025.
Recent reports are from people noticing them in the skies of the Cibao region.
Jean Suriel explains that when people can see a halo around the sun, it is an optical phenomenon caused by light refracting through ice crystals in high, thin cirrus clouds. This is similar to how a prism separates light into a rainbow.
In the case of solar halos, the clouds at high altitudes contain millions of tiny ice crystals. When sunlight passes through these crystals, it bends (refracts) and reflects, creating the appearance of a bright ring or circle around the sun.
Moreso, Suriel reports on the weakening of the passing cloud of Saharan dust and that the...
It’s vacation time in the Dominican Republic. Is a good time to visit. In the cities, with schools out, it feels traffic is down 30% and jams are less intense on city streets.
This is the peak time for family vacations. Children coming to spend summer with their grandparents and people just coming to get away from the intense heat up North….
Summer tourism is the peak time for international visitors given that hundreds of thousands of Dominicans living abroad visit.
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Air France flights are returning in 2026. Air France has announced nonstop service between Paris Charles de Gaulle and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic on 13 January 2026. The seasonal route will operate three times a week—Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays—through 28 March 2026 using Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.
Flight schedule (local time):
AF968: departs Paris-Charles de Gaulle at 2:25pm, arrives in Punta Cana at 6:45pm.AF969: departs Punta Cana at 9:05pm, arrives in Paris-Charles de Gaulle at 10:30am the next day
Punta Cana will become Air France’s sixth destination in the Caribbean, alongside Cayenne (French Guiana), Pointe-à-Pitre (Guadeloupe), Fort-de-France (Martinique), Saint Martin, and Havana (Cuba).
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Casa de Campo will be hosting its 45th International Tennis Tournament. The tennis tournament has expanded and now features all sorts of racquet sports available at the resort and residential community in La Romana.
The event is taking place from 26 to 29 June 2025 and is centered at the world-class Casa de Campo Racquet Center. This year’s tournament coincides with the 50th anniversary of the iconic luxury resort, marking a milestone celebration for one of the Caribbean’s most renowned residential and tourism destinations.
The 2025 event will welcome 150 top-level male and female players competing across various categories for a range of prizes. Alongside the on-court action, a lineup of social events will offer guests, players, and spectators a full experience combining sport and leisure.
Now recognized as a key fixture on the international tennis...
The National Hotel & Tourism Association (Asonahores) announces its 2025 Exposicion Comercial will take place again at the Bluemall Punta Cana, in eastern Punta Cana. The date is 10 to 12 September 2025. The 37th trade show is a prime time when participating suppliers reach out to the hotels in the Punta Cana area and the hotel industry in general. The exhibition is open to the general public.
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The city of Puerto Plata will come alive with the sounds of merengue from 18 to 20 July 2025, as it hosts the inaugural edition of the Puerto Plata Merengue Festival that promises to become an annual cultural celebration. The performances of Kinito Mendez and Josie Esteban have been announced.
Cultural promoter Luciano Vásquez, the driving force behind the event, announced that the festival will now hold a permanent spot on the province’s cultural calendar, scheduled every second week of July. “The rhythm that beats in the heart of Dominicans will now have a space of its own in Puerto Plata,” Vásquez said during a press conference.
The 2025 Merengue Festival will feature a rich lineup of cultural and artistic programming, including pre-festival activities on 15 and 16 July. Organizers promise an inclusive and festive atmosphere that celebrates...
On 18 June 2025, President Luis Abinader joined capital city Mayor Carolina Mejia for the official start of the Malecon Deportivo from Av. Núñez de Cáceres to Av. Luperon, the major recreational project along Santo Domingo’s waterfront, expected to be completed in early 2026—just in time for the 25th Central American and Caribbean Games.
The extension completes the seafronting recreational area shortly before the Port of Haina entrance on the western side, with bicycling routes, paths, lighting, security and parking. The proposal is a priority of the second term of the Carolina Mejia capital city government.
The Malecon Deportivo initiative, aimed at promoting active lifestyles and offering public spaces for physical activity, seeks to transform the city’s iconic waterfront into a vibrant, multifunctional sports and leisure hub.
“This...
President Luis Abinader on Sunday, 22 June 2025 officially inaugurated the new Malecón de Haina, a long-anticipated development that is set to transform the southcentral coastal area of Haina into a modern public space for recreation, sports, and economic activity. Haina is an industrial area where now its resident and working population can enjoy the gorgeous views.
Speaking at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, President Abinader reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to the comprehensive development of the municipality. He highlighted several infrastructure projects already completed with efficient use of public funds, including investments in technical education, green spaces, and improved transportation networks.
“Our government is committed to responsible budget management and prioritizing projects that genuinely improve the quality of life for Dominican...
The City Hall of the National District reacted promptly to a report in Listin Diario and began removing debris and discarded items from their location in the Mirador del Sur Park. The garbage began to be trucked to the Duquesa landfill. The report drew public attention to the cluttered state of that area of the park.
The site in question had become increasingly disorderly, with neighbors and visitors complaining of visual pollution and safety concerns. The accumulation of what many referred to as “junk” or “cachivaches” — including supermarket trolleys, wheelbarrows, metal sheets, and advertising boards — had given the impression of an unofficial dump within the park.
In a follow-up, Listin Diario reported that the Defense and Use of Public Spaces Department (DUEP), a division of the National District City Hall, acted. According to Lieutenant Colonel José Aníbal...
The Ministry of Environment has ordered a halt to a major development underway with two sections for around 300 riverside apartments on a northern capital city green belt. This is not the first halt order. These had been issued in the past, but unheeded to by the developers.
The developers had obtained a permit from the City Hall of the National District that authorized a low- impact project. The neighborhood groups say the development can in no way be described as low impact.
For the construction of the apartment buildings and commercial plaza, reportedly heavy equipment tore down large areas of forests on the green belt. For months, the residents had sought to appeal to the City Hall and the Ministry of Environment with the construction continuing.
Only when the neighbors persisted and took the case to the media and appealed to President Luis Abinader, were actions...
As of 2 June 2025, the US Customs and Border Protection enabled the Central Romana Corporation to resume shipping sugar to the United States. The US Customs and Border Protection modified the withhold release order that had been issued in 2022 for raw sugar and sugar products made by the Central Romana.
The ban had been issued on grounds that the sugar that was sold in the US under the Domino brand had not significantly improved its labor practices. The USCBP later says that the decision followed “documented improvements in labor standards”. The announcement was made initially in March 2025 and went into effect this month, as reported in Diario Libre.
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Juana Barceló / Listín Diario
Juana Barcelo has resigned as president of Barrick Pueblo Viejo in the Dominican Republic. She had been in the position since 2018, and had worked in the firm for 25 years. She is the sister in law of the Minister of Mines and Energy, Joel Santos.
The company did not announce her replacement. Instead, it announced that Giselle Valera would be the new executive director for government affairs of Barrick Pueblo Viejo. Valera is a lawyer with 16 years of experience with the law firm Jimenez Peña.
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Veron-Punta Cana is the fastest-growing urban center in the Dominican Republic. The impact of the growing tourism industry has propelled thousands of people to relocate East.
The Veron-Punta Cana area nevertheless, still falls under the city government of provincial capital Higuey, but its authorities are struggling for independence.
El Dia reports stats from the National Statistics Office’s 2022 National Census reveal that the Veron-Punta Cana area has grown to a population of 138,919, more than 10 other provinces in their entirety. The census data indicates that the area is growing at around 8% a year, and has moved from being a tourism enclose to an urban center.
Former Minister of Tourism Francisco Javier Garcia, who seeks to be the PLD presidential candidate in 2028, favors the upgrading of the municipal status of Veron Punta Cana. This would enable the municipal district to...
The preliminary official report on the collapse of the roof of the JetSet Club on 8 April 2025 with at least 236 dead and more than 180 injured points to the overloading of its roof as the main cause. New evidence has revealed the owners had ample and repeated evidence the roof had serious problems and yet delayed in taking corrective actions.
The judge in the pre-trial hearing, Fatima Veloz instructed the two lead accused parties, siblings Antonio and Maribel Espaillat to post bail of RD$50 million (10% insurance-backed bond). Both are impeded from leaving the country as the case is heard but are free to go about their business affairs. The judge declared the case complex and gave 18 months for the trial.
The state prosecutors had categorized the case as an involuntary homicide. The prosecutors say that is all the Penal Code allows. The maximum sentence in the case...
Suriname and the Dominican Republic ended their participation in the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup playing to a scoreless draw in Group A on Sunday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, USA. For the Dominican Republic, this draw became its first point in a Gold Cup football event. Both nations had lost their two opening encounters.
Concacaf reported on the game:Edgar Pujol was sent off in the 30’, leaving the Dominican Republic with ten men for the remainder of the match.
Suriname tried to get on the board in the 31’, with Kenneth Paal serving the ball to the center of the penalty area off a free kick to find Richonell Margaret, but Xavier Valdez was there to make the stop.
Valdez was again the hero for the Dominican Republic in the 36’, denying a header from Gleofilo Vlijter.
Margaret had a right-footed attempt in the 81’ but Valdez kept the match scoreless.
Peter...
Dominican baseball legend, Sammy Sosa, 56, had played his final game with the Cubs at Wrigley on Oct. 2, 2004, when he homered in an 8-6 loss to Atlanta. Twenty-one years later he returned to the stadium to receive a standing ovation by the fans.
Sosa was the fan favorite who thrilled the crowds and brought joy and cheers to so many for around 13 seasons. Nevertheless, eventually the slugger’s diminishing performances led to a falling out with the organization and his previously adoring fans.
CNN reports that Sosa is remembered from when he and Mark McGwire captivated the nation in 1998 as the pair battled to break Roger Maris’ longstanding single-season home run record. Sosa – who won National League MVP honors that year – finished with 66 home runs and McGwire – who hit 70 homers to set the mark at the time. Yet, the love affair of the town with them, ended when they both became...
Marileidy Paulino won the Diamond race in Paris, France as she continues to prepare for the 20th World Athletics (13 to 21 September) to take place in Japan this 2025. Her goal is to set a World Record in the 400m at the World Athletics Championships to be held in Tokyo during the final set for 18 September 2025.
Paulino hopes to set the world record at the same track in Tokyo where she won her first silver medal, in the same event in 2021 during the Olympic Games held in Japan. Back then, because of Covid-19, there were no fans in attendance. In September 2025, the stadium should be packed.
It will be no easy feat, as she needs to break the long-standing record set by East German Marita Koch of 47.60 in 1985. That record was set at a time when the East German women were suspected of doping. The closest to the Koch record is the time of 48.14 set by Salwa...
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