Authorities at the Philip S.W. Goldson International Airport (P.G.I.A.) say they were alerted to a U.S. man who was hijacking a small plane in Belize on Thursday.

The man stabbed two passengers and a pilot, before one of the stabbed passengers fatally shot him, according to officials in Belize and the United States. The passenger was licensed to carry a firearm and later turned his weapon over to the police.

«We are praying for him,» Chester Williams, Belize police commissioner, told reporters. «He’s our hero.»

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Williams identified the hijacker as Akinyela Taylor and said he was a U.S. military veteran, a report by The Associated Press said. U.S. officials could not confirm the Belize police commissioner’s statement that Taylor was a military veteran.

The air flight Cessna Caravan V3HIG from Corozal to San Pedro had 14 passengers and 2 crew members onboard, the statement from P.G.I.A. said.

A full emergency was declared immediately after the incident started and the aircraft circled in random directions for approximately two hours until finally landing safely at the P.G.I.A., according to a statement by the Belize Airport Concession Company.

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Tourists queue at the Tropic Air counter at Philip S.W. Goldson International Airport in Belize City on April 17, 2025.  (JOSE A. SANCHEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said at a news briefing in Washington that officials were still gathering information about what occurred.

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«Horrifying,» she said. «We are grateful, I think all of us are, that it did not turn into a mass casualty event with, I believe, over a dozen people on the plane. Clearly we know a few details. We don’t know much more.»

U.S. officials said they did not know the motive for Taylor’s hijacking but were working with Belizean authorities to determine what happened.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Los gobiernos de Ucrania y Estados Unidos firmaron el jueves un Memorando de Intención que establece el marco preliminar para un Acuerdo de Asociación Económica y la creación de un fondo de inversión destinado a la reconstrucción de Ucrania, según anunció la viceprimera ministra ucraniana y ministra de Economía, Yulia Svyrydenko, a través de la red social X.

“Esperamos que el Fondo se convierta en una herramienta eficaz para atraer inversiones en la reconstrucción de nuestro país, la modernización de la infraestructura, el apoyo a los negocios y la creación de nuevas oportunidades económicas”, escribió Svyrydenko.

La funcionaria aseguró que el documento firmado refleja también el interés del pueblo estadounidense en “invertir junto al pueblo ucraniano en una Ucrania libre, soberana y segura”.

Svyrydenko precisó que el memorando es fruto de una reciente ronda de conversaciones técnicas celebradas en Washington entre equipos negociadores de ambos países. Explicó que el próximo paso será concluir la redacción del Acuerdo de Asociación Económica, firmarlo formalmente y someterlo a la ratificación de los parlamentos de Estados Unidos y Ucrania.

Mientras tanto, los equipos siguen avanzando en los trabajos preparatorios. “Hay mucho por hacer, pero el ritmo actual y el progreso significativo dan razones para esperar que el documento sea muy beneficioso para ambos países”, declaró Svyrydenko.

El memorando también contempla futuras iniciativas de cooperación en materia de recursos minerales estratégicos, una cuestión que fue abordada el mismo jueves en Washington por el presidente estadounidense Donald Trump, durante una reunión con la primera ministra italiana, Giorgia Meloni. Desde el Despacho Oval, Trump indicó: “Tenemos un acuerdo sobre minerales, que entiendo que se va a firmar el jueves -24 de abril-”.

No obstante, el secretario del Tesoro estadounidense, Scott Bessent, señaló que “aún se están ultimando los detalles” del acuerdo y sugirió que la firma podría producirse “alrededor del 25 de abril”.

En paralelo, el presidente ucraniano Volodimir Zelensky indicó que ambos países podrían suscribir de forma telemática el memorando de intenciones el 24 de abril, lo que sugiere que el documento firmado hoy constituye un paso intermedio hacia ese objetivo.

El gobierno de Ucrania calificó el jueves como “constructivo” y “positivo” el encuentro bilateral sostenido en París entre representantes del presidente Volodimir Zelensky y una delegación de Estados Unidos encabezada por el secretario de Estado Marco Rubio, con el objetivo de avanzar hacia un cese del fuego y un acuerdo de paz duradero con Rusia, según un comunicado difundido por la Presidencia ucraniana.

De acuerdo con el documento, las delegaciones discutieron sobre los esfuerzos necesarios para alcanzar un alto el fuego completo, así como el establecimiento de una paz “amplia, justa y duradera”. Ambas partes acordaron mantener un canal de diálogo abierto y periódico para continuar las conversaciones sobre estos temas.

A la reunión asistieron también los enviados presidenciales especiales de Washington, Steve Witkoff y Keith Kellogg, quienes más tarde participaron en una reunión multilateral junto a representantes de Francia, Alemania y el Reino Unido.

El presidente francés Emmanuel Macron calificó el diálogo realizado en el Palacio del Elíseo con los mismos términos: “positivo” y “constructivo”. En declaraciones a los medios, anunció que las conversaciones proseguirán la próxima semana en Londres, y señaló: “Todos estamos claramente unidos en nuestro deseo de paz”. A través de sus redes sociales, Macron expresó también su respaldo a la iniciativa del presidente estadounidense Donald Trump para lograr un fin al conflicto “lo antes posible”.

Durante el encuentro, la delegación ucraniana subrayó la relevancia de los asuntos humanitarios como condición para avanzar en el proceso de paz, entre ellos el retorno de los niños ucranianos deportados a Rusia, y la liberación de prisioneros de guerra y rehenes civiles, que calificaron como elementos indispensables para generar confianza entre las partes.

(Con información de EFE, AFP y EP)

Conservatives are speaking out against the Trump administration’s plans to finally enact long-expected REAL ID laws in a bid to crack down on illegal immigration.

«If you think REAL ID is about election integrity, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. Someone has lied to you, or you’re engaged in wishful thinking. Please don’t shoot the messenger,» Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., wrote on X earlier this week.

Responding to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem’s video announcing the May 7 REAL ID deadline, the former vice presidential candidate and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin questioned in a lengthy post: «Or what?? Evidently, existing ID requirements for American citizens just aren’t adequate now, so Big Brother is forcing us through more hoops for the ‘right’ to travel within our own country.»

Palin continued: «Other administrations delayed this newfangled, burdensome REAL ID requirement. Are you curious why its implementation is imperative now?? And who came up with this?»

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The REAL ID Act was passed in 2005, but the federal government has yet to implement it 20 years later. It requires all U.S. travelers to be REAL ID compliant when boarding domestic flights.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced last week that REAL ID would go into effect May 7, and that no other state-issued ID cards would be accepted for air travel.

TSA senior official Adam Stahl said in the announcement that REAL ID «bolsters safety by making fraudulent IDs harder to forge, thwarting criminals and terrorists.»

While an overwhelming majority of Republicans appear to have few issues with the change, some on the right have cried foul.

Massie argued in an X post, «As long as the pilot’s door is locked and no one has weapons, why do you care that someone who flies has government permission? REAL ID provides no benefit, yet presents a serious risk to freedom. If a person can’t be trusted to fly without weapons, why are they roaming free?»

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Massie targeted President Donald Trump more directly in response to another X user who asked whether he was opposed simply because of his differences with the commander in chief. The Kentucky Republican has been known for multiple public spats with Trump. 

«REAL ID is a 2005 George Bush-era Patriot Act overreach that went completely unenforced until Trump got into office. Let me guess: he’s playing 4D chess and I should just go along with it?» Massie wrote.

President Donald Trump waves from his vehicle as he arrives at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Feb. 17. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Former presidential candidate and ex-House Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, wrote on X, «Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem announced Friday that the notorious PATRIOT Act-era REAL ID scheme would go into effect at the end of the month. REAL ID is one of the greatest threats to Americans’ civil liberties in decades.»

Kentucky state Rep. TJ Roberts, a Republican, agreed with Paul on social media, writing, «Repeal REAL ID!!»

New Hampshire state Rep. Joe Alexander, a Republican, added on the accusations, calling REAL ID a «violation of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution,» and writing, «the Federal Government should not be mandating ID for its citizens to travel between states. Just say NO.»

Cato Institute senior fellow Patrick Eddington told Fox News Digital, «I’m not aware of a single post-9/11 instance of an alleged or actual terrorist being apprehended, much less successfully boarding an airliner, with false ID credentials — which is the entire-stated rationale for REAL ID.»

Eddington argued it imposed unconstitutional burdens on people who are seeking to travel by air versus train.

«If you got word that your mother had just had a stroke and her prognosis was uncertain, and you wanted to quickly fly home to be with her but couldn’t because you didn’t have a REAL ID-compliant ID card, that would be one very real-world example of a tangible harm this insane law could cause on literally a daily basis,» he said.

«The REAL ID Act effectively institutes a form of mass surveillance and verification that doesn’t discriminate between those who have given reason for suspicion and those who haven’t, which is why it should never have been enacted in the first place.»

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visits the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales, Arizona, on March 15. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Meanwhile, Trump ally Rep. Mark Alford, R-Mo., targeted critics in his own public statement. 

«The REAL ID Act was passed way back in 2005, 20 years ago!!!! It’s about time everyone stop dragging their feet. Quit scrolling through social media, quit complaining, get your info together, and get down to the DMV to get your REAL ID,» Alford said Wednesday. 

The DHS has argued that implementing REAL ID now will help the Trump administration further its goals in cracking down on illegal immigration.

A DHS memo obtained by Fox News Digital earlier this week argued in favor of its implementation, that REAL ID «closes the gaping vulnerabilities Biden’s policies created, preventing criminals and potential terrorists from exploiting our aviation system, as seen during 9/11 when fraudulent IDs enabled attacks.»

Former Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speaks at the Bitcoin convention, a cryptocurrency conference held at the Mana Convention Center in Miami on June 4, 2021. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Trump administration allies have also pointed out that it is carrying out a directive by Congress that’s long been stalled, but that the current White House took no part in deciding.

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Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and TSA for further comment. Massie’s spokesman said he was not available for an interview when reached by Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital’s Cameron Arcand contributed to this report.