US sanctions threaten 167-yr-old Panama paper

A 167-year-old newspaper in Panama that existed even before the country became independent is faced with extinction because its main shareholder has been hit with US sanctions for 

allegedly laundering drug money.

The daily, La Estrella de Panama, and a sister newspaper, El Siglo, are in “real danger of closing,” the head of its publishing company, Eduardo Quiros, told foreign correspondents on Monday.

Both titles are published by Gese, which is part of a business empire owned by Abdul Waked, a Panamanian who also holds Lebanese and Colombian nationalities. Waked, 66, and a relative, Nidal Ahmed Waked Hatum, 36, were on May 5 designated by the US as major money-launderers for big drug cartels. Waked Hatum was arrested in Colombia.