Stories for August 2018

Tuesday, August 28th 2018 - 08:00 UTC
Chile's latest export to England: burglars targeting wealthy homes

A criminal gang which was flying burglars from Chile into the UK to target wealthy homes in the South East has been dismantled, police have said. Luxury items worth more than £1m were stolen by the thieves, who targeted hundreds of homes, then shipped some of the goods out of the country.
Tuesday, August 28th 2018 - 08:00 UTC
Chagos dispute back on the table: the International Court of Justice to address the issue next week

The British government has been accused of threatening a close ally in an increasingly bitter diplomatic tug-of-war over the fate of a tiny, strategic archipelago in the middle of the Indian Ocean.
Tuesday, August 28th 2018 - 07:38 UTC
Unasur will decide on removal of Nestor Kirchner's statue at its headquarters in Quito

An Ecuadorian lawmaker has called for the removal of a statue of Argentine ex president Nestor Kirchner from the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) Secretariat Headquarters in the city of Mitad del Mundo, close to Quito.
Tuesday, August 28th 2018 - 07:32 UTC
Brazil's Supreme Court will rule on Lula's presidential candidacy in September

Brazil’s Supreme Court will weigh in September an appeal by jailed former president Lula da Silva to be set free so he can join the presidential campaign already under way, a court spokesperson said on Monday.
Tuesday, August 28th 2018 - 07:14 UTC
US has offered to collaborate with the Argentine investigation of “K corruption notebooks”

According to Buenos Aires daily Clarin, United States authorities have offered to collaborate with Argentine President Mauricio Macri’s government in the ongoing “K notebook scandal” by providing confidential information on a number of US bank accounts used to hold alleged Kirchner bribe money.
Monday, August 27th 2018 - 08:59 UTC
Francis ends visit to Ireland begging forgiveness for the abuses perpetrated by Church leaders

Pope Francis has begged forgiveness for members of the Catholic Church's hierarchy who “kept quiet” about clerical child sex abuse. He was ending a two-day visit to the Republic of Ireland by celebrating a Mass at Dublin's Phoenix Park.
Monday, August 27th 2018 - 08:47 UTC
Francisco Franco's remains to be removed from the “Valley of the Fallen”

Spain's government passed a decree on Friday to smooth the way for the relocation of the remains of former dictator Francisco Franco with the aim of turning his mausoleum into a memorial for the victims of the Spanish civil war.
Monday, August 27th 2018 - 08:41 UTC
Ex Vatican ambassador allegedly exposes more cover-ups at the Holy See

The Vatican's retired ambassador to the United States accused senior Vatican officials of knowing as early as 2000 that the disgraced former archbishop of Washington, ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, regularly invited seminarians into his bed but was made a cardinal regardless.
Monday, August 27th 2018 - 08:36 UTC
A no-deal Brexit poses an “existential threat” for the UK, says ex head of the European Council

A no-deal Brexit could lead to the break-up of the UK, the ex-president of the European Council has warned. Herman Van Rompuy told The Observer leaving the EU without a deal posed an “existential threat” to the UK. He added a no-deal scenario would have a “big impact” on “regions such as Scotland”.
Monday, August 27th 2018 - 08:31 UTC
Files on Judges and political enemies found at Cristina Fernandez house in El Calafate

A third day of search at ex president Cristina Fernandez' property in the Patagonian resort of El Calafate did not seem to deliver much in terms of money or valuables, despite a thorough inspection of the house, as part of the of a major corruption case involving Argentina's business elite and ex government officials.