Stories for August 2026

Wednesday, August 26th 2026 - 08:25 UTC
PM Burnham on taxes, “I won't be unrealistic, and people need to understand that”

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has suggested tax rises could be on the cards in the coming Autumn Budget, warning “I won’t be unrealistic” over the state of the public purse. The PM quickly pledged to give people “breathing space” and ease the cost of living after taking the keys to No.10 last month.
Wednesday, August 26th 2026 - 08:00 UTC
Bolivia deploys troops against blockades over a decree its own government wants repealed

Bolivia's government deployed military and police units on Tuesday in the municipality of Yapacaní, in Santa Cruz department, ahead of announced road blockades called by farming organisations against the decree that raised the price of diesel for large consumers. Hours later, the deputy interior minister acknowledged that the same measure must be annulled.
Tuesday, August 25th 2026 - 21:39 UTC
Argentine trips abroad fall 21.2% as Brazil and Uruguay lead arrivals

The number of Argentine residents leaving the country in July fell 21.2% year on year, to 1.22 million people, according to the international tourism statistics report released on Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. In the opposite direction, 830,200 foreign visitors entered the country, 17.9% more than a year earlier.
Tuesday, August 25th 2026 - 21:28 UTC
Argentina acknowledges the Magellan treaties and seeks to defuse friction with Chile

Argentina's foreign ministry issued a statement on Tuesday reaffirming that its position on the Strait of Magellan is the one established by the 1881 Boundary Treaty and the 1984 Treaty of Peace and Friendship, a day after Chile announced it would send a note of protest over remarks by the head of the Argentine Air Force General Staff.
Tuesday, August 25th 2026 - 06:04 UTC
Chile protests to Argentina over a military chief's remarks on the Strait of Magellan

Chile's foreign ministry announced on Monday it will send a note of protest to the Argentine government over remarks by the head of the Argentine Air Force General Staff, Brigadier General Gustavo Javier Valverde, in which he mentioned the Strait of Magellan while referring to sovereignty matters.
Monday, August 24th 2026 - 21:55 UTC
The Pan-American Congress closes with a call for more equal north-south dialogue

The third Pan-American Congress concluded on Sunday in Montevideo with a call to reframe relations between the north and south of the Americas on more equal terms. The forum, which brought together some 150 lawmakers, governors and former heads of state from fifteen countries, will hold its next edition in Brazil in 2027.
Monday, August 24th 2026 - 21:44 UTC
Man detained in Buenos Aires after driving a stolen bus, saying it was his dream

A man was detained on Sunday in the western part of the Buenos Aires metropolitan area after driving a city bus for several kilometres, having taken it without authorisation from a depot, following the line's regular route and picking up passengers at stops.
Monday, August 24th 2026 - 21:37 UTC
Colombia orders deportation of irregular migrants after a decade as the main host country

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella has ordered coordinated operations between the migration authority and the police to begin this week to identify and deport foreigners without regular migration status, marking a shift from the policy the country has maintained for more than a decade as the main destination for Venezuelan migration.
Monday, August 24th 2026 - 21:26 UTC
Milei links Lula to the case of the Argentine former adviser detained in Bolivia

Argentine President Javier Milei has attributed the criminal case against his former adviser Fernando Cerimedo, detained in Bolivia over an attempted femicide, to a regional plot in which he included Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, former Bolivian president Evo Morales and Argentine lawmaker Marcela Pagano. He offered no evidence to support the claim.
Monday, August 24th 2026 - 21:08 UTC
Some 25,000 people are seeking housing in Cali two weeks after Colombia's earthquake

The municipal survey in Cali, Colombia's third city with more than two million inhabitants, now covers 10,000 families affected by the magnitude 7.4 earthquake of August 10 and estimates around 25,000 people have been left without adequate housing. Many have spent recent days in shelters or with relatives while searching for a rental, in a market strained by the sudden loss of supply.