Latin America

• Monday, January 27th 2020 - 07:37 UTC

  Death toll in Peruvian gas tanker truck explosion climbs to 13

  

  The death toll in the explosion of a gas tanker in Lima has risen to 13 after the overnight deaths of five people hospitalized with severe burns, Peru's Health Ministry said on Sunday. The dead included several young children and a 40-year-old man from Venezuela, the ministry said.

• Saturday, January 25th 2020 - 09:55 UTC

  Bolivian interim president tosses her hat into the May 3 election ring

  

  Bolivia’s interim President Jeanine Anez said on Friday that she will be a candidate in upcoming elections that will serve as a re-run of October’s disputed vote that sparked protests and prompted former leader Evo Morales to resign.

• Saturday, January 25th 2020 - 09:28 UTC

  Bolivia breaks diplomatic relations with Cuba arguing Havana's “constant hostility”

  

  Bolivia on Friday announced it was breaking off diplomatic relations with long-time ally Cuba, the latest in a series of foreign policy reversals by the right-wing interim government.

• Saturday, January 25th 2020 - 09:15 UTC

  Chile's business community anticipates an ailing economy during 2020

  

  Chile's central bank is expected to hold its benchmark rate at 1.75% in January, a poll of 62 traders showed on Friday, then keep it there through 2020 as seeks to spur the ailing economy following months of unrest in the key mining nation.

• Friday, January 24th 2020 - 08:31 UTC

  Mexico's National Guard “rescue” some 2,000 migrants trying to cross from Guatemala

  

  Mexican migration authorities released an official count of the number of people detained along the country's southern border two days before, estimating that more than 2,000 people were “rescued” after they crossed the border with Guatemala.

• Friday, January 24th 2020 - 08:18 UTC

  Peru promises to protect Machu Picchu when building a new airport in the region

  

  Peru's government promised on Thursday to protect the Machu Picchu sanctuary and other Inca ruins when building a new airport to serve the ancient civilization's capital of Cusco. Machu Picchu and the Inca road system are UNESCO World Heritage sites, and the UN agency has previously expressed concerns over the proposed airport at Chinchero, less than 60 kilometers from the Inca sanctuary that was built in the 15th century.

• Friday, January 24th 2020 - 08:03 UTC

  Parliamentary election in Peru that hopefully will cut the influence of Fujimorism

  

  Peru will hold separate parliamentary elections for the first time on Sunday as President Martin Vizcarra looks to break the influence of the main opposition party of Keiko Fujimori.

• Thursday, January 23rd 2020 - 09:16 UTC

  Anti government protestors clash with riot police in several Colombian cities

  

  Riot police firing tear gas and stun grenades clashed with rock-throwing demonstrators in Bogota as anti-government protests resumed across Colombia, leaving 11 people injured and nearly 100 arrested.

• Thursday, January 23rd 2020 - 09:04 UTC

  Coronavirus from China could have reached Mexico; professor who visited Wuhan under home monitoring

  

  A man who fell ill in Mexico on Monday following a December trip to Wuhan, China, is under observation as a potential case of the coronavirus, the respiratory virus that has killed at least 19 people worldwide.

• Thursday, January 23rd 2020 - 08:50 UTC

  Macron melee with Israeli security during a visit to the St Anne Jerusalem Basilica

  

  “Go outside,” French President Emmanuel Macron demanded in English in a melee with Israeli security men on Wednesday, demanding they leave a Jerusalem basilica that he visited before a Holocaust memorial conference.