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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, June 18th 2026 - 15:02 UTC

Latin America

  • Monday, May 11th 2026 - 23:18 UTC

    Evo Morales fails to appear at minor-trafficking trial; court orders his arrest

    The former president has been in hiding since 2024 in Chapare, the tropical coca-growing region where he forged his union and political career

    The First Criminal Sentencing Court of Tarija, in southern Bolivia, on Monday declared former president Evo Morales (2006-2019) in contempt and ratified the arrest and travel-ban orders against him after he failed to attend the opening of his oral trial for alleged aggravated human trafficking. The same measure was applied to Idelsa Pozo Saavedra, mother of the alleged victim. Judge Carlos Oblitas suspended the proceedings without a new date, pending the arrest or voluntary appearance of the defendants.

  • Monday, May 11th 2026 - 14:42 UTC

    Delcy Rodríguez defends Essequibo claim at The Hague under temporary EU sanctions waiver

    For Venezuela, the Essequibo appears on its official maps as a “zone of reclamation.” For Guyana, the Venezuelan claim represents an existential threat to its territorial integrity

    Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez arrived in the Netherlands on Sunday to defend her country's claim to the Essequibo, the border region disputed with Guyana, before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The trip, authorized under a specific waiver to the European Union sanctions imposed on her, marks her first major international journey outside the Caribbean since the capture of President Nicolás Maduro by US forces in January, which paved the way for her to assume office as interim leader.

  • Monday, May 11th 2026 - 03:51 UTC

    Up to 8,000 Latin Americans fight in Ukraine for Russia, many deceived, international report finds

    In Peru, lawyers representing affected families report at least 13 dead, 73 missing, and more than 600 nationals recruited

    An international report presented in Kyiv in late April estimates that between 1,000 and 8,000 Latin Americans are serving in the Russian army in its war against Ukraine, in what its authors describe as a global human-trafficking network run to replenish front-line casualties. The document, titled “Fighters, Mercenaries or Victims of Human Trafficking?”, was produced by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Ukrainian organization Truth Hounds, and the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights.

  • Friday, May 8th 2026 - 02:14 UTC

    United States imposes new sanctions on Cuban military conglomerate GAESA amid escalating pressure

    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Thursday a new package of sanctions against the Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A. (GAESA), the conglomerate linked to the Cuban Armed Forces that controls approximately 40% of the island's economy, in a fresh escalation of the economic pressure deployed by the Trump administration against the Havana regime. The measure is part of the implementation of Executive Order 14404, signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, which authorizes sanctions against those responsible for political repression and threats to US national security.

  • Wednesday, May 6th 2026 - 16:38 UTC

    El Salvador puts 486 MS-13 leaders on trial for 29,000 killings in process Bukele compares to Nuremberg

    President Nayib Bukele described as “historic” and compared to the Nuremberg trials against Nazi leaders after the Second World War

    El Salvador launched in late April the largest trial in the country's history against 486 alleged leaders of the Mara Salvatrucha-13, accused of ordering more than 29,000 killings committed between 2012 and 2022, in a process President Nayib Bukele described as “historic” and compared to the Nuremberg trials against Nazi leaders after the Second World War. The proceedings, held before a specialized tribunal with anonymous judges, represent the first case worldwide in which the “command responsibility” principle has been applied to a gang structure.

  • Sunday, May 3rd 2026 - 09:59 UTC

    Trump threatens to take Cuba 'almost immediately' after tightening sanctions on the regime

    The new executive order expands the scope of existing sanctions to persons, entities, and companies that support the Cuban regime's security apparatus

    US President Donald Trump said on Friday that his country would take Cuba “almost immediately,” in remarks made during a private event at the Forum Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, hours after signing an executive order substantially expanding economic sanctions against the Havana regime. The president's words, though framed in colloquial tone, considerably escalate bilateral tensions and open a new chapter in US policy toward Miguel Díaz-Canel's government.

  • Friday, May 1st 2026 - 14:54 UTC

    Bolivia's agro-environmental court judge shot dead amid wave of drug-related violence

    Claure, a 49-year-old lawyer born in Cochabamba, was intercepted near midnight while driving along Busch Avenue

    Víctor Hugo Claure, dean of Bolivia's Agro-Environmental Court, was shot dead late Thursday in the eastern city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, in what authorities describe as an attack carried out by hitmen and which falls within a sequence of violent events linked to the growing influence of drug trafficking in the country's main city. The killing has prompted unanimous condemnation from the judicial system and from opposition politicians, and poses a direct challenge to the administration of President Rodrigo Paz, in office since November.

  • Monday, April 27th 2026 - 12:36 UTC

    Poll projects dead heat between Fujimori and Sánchez in Peru runoff as count nears completion

    With 95.89% of ballots processed by the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE), Fujimori leads with 17.06% of valid votes, Sánchez stands second with 12.05%

    Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori and left-wing candidate Roberto Sánchez would tie at 38% of the vote in the Peruvian presidential runoff scheduled for June 7, according to the first opinion poll published after the April 12 election, against a backdrop of an inconclusive count and an ongoing dispute over second place. The Ipsos Peru survey, conducted between April 23 and 24 and published by daily Perú.21, points to a scenario of absolute parity with a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percentage points.

  • Friday, April 24th 2026 - 19:49 UTC

    Kast–Paz rapprochement opens door to potential restoration of Bolivia–Chile relations

    The diplomatic shift responds to a direct “mandate” from the presidents of both countries — far-right José Antonio Kast, who took office in Chile on March 11, and center-right Rodrigo Paz

    The foreign ministers of Bolivia, Fernando Aramayo, and Chile, Francisco Pérez Mackenna, agreed on Friday to deepen bilateral ties and advance a joint economic agenda, amid a decisive diplomatic rapprochement between the two countries after nearly five decades without ambassador-level relations. The meeting, held at an event organized by the Chamber of Industry, Commerce, Services, and Tourism (Cainco) in Santa Cruz, concluded a two-day official visit by the Chilean minister.

  • Friday, April 24th 2026 - 11:31 UTC

    Petro travels to Caracas to meet Delcy Rodríguez following failed Cúcuta summit

    Colombian President Gustavo Petro will meet at midday on Friday in Caracas with Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez, in what marks the first official meeting between a head of state and the Venezuelan leader since she took office on January 5, following the capture of former president Nicolás Maduro in a US military operation on January 3 of this year.