South America

Prosecutor accuses Argentine bishop close to pope of abuse

  BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — A bishop close to Pope Francis has been formally accused of sexually abusing seminarians, a public prosecutor’s office in Argentina said Friday. The prosecutor’s office in the Argentine province of Salta said prosecutor Mónica Viazzi accused Bishop Gustavo Zanchetta of “aggravated continuous sexual abuse.” This is the first time that a prosecutor has formally accused Zanchetta in his native Argentina. Zanchetta resigned suddenly as bishop of the Argentine city […]

Brazil bus accident kills 17

  SAO PAULO, Brazil (AFP) — A bus carrying 40 people crashed into several cars killing at least 17 people in southeast Brazil Sunday night, according to firefighters and local media. The fire brigade in the Campos de Jordao area, about 180 kilometers (110 miles) from Sao Paulo, confirmed to AFP that the accident was caused when a bus overturned, hitting other vehicles. Media reported at least 17 deaths and a video shot by a […]

Canada suspends operations at embassy in Venezuela

  OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canada announced Sunday it was temporarily shutting its embassy in Venezuela, blaming President Nicolas Maduro for refusing to accredit diplomats critical of his regime. At the same time, Ottawa is reviewing the status of Maduro envoys to Canada. Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said in a statement that “the regime has taken steps to limit the ability of foreign embassies to function in Venezuela, particularly those advocating for the restoration of […]

Brazil faces recession risk after economy shrinks in first quarter

by Allison JACKSON RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Brazil’s economy shrank in the first quarter of the year, official data showed Thursday, taking Latin America’s biggest country to the brink of recession for the first time in two years. Gross domestic product contracted 0.2 percent from the previous quarter, the statistics agency said, marking the first decline in the key indicator of economic activity since the end of 2016. The figure confirms what many […]

Clashes in four Brazil prisons leave 40 dead

by Allison JACKSON / Eugenia LOGIURATTO RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — At least 40 inmates were killed in four jails in northern Brazil on Monday, authorities said, in the latest wave of violence to rock the country’s severely overpopulated and dangerous prison system. The victims appeared to have been killed by “asphyxiation,” the Amazonas state government said in a statement, a day after 15 people were killed in one of the prisons. Officials had […]

Paraguay floodwaters force thousands to evacuate homes

by Hugo OLAZAR NANAWA, Paraguay (AFP) — Like 70,000 people living close to the broken banks of the Paraguay River, where the water level has risen seven meters (23 feet) in some places, Graciela Acosta has had to pack up her belongings and evacuate. Piled up on a canoe are the 39-year-old housewife’s bed, wardrobe, bedside table and her dog Pirulin. Acosta is getting ready to cross the border into Argentina with her daughter to […]

Magnitude 8 quake toll in Peru rises to two dead

  by Carlos MANDUJANO Agence France Presse LIMA, Peru (AFP) — The death toll from a powerful earthquake that rocked parts of Peru and neighboring Ecuador rose to two on Monday, with more than 30 people injured, authorities said. Sunday’s 8.0-earthquake hit a sparsely populated region of Peru’s Amazon basin region but was felt over a wide area. Reports were still coming in Monday from remote areas affected by the quake, which also rattled the […]

Strong 8.0-magnitude earthquake jolts Peru

by Carlos MANDUJANO LIMA, PERU (AFP) — A powerful 8.0-earthquake struck northern Peru in the early hours of Sunday, toppling houses, blocking roads and knocking out power to some localities. One person was killed and 18 others injured as the shockwave extended into neighboring Ecuador, authorities said. “There are many old houses that have collapsed after this strong earthquake,” said Hugo Araujo, the mayor of Yurimaguas, a town near the epicenter. The quake hit in […]

Strong 8.0-magnitude earthquake hits Peru

A strong 8.0-earthquake struck northern Peru in the early hours of Sunday, sending residents fleeing their homes and cutting off power to at least one town, with the impact felt as far afield as neighboring Ecuador. There were no immediate reports of injuries following the quake which the US Geological Survey said struck at a depth of 110 kilometers (68 miles). The quake hit t 0741 GMT about 75 kilometers southeast of the town of […]

At least 29 inmates killed in clashes at Venezuela jail

by Alexander MARTINEZ and Esteban ROJAS CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — At least 29 prisoners were killed and 19 police wounded in clashes at a jail in western Venezuela Friday, authorities said. The incident at the police station jail in the town of Acarigua, in Portuguesa state, occurred when police special forces (FAES) tried to stop a “massive prison break” which resulted in the deaths of 29 inmates, according to Portuguesa public security secretary Oscar Valero. […]

Eleven killed in shooting in bar in Brazil: officials

  RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Gunmen killed at least 11 people in a bar in northern Brazil on Sunday, officials said. The shooting took place in the city of Belem, the public safety department of northern Para state said. There was no immediate word on the motive of the shooting. The attackers fled but the news website G1 quoted police as saying one was wounded and is in police custody. The fatalities are […]

Brazil students, teachers protest budget cuts

by Mauro PIMENTEL RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Tens of thousands of students and teachers held street protests across Brazil in “defense of education” on Wednesday in response to a raft of budget cuts announced by President Jair Bolsonaro’s government. Classes were suspended in federal universities and secondary schools in the first nationwide protests against the far-right president since he took office on January 1. Protesters flocked onto the streets in Brazil’s biggest cities, […]