Breaking News Alert 24/7

Estonia, Niger, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia and Vietnam were elected Friday to two-year terms on the U.N. Security Council. The five will join the 15-nation body responsible for maintaining international peace and security on Jan. 1, 2020. There is usually little suspense in the General Assembly for the vote, as regional groups typically pre-select a candidate from within their bloc to run uncontested. This year, Tunisia, Niger and Vietnam ran unopposed. So did Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, until just hours before Friday morning's vote, when El Salvador announced it would challenge the tiny island nation for the one open seat in the Latin American and Caribbean region. Diplomats expressed surprise ahead of the vote as to why El Salvador would come in at the last minute, when the regional bloc had agreed in December to put up Saint Vincent as their candidate. "You don't do it like that," one western diplomat said disapprovingly. Most other countries a...

Peru's government won a confidence vote in the country's Congress on Wednesday after a marathon debate centered on President Martin Vizcarra's effort at passing anti-corruption measures. The president had asked the opposition-controlled Congress for a confidence vote as part of his effort to pressure the legislature into approving a reform package, which includes measures aimed at cleaning up campaign financing and curbing the immunity against prosecution enjoyed by lawmakers. The vote passed with 77 in favor, 44 against and three abstentions. Debate on the confidence motion had started on Tuesday and lasted for more than nine hours before resuming on Wednesday. A vote of no confidence would have triggered the disbanding of the cabinet and allowed Vizcarra to call special legislative elections.     from Americas - Voice of America http://bit.ly/2MyWrCu

U.S. authorities and other personnel dealing with the influx of migrants at the U.S. border with Mexico are seeing more people from indigenous regions in Central America who only speak Mayan. That's creating a communications problem between the migrants and border agents, medical staff and immigration officials who work with them. Celia Mendoza reports from Tucson, Arizona. from Americas - Voice of America http://bit.ly/2KbhND3

Mexican authorities have frozen the bank accounts of Emilio Lozoya, the former head of Mexico's state-owned oil company, and those of steelmaker Altos Hornos de Mexico, in what looks to be a major new push to punish alleged corruption. Altos Hornos de Mexico said later Tuesday in a statement that its president Alonso Ancira Elizondo was arrested in Spain for reasons it had not ascertained. The company said it was awaiting a response from Mexico's finance ministry to its request to release its accounts. The actions were "illegal and arbitrary," the company said in its statement. The Financial Intelligence Unit said Monday that "there were various transactions with funds that presumably did not come from legal activities" in the frozen accounts and the funds "are presumed to have originated in acts of corruption." Santiago Nieto, head of the unit, called the account freezes a hallmark of the "new" Finance Ministry. "The policy of the M...

The United States walked out of the U.N. Conference on Disarmament to protest Venezuela assuming the one-month rotating presidency of the body. The U.S. ambassador said his delegation will boycott the conference for the duration of the period. U.S. Ambassador Robert Wood says he will stay away from the deliberations of the U.N. body for as long as Venezuela holds the presidency.    Wood said he does not want to lend credibility and legitimacy to the government of President Nicolas Maduro, which he calls morally bankrupt, economically incompetent, profoundly corrupt, and inhumane. Wood told VOA the Maduro government was planning to use the presidency for propaganda purposes over the next four weeks. He said Venezuela will try to paint its presidency of the conference as being as normal as that of any other presidency. He added the U.S. cannot tolerate that. "We do not think being in the room is a good way to make clear how illegitimate we see that regime,” Wood said. “ … We thi...

Forty-two inmates were killed at three different prisons in the capital of Brazil's northern Amazonas state Monday, authorities reported, a day after 15 died during fighting among prisoners at a fourth prison in the same city. The Amazonas state prison agency said all 42 prisoners found dead in Manaus on Monday showed signs of asphyxia. The killings across the city's prisons recalled early 2017 when more than 120 inmates died at the hands of other prisoners during riots over several weeks at prisons in northern states. Many of those victims had their heads cut off or their hearts and intestines ripped out. On Sunday, 15 inmates were killed during a riot at Manaus' Anisio Jobim Prison Complex, where 56 prisoners died in the violence two years earlier. Local authorities said prisoners began fighting among themselves before noon Sunday, and security reinforcements were rushed in and managed to regain control within 45 minutes. Little information was released about Monday's...

The death toll from the powerful earthquake that hit a remote part of the Amazon jungle in Peru and Ecuador has risen to two. More than 30 people have also been injured in Sunday's magnitude-8.0 earthquake that was centered about 92 kilometers from the town of Yurimaguas, in northern Peru. Peruvian Civil Defense Coordinator Ricardo Seijas told Channel N television, one of the victims was "a 15-year-old who was hit on the head" by falling rubble at his home.  The other was a 48-year-old man killed by falling debris while he slept at his house in Cajamarca in northern Peru. The quake struck at 0741 UTC. The quake was the most powerful to hit the earthquake-prone country in 12 years. Media reports said 15 people had been hurt in Ecuador, where power-cuts were reported in parts of its Amazon basin region. The tremor was also felt in parts of Colombia and Venezuela. Earthquakes are frequent in Peru, which is part of the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire," the world...

On stage, amid the hubbub of a Bolivian street market, women recount their stories of abuse at the hands of men. But the violence depicted in the play isn't just make-believe for the 22 indigenous actresses: It's based on their own real-life experiences. "Kusisita,'' a work that seeks to raise awareness about violence against women and mobilize people to fight it, has been drawing large audiences in Bolivia, which has one of South America's highest rates of femicides. In the theater, Maria Luque portrays a woman who asks her drunken husband to stop abusing her. In her own history, she said, she was so brutally beaten by the father of her four children that she was left partly paralyzed. Even after more than a decade, she still has trouble moving some of the muscles in her face.  "I've suffered discrimination since birth,'' she told The Associated Press. "My mom was very poor and she escaped violence. For some, (violence) might be normal, b...

A powerful magnitude-8.0 earthquake shook a remote part of the Amazon jungle area of eastern Peru Sunday, destroying homes and knocking out power. Officials report one quake-related death after a man was killed when a boulder tumbled into his house. At least six injuries were reported. Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra is planning to tour the area to see the damage. He says landslides have blocked a number of roads. Sunday’s quake was centered about 92 kilometers from the town of Yurimaguas, in northern Peru, but was about 114 kilometers below the Earth's surface, sparing the region from more serious damage. Earthquakes are frequent in Peru, which is part of the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire," the world’s most active area of seismic activity.   from Americas - Voice of America http://bit.ly/2YOro6P

Thousands gathered in cities across Brazil on Sunday to show support for President Jair Bolsonaro, who faces an uncooperative Congress, street protests, a family corruption scandal and falling approval ratings five months into his term. The stumbling start for the far-right leader who rode a wave of dissatisfaction with Brazil's political class to victory led his backers to call for the demonstrations, which represented a mixed bag of demands and protests. Supporters sang the national anthem and waved Brazilian flags while chanting the names of Bolsonaro cabinet members. Many said that Brazil's institutions were not letting Bolsonaro govern. Some called for the closure of Congress and the Supreme Court. “We need to clean out Congress,” said Neymar de Menezes, a 45-year-old construction contractor. “Unfortunately all the deputies there are compromised and all about deal making. Bolsonaro is fighting them by himself.” Bolsonaro, who earlier in his political career said he would c...

A report by the U.N. Human Rights Office finds human rights defenders, minorities and indigenous people in Guatemala are subject to widescale, wanton attacks by state and non-state actors. The report, prepared with Guatemala's National Human Rights Institution, covers the period from January 2017 to April 2019. The U.N. human rights office has recorded an alarming 884 attacks against human rights defenders, including 39 killings during the two-year reporting period. It says human rights defenders are subject to physical attacks, threats, intimidation, surveillance, stigmatization, and gender-based violence. The report accuses the government of misusing criminal law to silence those defending peoples' rights to lands, territories and natural resources. It notes indigenous peoples, women defenders, LGBTI defenders, and journalists are among those at particular risk of abuse. In mid-June, Guatemalans will go to the poll to elect the President and Congress. U.N. human rights spokes...

A powerful magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck a remote part of the Amazon jungle in Peru early Sunday, collapsing buildings and knocking out power to some areas but causing only one reported death. The quake struck at 2:41 a.m. and was centered in a vast nature preserve 57 miles (92 kilometers) east of the small town of Yurimaguas. Helping limit damage was the earthquake's depth, at 70 miles (114 kilometers) below the surface, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Earthquakes that are close to the surface generally cause more destruction.   President Martin Vizcarra called for calm before traveling to the zone with members of his Cabinet to survey the damage. He said first reports indicate a bridge had collapsed and several homes and roads had been affected.   "It's a quake that was felt throughout the Peruvian jungle," said Vizcarra, who was scheduled to host a regional summit Sunday in the capital with the presidents of Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador.  Ricardo Seijas...

Representatives of the Venezuelan government and opposition have returned to Norway for talks aimed at resolving the political crisis in the South American country, the Norwegian government said Saturday. Norway said it will mediate discussions next week in Oslo, in an indication that the negotiation track is gaining momentum after months of escalating tension between Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Juan Guaido, the U.S.-backed opposition leader. The negotiators Top Maduro aide Jorge Rodriguez and Hector Rodriguez, the governor of Miranda state, both of whom were in Oslo earlier this month for an earlier round of exploratory talks, will once again lead the government delegation. They will be joined this time by Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, said Maduro, who thanked Norway for promoting “peace and stability” in Venezuela through the mediation effort. Larry Devoe, the government’s top human rights official, is also a delegate member, said a Venezuelan official who was not autho...

Representatives of the Venezuelan government and opposition have decided to return to Norway for a mediation effort aimed at resolving the political crisis in the South American country, the Norwegian government said Saturday.    Norway said it would facilitate discussions next week in Oslo, in an indication that the negotiation track is gaining momentum after months of escalating tension between Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaido.    Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soreide praised both sides for their involvement.    Representatives of Venezuela's political factions traveled to the European country earlier this month for talks, but it had been unclear whether they would continue to engage with one another amid increased tensions over the opposition's call for a military uprising on April 30.   The diplomatic effort reflects recognition in Venezuela that neither side has been able to prevail...

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. The prisoners received the officers with “a hail of gunfire” while detonating three grenades, which injured 19 police, Valero told reporters. The Una Ventana a la Libertad NGO, which defends prisoner rights, gave a preliminary toll of 25 dead. NGO director Carlos Nieto said the clashes broke out when the FAES attempted to rescue visitors who had been taken hostage Thursday by the leader of the inmates at the jail. “This morning (authorities) sent the FAES and there was a clash. The detainees had weapons, they shot at the police. Apparently they also detonated two grenades,” Nieto told AFP. Th...

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Thursday accused the United States of seeking to destroy a food aid program that the government of the crisis-stricken OPEC nation says feeds 6 million families. Washington is preparing sanctions and criminal charges against Venezuelan officials and others suspected of using the food program to launder money for the Maduro government, sources familiar with the matter said Tuesday. The measures against the program, known in Venezuela by its Spanish acronym CLAP, are expected to be enacted within the next 90 days, according to the sources, who asked not to be identified. “(The U.S.) is preparing sanctions to destroy the CLAP system,” Maduro said in televised broadcast, accompanied by the military high command. “Do what you want to do, Venezuela will continue with the Local Supply and Production Committees,” he said, referencing the full name of the CLAP program. The State Department did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Subsidized fo...

Costa Rica announced on Thursday a reduction in murders and an increase in the confiscation of illegal weapons as it put into force a law that tightens gun controls. "Up to today we've had 201 murders in the country, which sounds like a lot but if we compare it to last year, we have 47 less," Security Minister Michael Soto said at a ceremony in the capital San Jose. "This is great progress," he said, adding that 67 percent of murders are committed with firearms. The security ministry has seized 863 guns so far this year, 34 more than in the same period last year. "These weapons can take someone's life, they can be used in a crime against property," said Soto. The Central American country saw a spike in its murder rate between 2012 and 2017, reaching 12.1 per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the police. That number dropped slightly to 11.7 in 2018 but that was still more than twice the global average of 5.3 in 2015, according to the UN Office on Dr...

Chile's 12,000 square kilometer (4,633 square mile) Southern Patagonia Ice Field split in two and is likely to continue to fracture amid climate change, according to a team of Chilean scientists who were in the region in March. Gino Casassa, chief of the Snow and Glacier Division of Chile's DGA water authority, told Reuters increasing temperatures along the Andes Mountains in southern Chile and Argentina have meant less snow and ice to replenish the region's abundant glaciers. "What occurred is a fracture as the ice has retreated, Casassa said. The chunk of ice that split off from the main glacier was estimated at 208 square kilometers (80.3 square miles), a relatively small part of the ice field. But Casassa said it may be a sign of things to come. The ice field, he said, is now "split in two, and we'll likely discover further divisions to the south," he said. Two icebergs broke off the Grey Glacier in southern Chile's Torres del Paine National Park ...

The U.N. refugee agency says the majority of Venezuelans fleeing worsening conditions in their country are in need of international protection and must not be forcibly returned home. Citizens are leaving Venezuela as political, economic, human rights and humanitarian conditions deteriorate. The U.N. refugee agency reports some 3.7 million people have fled the country. Most have gone to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and Caribbean countries. The agency says by the end of last year, some 460,000 Venezuelans had formally sought asylum. But given the dire conditions back home, UNHCR spokeswoman Liz Throssell said it is clear the majority of the millions of those who have left need international refugee protection. "This is because of the threats to their lives, security or freedom resulting from circumstances that are seriously disturbing public order in Venezuela," she said. "UNHCR also calls on states to ensure that Venezuelans, regardless of their legal status, are not d...

The World Health Organization has certified Algeria and Argentina as malaria-free, following three consecutive years where no new cases of the deadly disease have been reported.  The malaria parasite, which kills more than 400,000 people each year, was discovered in Algeria in 1880. Most of the victims are children under the age of five in Africa. The World Health Organization reports Algeria is the second country in Africa to be recognized as malaria-free after Mauritius, which was certified in 1973. Argentina is the second country in South America, after Paraguay, to be declared malaria-free. A combination of many factors has made the achievements possible, according to WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib. "It is very good news for Algeria and Argentina, but also for the two continents and globally also," Chaib told VOA. "It means that malaria can be beaten. But the efforts should continue because we need also to enhance surveillance to be able to detect if any cases of malar...