Prosecutors widen illicit enrichment probe against Peru's president to include jewelry worth $500K
Peruโs top prosecutor says the scope of an investigation into President Dina Boluarteโs ownership of three luxury watches has broaden to include fine jewelry that authorities estimate could be worth more than $500,000 and money transactions that exceed $400,000.
Peru's ex-president returned home to face corruption charges
Former President Alejandro Toledo has arrived in Lima after being extradited from the United States to face charges he allegedly received millions of dollars in bribes in a giant corruption scandal that has ensnared four of Peruโs ex-presidents.
Mudslides smash villages in Peru; at least 12 confirmed dead
Residents of five small gold-mining villages in southern Peruโs Arequipa region are struggling to salvage their belongings after landslides caused by strong rains killed at least 12 people and dragged mud, water and rocks that turned precarious homes and other buildings into rubble.
Peru protesters tear-gassed after president calls for truce
Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Peruโs capital and were met with volleys of tear gas and pellets amid clashes with security forces just hours after President Dina Boluarte called for a โtruceโ in almost two months of protests.
Despite tear gas, Peru protesters vow to keep demonstrating
Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Peruโs capital and are being met with volleys of tear gas for the second straight day, as demonstrators made clear they will keep up their mobilizations to demand the resignation of President Dina Boluarte.
Mexico's last island penal colony may now host cruise ships
Visitors will be able to tour the remote island jail, but not stay overnight. AdโVisitors will have their first contact with the former island prison which for 100 years sheltered numerous criminals,โ Torruco said. When Panama closed its Isla Coiba penal colony in 2004, Isla Marias became the last one remaining in the Americas. But in the end, the Islas Marias wound up costing Mexico far more per prisoner than did mainland jails. Chile closed its Santa Maria prison island in the late 1980s, Costa Ricaโs Isla San Lucas penal colony closed in 1991 and Brazilโs Isla Grande in 1994.
Medical oxygen scarce in Africa, Latin America amid virus
It takes about 12 weeks to install a hospital oxygen plant and even less time to convert industrial oxygen manufacturing systems into a medical-grade network. AdIn Brazilโs Amazonas state, a pair of swindlers were caught reselling fire extinguishers painted to look like medical oxygen tanks. Only then did President Muhammadu Buhari release $17 million to set up 38 more oxygen plants and another $670,000 to repair plants at five hospitals. AdLeith Greenslade of the Every Breath Counts Coalition, which advocates for wider access to medical oxygen, said the looming shortages were apparent last spring. The main provider of medical oxygen to Brazilโs Amazonas state, White Martins, operated at half capacity before the pandemic.
Peru's crime worries tainting Venezuelans who want to work
Peru is hosting roughly 1 million displaced Venezuelans, an influx that began around 2014 as inflation, unemployment, crime and shortages of food and medicine soared in their homeland. Then the coronavirus pandemic came, hitting Peru particularly hard, and Marero found herself out of work as did countless other migrants. Using imprisonment data in Peru as a proxy for crime rates, researchers said 1.3% of inmates were foreign born. Federico Agusti, the representative in Peru of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, challenged officials' assertions that Venezuelan immigrants are increasingly involved in crime. He said data that the government has shared with the U.N. body show that only 1.8% of all complaints in Peru are against Venezuelans.
The Latest: Brazil is latest to ban flights from Britain
A demonstrator wears a face shield with a red handprint, mimicking blood, to protest Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's handling of the deadly coronavirus pandemic in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2020. ___NASHVILLE, Tenn. โ Dozens of Tennessee hospitals have stopped taking transfer patients because they are overwhelmed during one of the nationโs worst recent outbreaks of COVID-19 cases. ___DENVER โ Colorado has started vaccinating correctional workers as the state sees a surge of coronavirus cases in its prisons. ___BOSTON โ Help is on the way for Massachusetts small businesses struggling during the coronavirus pandemic, with Gov. COVID-19 cases have been declining in New Mexico, but the economic fallout from the pandemic continues.
The Latest: Coronavirus cases keep rising in South Korea
(AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)SEOUL, South Korea โ South Korea has added 1,092 new coronavirus cases in a resurgence that is erasing hard-won epidemiological gains and eroding public confidence in the governmentโs ability to handle the outbreak. It would deliver long-sought cash to businesses and individuals and resources to vaccinate a nation confronting a frightening surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths. Preliminary data on U.S. deaths show the coronavirus pandemic contributing to a 15% or more increase in deaths over last year. ___MEXICO CITY โ Mexican officials have reported a new daily high in confirmed coronavirus cases as the country awaits its first shipment of vaccine. ___WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. โ The Navajo Nation is reporting 151 new coronavirus cases and seven more deaths related to COVID-19.
Peru's interim president resigns as chaos embroils nation
People celebrate after the resignation of interim president Manuel Merino, at Plaza San Martin in Lima, Peru, Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)LIMA โ Peruโs interim president resigned Sunday as the nation plunged into its worst constitutional crisis in two decades following massive protests unleashed when Congress ousted the nationโs popular leader. The politician agreed to step down after a night of unrest in which two young protesters were killed and half his Cabinet resigned. Congress called an emergency session for Sunday evening to select a new president, but was still debating the question late into the night. Merino, previously head of Congress, stepped in as interim president, but his six-day rule was marred by constant protests.
Peru president's ouster sparks wave of youth-led protests
On Tuesday, Manuel Merino was sworn in as the country's president, after the legislature voted Vizcarra out of office Monday. โI think they removed him out of their own personal interests rather than those of the people,โ she said. โLegislators are supposed to watching out for the good of all.โPeruโs Congress voted overwhelmingly to remove now ex-President Martรญn Vizcarra on Monday, complaining about his handling of the pandemic and accusing him of corruption. Nineteen people, including officers and civilians, were injured at a large protest Thursday, according to the public defenderโs office. Like those protests, the Peru demonstrations are loosely organized, driven by notices posted on social media and fueled in large part by the demands of young people.
Peru's swears in new leader as political turmoil hits nation
Supporters of Peru's former President Martin Vizcarra are stopped by police from marching to Congress where lawmakers voted the previous night to remove Vizcarra from office, in Lima, Peru, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020. Congress voted to oust Vizcarra over his handling of the new coronavirus pandemic and unproven allegations of corruption years ago. But outside Congress, Peru's divide was readily apparent. At least 34,879 people have died among 922,333 infected by the virus in Peru, a nation of 32 million people. After Merino left Congress, protesters continued to gather in the city's historic district under a gray sky.
In Peru's Cuzco, pandemic devastates tourism and economy
Cuzco, the historic capital of the Inca empire near Machu Picchu lives almost entirely from international tourism and is suffering the worst crisis in its recent history. But the arrival of the novel coronavirus in March and travel restrictions turned Cuzco, which received more than 1.8 million international visits annually, into a near ghost town. Fredy Deza, Cuscoโs regional director of tourism, said there are 8,000 tour guides in the region who do not have access to these benefits. At the moment, 129 Cuzco guides and artisans have received grants of $830 for guides and $415 for artisans, according to official data. Tourism entrepreneurs in Cuzco believe things could normalize in 2022, but expect that in 2021 they will barely reach 30% of what they earned in 2019.
Peru's Machu Picchu reopening Sunday after pandemic closure
The Machu Picchu archeological site is devoid of tourists while it's closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, in the department of Cusco, Peru, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020. Currently open to maintenance workers only, the world-renown Incan citadel of Machu Picchu will reopen to the public on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)MACHU PICCHU โ Except workers repairing roads and signs, Peru's majestic Incan citadel of Machu Picchu is eerily empty ahead of its reopening Sunday after seven months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic. Tour operators are offering packages costing $250 to visit Machu Picchu, which before the pandemic would have cost at least $750. Machu Picchu is Peru's tourism jewel and in 2018 drew 1.5 million visitors.
The Latest: Indian cases spike, retesting ordered for some
India edged closer to recording nearly 100,000 coronavirus cases in 24 hours as it ordered retesting of many people whose first results were from a less reliable testing method that's being widely used. According to the Health Ministry, India recorded another spike of 96,551 cases in the past 24 hours, taking its caseload to 4.56 million. It also said some negative rapid antigen tests should be redone through the more reliable RT-PCR method, the gold standard of coronavirus tests that looks for the genetic code of the virus. The directive was meant to ensure infected people did not go undetected and to check the spread the disease among their contacts. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday the 176 cases added in the previous 24 hours took the national tally to 21,919, with 350 deaths.
Peru's Indigenous turn to ancestral remedies to fight virus
(AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)PUCALLPA โ As COVID-19 spread quickly through Peruโs Amazon, the Indigenous Shipibo community decided to turn to the wisdom of their ancestors. So Mery Fasabi gathered herbs, steeped them in boiling water and instructed her loved ones to breathe in the vapors. โWe had knowledge about these plants, but we didnโt know if theyโd really help treat COVID,โ the teacher said. โWeโve always been forgotten,โ said Roberto Wikleff, 49, a Shipibo man who turned to Fasabiโs treatments to help treat his COVID-19. Fasabi said that by no means are the remedies a cure, but their holistic approach is proving effective.
The Latest: India reports record number of new infections
(AP Photo/Martin Mejia)NEW DELHI India has recorded another record number of new coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours as it ramps up testing to more than 900,000 a day. The 69,652 new cases reported Thursday push Indias total reported cases past 2.8 million, of which 2 million have recovered. The Health Ministry says another 977 coronavirus fatalities were recorded in the past 24 hours, raising total deaths to 53,866. It has the third-most reported cases in the world, behind the United States and Brazil, and has the fourth highest number of reported deaths behind the U.S., Brazil and Mexico. Confirmed cases rose by 5,792 to 537,031, and 707 more deaths were confirmed, bringing Mexicos total to 58,481.
Virus pushes millions into hunger; UN seeks more food funds
For many residents the "community pot" is their only defense against a hunger that's become a constant feature of life amid the new coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)JOHANNESBURG Millions of people have been pushed into hunger by the coronavirus pandemic, the U.N. World Food Program said Monday as it appealed for nearly $5 billion to help feed the growing numbers in poor and middle-income countries. The frontline in the battle against the coronavirus is shifting from the rich world to the poor world, said David Beasley, WFPs executive director. Until the day we have a medical vaccine, food is the best vaccine against chaos." Coronavirus infection levels are climbing when food stocks in some parts of the world are already low.
Beijing sees drop is virus cases as Brazil passes 1 million
A porter rests on his cart amid the new coronavirus pandemic, in La Victoria district of Lima, Peru, Friday, June 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)BEIJING Chinas capital recorded a further drop in coronavirus cases amid tightened containment measures while Brazil surpassed more than 1 million confirmed infections, second only to the United States. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva that nearly half of the newly reported cases were from the Americas, with significant numbers from South Asia and the Middle East. South Africa has about 30% of the virus cases on the African continent, or more than 87,000. Meanwhile, Germany reported the countrys highest daily increase in virus cases in a month after managing to contain its outbreak better than comparable large European nations.
Barber offers hope in Peruvian barrios devastated by virus
"I want them to look in the mirror and see a bit of hope," said Yacahuanca, who's just 21 years old but already considers himself a veteran barber because he starting cutting hair age 13. Yacahuanca seeks out clients devastated by a coronavirus lockdown that has gone on for nearly 100 days in an attempt to stem the wave of new infections. I want them to look in the mirror and see a bit of hope, said Yacahuanca, who though just 21 years old is a veteran barber, having started cutting hair at age 13. Peru has been one of Latin America's hardest hit by recession brought on by the virus outbreak. On each trip, he follows a routine, setting out an old wooden chair as his makeshift barber chair and offering up his services.
In Peru, thousands of faces at Mass -- none now alive
Workers stick portraits of people who died due to the COVID-19, inside the Cathedral, in Lima, Peru, Saturday, June 13, 2020. Sunday's mass in Lima's cathedral with the presence of more than 4,000 portraits of the dead from COVID-19 is the first with these characteristics in the South American country where until Saturday more than 6,400 had died and more than 225,000 were infected. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)LIMA Archbishop Carlos Castillo on Sunday looked out over a catheral full of faces none of them now alive. The nation as a whole faces a projected economic contraction of 12% this year, and Castillo called for solidarity with the poor. There were images of doctors, police, firemen and streetsweepers, even an infant.
New Zealand near eradication, but virus has grim global hold
The latest job-loss figures from the U.S. Labor Department bring to 41 million the running total of Americans who have filed for unemployment benefits since the coronavirus shutdowns took hold in mid-March. In New Zealand, health authorities have not found any new virus cases for a week. That increased the overall death toll to more than 1,300 and the number of cases to over 64,000. And first-time applications for unemployment benefits have fallen for eight straight weeks, as states gradually let stores, restaurants and other businesses reopen and the auto industry starts up factories again. Worldwide, the virus has infected more than 5.8 million people and killed about 360,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
TAKEOUT TUESDAY: Pastel finds ways to satisfy your sweet tooth during the pandemic
ROANOKE, Va. โ Brunella Salazar-Gonti and Levi Buck have taken both their backgrounds and created some amazing desserts at Pastel . Salazar-Gonti says, "We wanted to bring more of an international flare to Roanoke.โShe is from Peru, which has helped introduce customers to new flavors. Buck says, โA lot of people that come in see us on social media. Once we get people to come in and try us out, we get โem hooked.โThis dynamic duo is social media savvy, setting up a shop on Instagram. And for that, theyโre thankful.
227 Skeletons Found in Peru at Largest Site of Child Sacrifices in the World
A hillside in Peru is a burial ground for the remains of thousands of children sacrificed at the site hundreds of years ago. On Wednesday, archaeologists uncovered the largest amount of remains of sacrificed children in the Americas, which they believe date back to the Chimu period. According to the archaeologists, the sacrifices appear to be connected to a climate-related event like El Nino. The remains of sacrificed children have also been discovered in Mexico and even in the Andes, but never of this magnitude, according to reports. RELATED STORIESHundreds of Clowns Line Peruvian Streets for ParadeBeached Humpback Whale Rescued by Kind Bystanders in PeruTeens Killed in 'Tragic Accident' While Exploring Peru to Celebrate Graduating High School
Roanoke woman wins bronze medals at Pan American games
ROANOKE, Va. - A local woman has returned home a champion after competing in the Pan American Games. Kelani Lawrence won two bronze medals in racquetball. "My only other international medal was at the 2016 Pan Am Championships, which was solely a racquetball event. So it was super exciting to be able to get bronze medals at this event," Lawrence said. Lawrence hopes to compete in the next Pan American games in 2023.
Beached Humpback Whale Rescued by Kind Bystanders in Peru
A whale is swimming freely thanks to a team of volunteers who rescued the animal in Peru. A humpback whale washed up on a beach in Zorritos and dozens of volunteers jumped in to help push it back into the water. At El Nuro beach, another humpback whale became trapped in a fishing net. Humpback whales can weigh up to 40 tons and measure up to 60 feet. RELATED STORIESWoman Freaks Out, Calls 911 After Humpback Whales Swim Under BoatBreathtaking Drone Footage Shows 2 Whales Keeping Paddle Boarder CompanySeaWorld and Former Trainer Face off over 'Lies' and Dying Killer Whales Allegations
Neymar consoles former teammate Suarez after penalty miss
CNN image(CNN) - Luis Suarez's penalty shootout miss at the Copa America might have pleased some onlookers who recalled his controversial past, but Neymar consoled his former -- and perhaps -- future Barcelona teammate. They terrorized La Liga defenses and won the Champions League together in 2015. Uruguay won on penalties. But while free-spending PSG is unstoppable in the French division, the much-desired Champions League crown is still missing. And various reports suggest Barcelona -- facing a Champions League slump of its own -- could once again land him in a possible swap deal.