The death of a black man who was forced into a police car boot where a gas grenade was set off has sparked outrage in Brazil. Police stopped Genivaldo de Jesus Santos, 38, in the street in the north-eastern city of Umbaúba, Sergipe state, on Wednesday. Video footage showed two officers holding down the boot […]
By Megan Fisher BBC News A huge drugs tunnel has been found running from Tijuana in Mexico to a warehouse in San Diego in the US. With a length of 1,744ft (531m), the passage had a rail track, electricity and a ventilation system. US authorities had been carrying out surveillance at a property previously used […]
By Vanessa Buschschlüter BBC News The number of people reported as disappeared in Mexico is at a record high of 100,000, figures suggest. Government data, which goes back to 1964, shows that almost all the disappearances have occurred since 2007, when then-President Felipe Calderón launched his “war on drugs”. The United Nations has […]
US officials have announced plans to ease tough sanctions imposed on Cuba by former President Donald Trump. Under new measures approved by the Biden administration, restrictions on family remittances and travel to the island will be eased. The processing of US visas for Cubans will also be speeded up. State Department spokesman Ned Price said […]
Former Brazilian leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has launched his campaign for October’s presidential election. At a rally, the left-winger called on Brazilians to support him in defending the country’s democracy from the far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. Lula led the country for eight years from 2003, but was later convicted of corruption and jailed […]
Nicaragua’s parliament has voted in favour of shutting down 50 non-governmental organisations. The parliament, which is dominated by allies of President Daniel Ortega, said the NGOs had failed to comply with regulations. But government critics say the move is part of a larger crackdown on opponents of the president, which has seen 144 NGOs banned […]
The Dominican Republic has urged Haiti to do everything in its power to ensure the safe release of one of its diplomats who was kidnapped on Friday. The trade attaché at the Dominican embassy in Port-au-Prince, Carlos Guillén, was seized by gang members while he was travelling to neighbouring Dominican Republic. Dominican officials said that […]
Eleven Colombian ex-soldiers are giving details about extrajudicial killings carried out by the army during Colombia’s armed conflict. They are taking part in a public hearing of the special court examining crimes committed during the conflict. More than 6,400 civilians were killed by the military and falsely passed off as enemy combatants between […]
By Sofia Ferreira Santos BBC News Rio Carnival Brazil’s president found himself ridiculed for his Covid policies as the world-famous Carnival took place for the first time since the pandemic. During the São Paulo parade, a performer wearing a presidential sash transformed into a crocodile after “receiving a vaccine” on stage. President Jair […]
At least six Colombian soldiers have been killed and five injured in an ambush in north-western Antioquia province, the army says. The soldiers where on patrol in a rural area when their vehicle was blown up by a roadside bomb. Officials said they suspected the Gulf Clan criminal gang to be behind the attack. The […]
