South America

Helicopter carrying Colombia's President Duque struck by bullets in attack

A helicopter carrying Colombia's President Ivan Duque and others was struck by multiple bullets in an attack on Friday, he said in a video message.

Car bomb explodes inside Colombia military base; 36 injured

A car bomb exploded inside a military base in the Colombian border town of Cucuta on Tuesday, leaving 36 people injured, including three in critical condition, officials said.

Argentine president says Brazilians 'came from the jungle', sparking uproar

Argentine President Alberto Fernandez triggered a Twitter storm and a regional race debate on Wednesday with misjudged comments to visiting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez that sought to play up the South American country's ties with Europe.

Teenager kills children, teacher at Brazil day care center

A teenager broke into a daycare center in southern Brazil and stabbed three children and two workers to death on Tuesday before being overpowered by police, officials said.

Venezuela says 8 soldiers killed amid fighting along Colombian border

Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said on Wednesday that eight soldiers were killed in combat amid continuing clashes between the armed forces and illegal armed groups along the border with Colombia.

Brazil health regulator rejects Russia's Sputnik Covid-19 vaccine

The Brazilian health regulator Anvisa rejected importing the Russian-made Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine requested by state governors battling a deadly second wave of the virus that is battering Latin America's largest nation.

14 rebels killed in fighting with Colombian army

At least 14 rebels and one Colombian soldier have been killed in combat between guerrillas and the Andean country's military, army sources said.

Brazil investigates reports of vaccines being exchanged for illegal gold

Federal prosecutors in the Brazilian state of Roraima are investigating reports that illegally-mined gold is being exchanged for Covid-19 vaccines in the Yanomami indigenous reserve, the prosecutors office told Reuters on Wednesday.

Lasso wins Ecuador presidency in upset over socialist rival

Ecuadorean banker Guillermo Lasso pulled off a surprise win in presidential runoff against socialist economist Andres Arauz, putting the country on track to maintain open market policies rather than return to socialism.

Brazil sees 1,803 Covid-19 deaths a day, Chinese vaccine found 50.7% effective

Brazil on Sunday recorded 1,803 new Covid-19 deaths, as a large study found that a Chinese vaccine that has become the linchpin in the country’s vaccination campaign is 50.7 percent effective against the infectious new homegrown variant known as P1.

Brazil names new military chiefs amid tensions with Bolsonaro

Brazil’s Defense Ministry named new commanders of its armed forces a day after the previous three chiefs were sacked as part of President Jair Bolsonaro’s unprecedented attempt to meddle in the military.

Brazil military chiefs quit as Bolsonaro seeks their support

The leaders of all three branches of Brazil’s armed forces jointly resigned Tuesday following President Jair Bolsonaro’s replacement of the defense minister, causing widespread apprehension of a military shakeup to serve the president’s political interests.

Brazil study suggests AstraZeneca vaccine effective against the country’s Covid-19 variant

Preliminary studies suggest the AstraZeneca vaccine will protect against the P1 variant of the coronavirus, Mauricio Zuma, the head of production at Brazil’s Fiocruz biomedical institute said confirming a Reuters report.

Guatemala cracks down on US-bound 8,000-strong migrant caravan from Honduras

Guatemalan authorities on Saturday escalated efforts to stop thousands of Hondurans, many of them families with children, traveling in a migrant caravan bound for the United States just as a new administration is about to enter the White House.

Argentina’s lower house approves bill legalising abortion

Lawmakers in Argentina’s lower house on Friday passed a bill that would legalise elective abortions to the 14th week of pregnancy, a proposal from President Alberto Fernández in response to long-sought demands from women’s rights activists in the homeland of Pope Francis.