Regional News

LIMA,  (Reuters) – Peruvian authorities said yesterday they seized 2.3 tonnes of cocaine disguised as ceramic tiles destined for Turkey via a growing maritime route for illicit drugs.

(Trinidad Guardian) “They shouldn’t ah kill my husband,” cried Mala Bajnath-Singh yesterday as she recalled how her husband Narine Singh was fatally shot on their bed around midnight on Sunday.

BEIJING,  (Reuters) – Brazil is courting fresh investment from top Chinese grains trader COFCO, as the company plays a growing role in the South American nation’s booming farm exports, Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro told Reuters yesterday.

BOGOTA,  (Reuters) – Colombia risks losing U.S. support in its fight against drug trafficking because of rising coca output and a bill that could allow criminal gangs to surrender and be possibly pardoned, the Andean country’s attorney general told Reuters in an interview.

(Trinidad Express) A hundred and twenty-six Digicel customer contact service centre employees have been retrenched this morning, as the company has transitioned to a consolidated regional centre in Jamaica.

MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – The Mexican government said yesterday it would challenge the Supreme Court’s temporary suspension of parts of a controversial electoral reform pushed by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

(Trinidad Guardian) With his hands raised to the heavens, Levi Paul wept as he questioned why his 14-year-old son was murdered while playing football on Saturday night.

CARACAS, (Reuters) – An expanding anti-corruption probe in Venezuela has led to the detention of 10 officials and 11 businessmen, the country’s attorney general said yesterday, adding that arrest warrants for 11 more people have been issued.

MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – Mexico’s Supreme Court temporarily suspended on Friday parts of a controversial electoral reform pushed by the country’s president, while also confirming it will consider a lawsuit from independent electoral institute INE that seeks to overturn it.

CARACAS,  (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro will not attend an Ibero-American summit this weekend hosted by the Dominican Republic, a Venezuelan official said yesterday, after receiving a positive COVID-19 test even though he has since tested negative twice.

BRASILIA,  (Reuters) – Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has canceled a high-profile trip to China due to medical reasons, and the March 27-31 visit will be rescheduled for a later date, his press secretary said today.

(Reuters) – A dual Haitian-Chilean citizen pleaded guilty in a U.S.

BRASILIA,  (Reuters) – Brazil and China are in talks to create a fund for financing the development of green industry and renewable energy in both countries, two senior Brazilian officials told Reuters.

(Trinidad Express) Akim London appeared before a Point Fortin magistrate yesterday, charged with the murder of Subrina Thomas.

CARACAS, (Reuters) – A man accused of leading a prominent drug-running ring has been killed by authorities in northeastern Venezuela, the country’s interior minister said yesterday.

MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador yesterday denied that parts of his country are controlled by drug cartels, responding to recent comments from U.S.

BRASILIA,  (Reuters) – Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been diagnosed with mild pneumonia and will delay his departure to China until Sunday, the presidential palace said today.

LA PAZ,  (Reuters) – Bolivian President Luis Arce said yesterday he would be willing to jointly design a lithium policy with other Latin American countries to benefit their economies, echoing a similar proposal from Mexico’s President.

MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – Mexico’s president confirmed for the first time yesterday that his government monitored the phone of a human rights activist, stressing it was a lawful part of a probe into a suspected gang member.

RIO DE JANEIRO, (Reuters) – At least 13 people were killed in clashes with police just outside Brazil’s seaside city of Rio de Janeiro after a raid to arrest a gang leader, police said yesterday, marking another bloody episode in the sprawling metro area.