TheRepublic.com - Latin America and Caribbean News

Mexico: far fewer people disappeared than feared

Fri, 24 May 2013 19:11:34 -0400

MEXICO CITY - Mexico's top security official said Friday that far fewer people disappeared during Mexico's drug war than were feared when the government released a list of about 26,000 cases.

Third term begins for Ecuador's President Correa

Fri, 24 May 2013 18:56:18 -0400

QUITO, Ecuador - Ecuador's Rafael Correa began his third term as president on Friday under seemingly ideal conditions: extremely high popularity, a more than two-thirds majority in Congress, a stable economy and a badly splintered opposition.

Barrick fined $16m for Pascua-Lama violations

Fri, 24 May 2013 18:38:35 -0400

VALLENAR, Chile - Chile's environmental regulator blocked Barrick Gold Corp.'s $8.5 billion Pascua-Lama project on Friday and imposed its maximum fine on the world's largest gold miner, citing "very serious" violations of its environmental permit as well as a failure by the company to accurately describe what it had done wrong.

Ex-Guatemala president extradited to US

Fri, 24 May 2013 18:01:30 -0400

GUATEMALA CITY - Ex-Guatemalan President Alfonso Portillo was extradited on Friday to the United States to face charges of laundering $70 million in Guatemalan funds through U.S. bank accounts.

Honduran gangs to announce truce to cut violence

Fri, 24 May 2013 17:58:30 -0400

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - A Roman Catholic bishop says Honduras' two largest and most-violent gangs will sign a truce on Tuesday.

Puerto Rico approves anti-discrimination bill

Fri, 24 May 2013 17:35:55 -0400

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Legislators in Puerto Rico on Friday approved a heavily debated bill that outlaws employment discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation.

Bowie Young takes early lead on short course

Fri, 24 May 2013 17:15:12 -0400

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas - Heather Bowie Young made five straight birdies while hop-scotching across the golf course Friday in the Bahamas LPGA Classic.

Leahy disappointed on gay, bi-national couples

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:23:07 -0400

MONTPELIER, Vermont - Sen. Patrick Leahy said Friday he was disappointed he was unsuccessful in his bid to amend immigration reform legislation to protect same-sex couples in which one of the partners is foreign-born.

Arellano Felix drug cartel leader pleads guilty

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:40:13 -0400

SAN DIEGO - The last of the brothers accused of creating an infamous Mexican drug cartel pleaded guilty Friday to helping send hundreds of millions of dollars in proceeds from the United States, marking one of the final milestones in an investigation that began nearly two decades ago.

Venezuela to create new workers militia

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:28:20 -0400

CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuela's president has ordered the creation of a new workers' militia to defend the country's "Bolivarian revolution" at a time when the government faces economic problems and political turmoil.

Dempsey makes late pass to win wild Freedom 100

Fri, 24 May 2013 14:36:47 -0400

INDIANAPOLIS - Peter Dempsey made Indianapolis Motor Speedway history in the blink of an eye. Literally.

Fluminense tries to defend Brazilian league title

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:08:33 -0400

SAO PAULO - The Brazilian league starts this weekend with defending champion Fluminense trying to win its third title in four years.

Servia, team preparing for final race of 2013

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:54:22 -0400

INDIANAPOLIS - When Oriol Servia arrived at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and heard the slogan, he thought it was intended for him.

Obama's speech welcomed in Pakistan, Yemen

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:28:26 -0400

ISLAMABAD - President Barack Obama's speech on the use of drones and the fate of Guantanamo prisoners was largely welcomed Friday in two key countries affected by the policies- Pakistan and Yemen.

Obama balances threats against Americans' rights

Fri, 24 May 2013 03:41:50 -0400

WASHINGTON - Forecasting the changing nature of threats against the U.S. for years to come, President Barack Obama says "America is at a crossroads." And so, too, is his presidency's counterterrorism policy, which has long struggled to balance protecting the nation from terror attacks while upholding Americans' rights.

NYPD: Merchant held for ransom, tortured for month

Thu, 23 May 2013 22:04:25 -0400

NEW YORK - A businessman was snatched from a New York City street in broad daylight, then held captive for more than a month in a warehouse where he was bound and burned with acid as he was held for a $3 million ransom his family back in Ecuador did not have, authorities said.

Milestones for Guantanamo Bay detention center

Thu, 23 May 2013 22:01:25 -0400

President Barack Obama on Thursday reaffirmed his 2008 campaign promise to close the military-run prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where terror suspects have been held since 2002, and begin the transfer of some prisoners to other countries. A look the facility's history:

Obama lifts ban on Guantanamo transfers to Yemen

Thu, 23 May 2013 19:08:24 -0400

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is lifting his self-imposed ban on transferring Guantanamo Bay detainees to Yemen, where a leadership upheaval has improved the country's security but not eliminated a terrorist organization trying to recruit jihadists.

Brazil police arrest 9 for abusing Indian girls

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:07:24 -0400

SAO PAULO - Brazil's Federal Police say nine people have been arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing Indians girls in the northern state of Amazonas.

Yemen welcomes Obama decision on Gitmo transfers

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:17:41 -0400

WASHINGTON - Yemen is welcoming President Barack Obama's decision to lift his ban on the transfer of Yemeni prisoners from the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Dissidents find 'Cuba outside Cuba' in Miami

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:54:59 -0400

MIAMI - When Cuban hunger striker Guillermo Farinas arrived in Miami, he said he was prepared to face rejection from radical members of the Cuban-American community who do not believe in pacific opposition.

Turks and Caicos recovers cash, land amid probe

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:20:51 -0400

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Officials in the Turks and Caicos Islands have recovered $19.5 million and more than 2,500 acres (1,000 hectares) of real estate as they continue to seize assets improperly obtained by corrupt politicians.

Obama lifts ban on detainee transfer to Yemen

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:07:42 -0400

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama says he is lifting his ban on the transfer of detainees from the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention center to Yemen. And he is calling on Congress to lift its restrictions on detainee transfers, including limits on imprisoning them within the U.S.

Guilty plea in shooting of ICE agents in Mexico

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:31:38 -0400

WASHINGTON - A Mexican drug cartel member pleaded guilty Thursday to the killing and wounding of two U.S. agents in Mexico, and the guilty pleas of three other men were unsealed in connection to the shooting.

Google to add Galapagos Islands to Street View

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:26:19 -0400

SAN FRANCISCO - Few have explored the remote volcanic islands of the Galapagos archipelago, an otherworldly landscape inhabited by the world's largest tortoises and other fantastical creatures that inspired Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.