Chile: Billionaire Beat Leftists, Now Faces Runoff
Right-wing billionaire Sebastian Pinera beat three leftists in Sunday's presidential election but failed to obtain a majority, setting up a runoff against a veteran of the coalition that has ruled Chile for two decades of democracy.
Crackolandia: Symbol Of A Plague Ravaging Brazil, Argentina, And Uruguay
Ragged, shoeless, and dirty, the drug addicts wander like directionless ghosts through the run-down historical city center of São Paulo, begging for coins to buy another rock of crack (cocaine base paste), eating occasionally, and sleeping wherever exhaustion overtakes them.
Brazil Takes Down Major Drug-Smuggling Ring
Brazilian police broke up a drug-smuggling band accused of supplying drugs to a ruthless criminal organization that operates in Sao Paulo, authorities said.
President Obama Accepts Nobel Peace Prize
U.S. President Barack Obama formally accepted the Nobel Peace Prize at a ceremony in Oslo, Norway. The president spoke at length about the circumstances that push nations to war, and prompt them to seek peace.
El Salvador Declines To Host Four Sports At Central American Games
El Salvador has declined to host four of seven sports assigned to it for the IX Central American Games, which the country will hold jointly with Panama and Guatemala in March, due to the damage suffered by its stadiums during November’s rains, an official announced.
US Eyes Unmanned Drones For Ocean Smuggler Patrol
U.S. Customs and Border Protection took delivery of its first Predator aircraft drone to scan U.S. waters for smugglers.
Colombian Military Commander Dismisses Possibility Of Replacements For FARC Leaders
Speaking to the press, the commanding general of the Colombian Armed Forces, Gen. Freddy Padilla, affirmed that the leaders of the FARC “are getting old” and dismissed the possibility that they could find replacements within guerrilla ranks.
Big Cocaine Seizure Made Off Guatemala’s Pacific Coast
The Guatemalan navy and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration detained 12 people who were transporting 2,000 kilos (about 2.2 tons) of cocaine aboard four speedboats off Guatemala's Pacific coast, officials said.
Some 400 Peruvians Reservists Go To Work In Afghanistan And Iraq
About 400 reservists from the Armed Forces and police of Peru departed for Afghanistan and Iraq, where they have been hired to provide security for facilities of U.S. companies.
The FARC: One Of The Armed Groups That Makes Greatest Use Of Land Mines In The World
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group continues to be one of the groups that makes greatest use of anti-personnel mines in the world, Mary Wareham, a member of the NGO World Land-Mine Monitor, reported.
Former Colombian Rebels’ Musical Project Will Tour Europe
The Colombian government’s musical project “Sing with Me for Reintegration,” in which eight former rebels from that country participate, will tour London, Brussels, and Madrid in December, according to diplomatic sources.
Calderon: Drugs Can’t Be Eliminated But Crime Can
Mexican President Felipe Calderon acknowledged in an interview with EFE the impossibility of doing away with drugs but believed that the government's goal should be "freeing citizens" from organized crime.