MEXICO CITY (AP) — The arrest of an ex-governor of the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas caps a five-year, seemingly desultory search for the ruling-party politician accused of organized crime and money laundering. It may have been one of the least serious searches in history. Analysts say the government was loath to arrest one of … Continue reading
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Thousands of protesters demanding new elections faced off with security forces who launched tear gas and stood shoulder-to-shoulder blocking roadways in the Venezuelan capital Monday, April 1o. Demonstrators covered their faces to protect against the plumes of tear gas that wafted through the streets of Caracas. A few threw rocks as … Continue reading
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis urged young people to lead the church’s future Saturday, April 8, even as he voiced doubts that he’d be around much longer to see it. The 80-year-old pope referred to his own mortality twice in the span of a few minutes during a vigil service to rally enthusiasm for the … Continue reading
DALLAS (AP) — Thousands of people marched and rallied in downtown Dallas on Sunday, April 9, to call for an overhaul of the nation’s immigration system and end to what organizers said is an aggressive deportation policy. Organizers who called Sunday’s event the “Dallas Mega March” said President Donald Trump’s executive orders restricting travel from … Continue reading
NOGALES, Ariz. (AP) — Attorney General Jeff Sessions toured the U.S.-Mexico border Tuesday, April 11, and unveiled what he described as a new get-tough approach to immigration prosecutions under President Donald Trump. The nation’s top law enforcement official outlined a series of changes that he said mark the start of a new push to rid … Continue reading
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government has barred opposition leader Henrique Capriles — twice a major presidential candidate — from running for office for 15 years, a surprise move sure to ratchet up tensions amid a growing street protest movement Capriles read from excerpts of the comptroller general’s order at a rally Friday, April 7, … Continue reading
TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) — The smells and sounds of Tijuana smack us as soon as we open the doors of our bug-splattered rental, a Jeep Renegade: food stalls selling roasted corn, churros and hot dogs; a near-empty bar blaring the oompa-oompas of norteno, Mexico’s answer to polka. This is our last stop. We have just … Continue reading
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government fired tear gas and rubber bullets at some of the thousands of opponents of President Nicolas Maduro who poured into the streets of Caracas Saturday, April 8, amid a weeklong protest movement that shows little sign of losing steam. The demonstrations in the capital and several other cities came … Continue reading
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro called on Sunday, April 9, for an investigation against a leading opposition politician for falsely suggesting the government was carrying out a Syria-like chemical attack against protesters. Caracas-area Mayor David Smolansky on Saturday denounced the presence of a previously unseen red gas used to scatter thousands of … Continue reading
TABIO, Colombia (AP) — While the real Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman is locked up in a cold, tiny cell in New York, his career as a drug lord apparently over, his fictional counterpart is free and in top form in Colombia, where the Univision network and Netflix are filming a television series about his life. … Continue reading
CURITIBA, Brazil (AP) — A shy federal judge based in a provincial capital has become an unlikely celebrity in Brazil, where he is shaking up the nation’s power structure while overseeing what may be the largest corruption probe in Latin American history. Passers-by mostly cheer — but sometimes jeer — Sergio Moro when he goes … Continue reading
by Troy White Team USA dominates team Puerto Rico in an 8-0 end to the World Baseball Classic on Wednesday, March 22. Marcus Stroman, Toronto Blue Jays’ pitcher, played a huge part in the win by shutting down Puerto Rico with no hits through the sixth inning. Stroman’s mother was born and raised in Puerto … Continue reading
PUERTO BELLO, Colombia (AP) — Coca production in Colombia has surged to levels unseen in two decades of U.S. eradication efforts, according to a White House report released Tuesday, March 14. Cultivation of the plant used to make cocaine rose 18 percent last year from 2015, with coca crops planted on an estimated 188,000 hectares … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the Organization of American States wants regional governments to suspend Venezuela from the Washington-based group unless general elections are held soon to break a political impasse that he said Tuesday, March 14, is destroying the country’s democracy. OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro made the request in a 75-page report … Continue reading
MEXICO CITY (AP) — More than 250 skulls have been found over the last several months in what appears to be a drug cartel mass burial ground on the outskirts of the city of Veracruz, prosecutors said Tuesday, March 14. Veracruz state’s top prosecutor, Jorge Winckler, said the clandestine pits appeared to contain remains of … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 