DEBT PILE Argentina confirms plans to force debt swap on state entities 23-03-2023 17:08 State banks and ANSES social security agency must swap 100% of foreign bond holdings for peso-denominated debt, decree confirms.
POLITICS City security minister Marcelo D’Alessandro resigns post 23-03-2023 08:44 Buenos Aires City security and justice minister, who has been on leave for three months, resigns following scandal prompted by Lago Escondido leaked chat messages.
WELCOME HOME WORLD CHAMPIONS! Argentina and 'La Scaloneta' prepare for Monumental World Cup party 23-03-2023 00:26 River Plate's Monumental stadium, packed with 83,000 souls, will provide a boisterous backdrop to Argentina's first match as world champions this Thursday night.
CRIME & SECURITY US Embassy hit by two security scares on consecutive days 09-03-2023 16:30 Suspicious device found on Embassy gates in Palermo on Thursday, a day after two Syrians with falsified documentation were detained and terrorism protocol activated.
CRIME & SECURITY Anti-narcotics forces deployed in Rosario as homicide numbers climb 09-03-2023 13:57 Argentina’s government sends reinforcements to combat drug-trafficking in Rosario, where more than one death per day has been registered in March.
CRIME & SECURITY Government reinforces security forces in Rosario amid drug violence 07-03-2023 15:07 President Fernández boosts the number of federal security forces available to authorities in Rosario and says he will send a division of the Army to support efforts to overhaul and urbanise working-class neighbourhoods.
Violence in Rosario Investigators: Attackers of Messi's in-laws’ supermarket seeking ‘impact’ 03-03-2023 17:25 Threatening attack on supermarket owned by Lionel Messi's in-laws was intended to "generate intimidation" and "public impact," investigators said Friday.
CRIME & SECURITY Security minister under fire after admitting ‘narcos have won’ in Rosario 02-03-2023 19:45 Aníbal Fernández slammed by opposition after asserting that the “narcos have won” in Rosario; Comments delivered in aftermath of threats and shooting at supermarket owned by family of Lionel Messi’s wife.
TOURISM CLAMPDOWN Big-spending tourists get raided by Argentine airport officials 17-02-2023 14:24 Officials now using social media to research the movement of passengers who they suspect are using precious foreign exchange to bring goods into the country to sell.
PREGNANT RUSSIANS United States requests info on probe into pregnant Russian women in Argentina 17-02-2023 10:02 Washington seeks data on alleged criminal network luring pregnant Russians to Buenos Aires with so-called childbirth tourism packages.
VIOLENCE IN ROSARIO Campaigners in Rosario demand action in ‘capital of perfect crime’ 15-02-2023 21:58 "They’re killing us and nobody does anything" – activist group Familiares y Víctimas de la Inseguridad makes new appeal to provincial and national governments; Narco violence continues to terrorise Rosario with 41 homicides since turn of the year.
Unrest in Peru Peru investigating security force role in protest deaths 14-02-2023 13:41 Peruvian prosecutors investigating whether security forces were to blame for the deaths of several protesters during anti-government demonstrations in December.
Brazil Congress Elections Brazil's Congress elects new authorities under tight security 01-02-2023 16:58 Brazil's Congress on Wednesday elects presidents of both chambers; Inauguration of lawmakers takes place amid reinforced security after attacks on the government buildings in Brasília.
CRIME & SECURITY Mapuche leader Facundo Jones Huala arrested in El Bolsón 30-01-2023 11:17 Río Negro Province government confirms radical Mapuche leader has been detained; Jones Huala, who was allegedly drunk when found by police, had been hiding at a property in El Bolsón.
Murder in Villa Gesell 'Los Rugbiers': the group of eight accused of killing Fernando Báez Sosa 18-01-2023 11:43 Eight individuals – all aged between 21 and 23 – are accused of killing teenager Fernando Báez Sosa on January 18, 2020 in Villa Gesell.
ENVIRONMENT Government creates new unit to probe ‘environmental crimes’ 16-01-2023 16:50 Argentina’s government has created a new unit to investigate and prevent environmental crimes, responding to the deliberate destruction of terrain for commercial purposes.
NEW ERA IN BRAZIL Entire Brasilia police force to deploy for Lula's swearing-in 28-12-2022 13:14 Over the weekend, a man was arrested after allegedly placing explosives in a fuel truck near Brasilia's airport, hoping to sow "chaos" ahead of the inauguration Sunday.
FEATURE: DRUG-TRAFFICKING How drug smugglers infiltrated a global shipping giant 24-12-2022 09:40 As MSC grew into a dominant force in global trade, it also became a prime drug-trafficking conduit for Balkan gangs.
FEATURE: DRUG-TRAFFICKING The golden age of cocaine is happening right now 22-12-2022 14:09 Global fallout from Colombia's cocaine boom is showing up everywhere from the warehouses of Antwerp to coup plots in West Africa, bringing violence, corruption and big profits.
CRIME & SECURITY Fourteen-year-old found with gunshot wound to head in Palermo 28-11-2022 10:51 Police investigating reports teenager had been kidnapped for ransom and parents received extortion call, but are also investigating a possible suicide attempt, according to reports.
Politics & corruption Sergio Berni walks the line as the coalitions bend 26-11-2022 06:26 Sergio Berni is once again walking on the edge of a tightrope, a situation he knows all too well. by Agustino Fontevecchia
EDITORIAL Hanging in the balance (of powers) 26-11-2022 01:52 Argentina has very concrete problems resulting from the seemingly abstract factor of legal security.
INTERVIEW / PERIODISMO PURO Patricia Bullrich: ‘Alberto Fernández, after the role he has played, cannot run again’ 12-11-2022 07:24 PRO party chair and 2023 presidential hopeful on candidacies, Mauricio Macri’s role moving forward and the failed attack on Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. by Jorge Fontevecchia
FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA A football match is not a war 14-10-2022 08:27 Events at the Gimnasia-Boca match show that a comprehensive overhaul of the policing of football matches is long overdue. by Dan Edwards
INTERVIEW / PERIODISMO PURO Cristian Ritondo: ‘I see Kirchnerism as a political adversary, not as an enemy’ 08-10-2022 04:55 Cristian Ritondo, chair of the PRO caucus in the lower house, on security, fighting crime, the attack on the vice-president and running for office in Buenos Aires Province. by Jorge Fontevecchia
SECURITY Twelve arrests in Villa Mascardi as security forces evict Mapuches 04-10-2022 17:06 Following weekend demonstrations by local residents, 250 members of security forces deployed by authorities in large operation to evict members of the Lafken Winkul Mapu community.
BRAZIL ELECTION 2022 All eyes on Army as Brazil heads for elections 29-09-2022 01:00 Experts say that while Jair Bolsonaro has the backing of some in the military, it is highly unlikely the institution would get involved in anything resembling a coup.
CRIME & SECURITY Opposition denounces violence in Río Negro as Mapuche conflict escalates 29-09-2022 00:18 Arson, occupation and conflict as hooded Mapuche gang seizes Los Radales lot in Villa Mascardi after fire.
HUMAN RIGHTS & VENEZUELA UN committee releases damning report on human rights abuses in Venezuela 24-09-2022 08:00 Human rights watchdogs call for increased international pressure on government in Caracas following damning United Nations report; Pressure grows on Argentina to revise relations with Maduro administration. by Sam Forster
BRAZIL ELECTION 2022 Hunger returns to haunt Brazil amid divisive vote 15-09-2022 02:52 More than 33 million Brazilians live in hunger and the figure has become the subject of a bitter political battle as Latin America's biggest economy heads for a crucial October election.
BRAZIL ELECTION 2022 Booming gun ownership triggers fears for Brazil vote 12-09-2022 16:56 An explosion in the number of guns in circulation in Brazil is causing concern ahead of the October 2 presidential election.
POLITICS After attack on CFK, Alberto Fernández accepts tighter security 08-09-2022 23:27 The president resumed his agenda with a ceremony in San Martín this week, with some 20 percent of the presidential military staff now assigned to bodyguard duties. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is also more tightly guarded. by Rosario Ayerdi
CRIME: DRUG-TRAFFICKING Hidrovía del Paraná: the waterway which passes South America’s drugs to Europe 01-09-2022 09:50 Drug authorities last week seized 1.6 tons of cocaine worth approximately US$60 million – one of the largest busts in recent years. The raid, which took place in Rosario, once again highlights the role played by local ports in international drug-trafficking. by Leonardo Nieva
CRIME & SECURITY Argentina seizes 1.6 tons of cocaine headed for Dubai 26-08-2022 15:59 Authorities seize 1.6 tons of cocaine hidden in animal feed destined for Dubai and detained 12 people.
Food Security Wind blows in favour of Argentina’s GM crops 24-08-2022 15:18 Genetically modified crops, which have for years been heavily criticised by environmentalists, are benefitting from new technological developments and health and safety approvals overseas.
Brazil Elections Brazil's Bolsonaro gets in spat with heckler 19-08-2022 15:49 Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro got into an altercation Thursday with a social media personality who questioned and insulted him, grabbing the man by the shirt and arm after he called the leader a "bum."
New Era in Colombia Colombian president-elect proposes 'ceasefire,' talks with ELN 06-07-2022 15:46 Colombia's leftist president-elect Gustavo Petro proposes a "bilateral ceasefire" with the violence-stricken country's last active guerrilla group, the ELN.
COLOMBIA ELECTIONS 2022 Here’s how radical Gustavo Petro can be as Colombian president 20-06-2022 14:26 Investors in Colombia are trying to gauge how radical Gustavo Petro's government will be. Here's a look at some of the leftist leader's main proposals for the economy.
CRIME & THE COURTS Boca showing lack of ‘empathy’ over sex abuse claims, says footballer’s accuser 16-06-2022 15:08 Tamara Doldán, the woman who accused Colombia and Boca Juniors star Sebastián Villa of sexual abuse and rape, criticises club’s response to allegations.
'BULLRICHMANIA' With Macri watching on, Bullrich outlines presidential ambitions 08-06-2022 15:53 Patricia Bullrich outlines her vision of Argentina’s future and shows off the key figures behind her 2023 bid for the Casa Rosada. by Gabriel Ziblat
CRIME & SECURITY One femicide every 35 hours in Argentina last year 31-05-2022 15:36 During 2021, a woman died from gender violence every 35 hours, according to official government data.
RIO RAIDS Shock over Brazil police 'torture, executions' in drug raid 27-05-2022 08:37 Bodies from a Rio de Janeiro police raid show signs of torture and summary execution, lawyers allege.
EDITORIAL Could opium be the opium of the masses? 21-05-2022 06:00 In order to overcome the widespread perception that they are hopelessly abstract, institutions need to establish a connection with current problems and everyday life to become established again.
Indigenous rights Chile redeploys Army to southern region amid Mapuche tensions 17-05-2022 14:13 Chilean President Gabriel Boric's government decrees re-militarisation of troubled southern region of La Araucanía, in the face of mounting violence linked to territorial claims by Mapuche indigenous groups.
COLOMBIA ELECTIONS 2022 Colombia election front-runner Petro beefs up security over violence threat 12-05-2022 12:53 Colombia is the only major country in Latin America that’s never had a leftist leader, and polls suggest it’s about to get one in Gustavo Petro. That’s raising the campaign temperature in a country with a history of political violence.
LATIN AMERICA Three shot in Chile May Day clashes 02-05-2022 10:53 Three people wounded by gunfire and two arrested in clashes during demonstrations in Chile.
CRIME & SECURITY Founder of ‘Los Monos’ drug gang arrested 29-04-2022 15:04 Founder of the ‘Los Monos’ drug-trafficking gang, Máximo Ariel ‘El Viejo’ Cantero, arrested and taken into custody.
CRIME & SECURITY Drug-related violence soars to ‘critical’ levels in Rosario 29-04-2022 15:01 At least 90 killed from narco-violence in Rosario so far this year; Slain bodies found in mafia-style killings as local authorities warn the situation is ‘critical.’
HUMAN RIGHTS Santiago del Estero: Police ‘slayings, tortures, threats’ to be reported to UN 11-04-2022 16:03 According to a report set to be presented by opposition politicians to the United Nations, alleged crimes were committed in 2020 and 2021. "Police harassment" has also been denounced, with the provincial government held responsible.
CRIME Contaminated cocaine: Investigators switch focus to different drug gang 25-02-2022 17:27 Investigators believe gang led by convicted drug-trafficker Miguel Ángel 'Mameluco' Villalba is linked to the sale of tainted cocaine that killed 24 people last month.