Bolivia

16 November 2019; AFP: Bolivia's interim leader Jeanine Anez said Friday that exiled ex-president Evo Morales would have to "answer to justice" if he returns, as five of his supporters were killed in fierce clashes with security forces.

Morales resigned and fled to Mexico after losing the support of Bolivia's security forces following weeks of protests over his disputed re-election that has seen 15 people killed and more than 400 wounded.

SACABA, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivia’s political crisis turned deadly after security forces opened fire on supporters of Evo Morales in a central town, killing at least five people, injuring dozens and threatening the interim government’s efforts to restore stability following the resignation of the former president in an election dispute.

Most of the dead and injured Friday in Sacaba near the city of Cochabamba suffered bullet wounds, Guadalberto Lara, director of the town’s Mexico Hospital, told The Associated Press. He called it the worst violence he’s seen in his 30-year career.

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivia’s former President Evo Morales cannot run as a candidate in any new elections, the country’s interim leader said Thursday, as supporters of the ousted president demonstrated for his return from asylum in Mexico.

“Evo: Friend, the people are with you!” shouted protesters in the city of Sacaba.

La Paz, Nov 14; AFP/GANASHAKTI: Bolivia's interim president Jeanine Anez moved Wednesday to fill the power vacuum left by the resignation of Evo Morales, who said he was ready to return from exile in Mexico to "pacify" the country, as riot police clashed with his supporters and one was killed.

Anez, a 52-year-old deputy senate speaker before proclaiming herself acting president on Tuesday -- a move endorsed by the Constitutional Court -- named 11 cabinet ministers and appointed a new military high command.

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Where does the power line stand in crisis-torn Bolivia?

Jeanine Añez, the Senate leader who has claimed the interim presidency of the Andean country, seems to have the backing of the police, the military and the Roman Catholic Church.

But even in self-exile in Mexico after resigning under pressure from the armed forces, former President Evo Morales says he would be willing to return to Bolivia, and his supporters are making a show of force in the streets while his party controls a majority in both houses of Congress.

LA PAZ/MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The head of Bolivia’s Senate, Jeanine Anez, took office as interim president on Tuesday as former leader Evo Morales pledged to keep up his political fight from exile in Mexico after resigning in what he has alleged was a coup.

Anez, 52, assumed leadership before other lawmakers in Congress, invoking a constitutional clause that dictates that she would be next in line to rule after Morales and his vice president, Alvaro Garcia, resigned on Sunday.

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivians have new uncertainty to grapple with now that opposition Sen. Jeanine Añez declared herself interim president of the crisis-torn Andean country just hours after Evo Morales flew off to self-exile in Mexico.

Questions remained about who might rally around Añez, while Morales’ supporters angrily accused her of trying to seize power in her declaration Tuesday, raising the prospect of more troubles following weeks of clashes over the disputed Oct. 20 presidential election.

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Bolivia faced its worst unrest in decades amid a political vacuum Tuesday, while Evo Morales, who transformed the Andean nation as its first indigenous president, fled the country following weeks of violent protests.

Morales flew out on a Mexican government plane late Monday hours after being granted asylum as his supporters and foes fought on the streets of the capital while an opposition leader tearfully laid out a possible path toward new elections in the wake of the president’s resignation.

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — The latest on the political crisis in Bolivia (all times local):

11:55 p.m.

The United Nations says Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply concerned about the situation in Bolivia, where Evo Morales resigned the presidency Sunday after weeks of protests over a disputed election.

Spokesman Stephane Dujarric says in a Spanish-language statement that Guterres “urges all relevant parties to refrain from violence, reduce tensions and exercise maximum restraint.”

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — President Evo Morales resigned Sunday under mounting pressure from Bolivia’s military and the public after his re-election victory triggered weeks of fraud allegations and deadly protests.

The decision came after a day of fast-moving developments, including an offer from Morales to hold a new election. The crisis deepened dramatically when the country’s military chief went on national television to call on the president to step down.