South America

CARACAS, Dec 29 (NNN-PRENSA LATINA) – The crime rate in Venezuela fell 36.3 percent this year, in eight main criminal categories, Interior Minister, Nestor Reverol, said Saturday.

“The reduction in crimes that occurred this year, compared to 2018, reached 34.4 percent in the case of theft; 35.4 percent in robbery; 51.9 percent and 50.8 percent in vehicular theft and robbery, respectively.”

Reverol said, homicides decreased for the fourth year, with the rate falling to 20 homicides for every 100,000 inhabitants, a reduction of 36.3 percent.

28 December 2019; AFP: Uruguayan authorities seized a record haul of 4.4 tonnes of cocaine at the port of Montevideo in what the navy described Friday as "the biggest blow to drug trafficking in the country's history."

In a joint operation between the navy and customs, four soy flour containers packed with bags of cocaine were seized after showing "anomalies" when put through scanners at Montevideo's port.

28 December 2019; AFP: Thousands of protesters clashed with police Friday in Santiago in a fresh round of anti-government demonstrations that erupted more than two months ago in Chile.

The rally took place in the Plaza Italia, which has since October 18 become the epicenter of massive citizen protests against President Sebastian Pinera's right-wing government.

LA PAZ, Dec 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Bolivia on Friday slammed its former colonial ruler Spain for allegedly “trampling” its sovereignty in a deepening diplomatic row.

The two countries have been in a spiraling spat since Mexico granted asylum to Bolivian ex-president Evo Morales, who resigned on Nov 10 in the face of mass protests, and granted refuge to top officials from his leftist government at its embassy.

BRASILIA, Dec 28 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has signed into law an anti-crime bill that toughens measures to stem a rampant deadly crime wave, although he vetoed some parts of the bill, the government said.

The anti-crime package, which was approved by Brazil’s Senate earlier this month, toughens laws to tackle corruption, organized crime and violent crime practiced by criminal gangs. It also simplifies sentencing in some cases.

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - More than 245 homes have been destroyed and 700 people left destitute after a forest fire tore through a low-income area of the Chilean seaside city of Valparaiso on Christmas Eve.

President Sebastian Pinera said on Thursday during a tour of the affected zone that there was evidence the fire had been started deliberately.

“I deeply regret that what should have been a good night, a night of peace, should have been so profoundly altered by this tragedy,” he said.

MEXICO CITY, Dec 27 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mexico threatened to take Bolivia to the International Court of Justice over what it calls harassment of its diplomatic mission in La Paz, after its embassy sheltered some 20 officials from the former government.

The two countries have been in a spiraling spat since Mexico granted asylum to Bolivian ex-president Evo Morales, who resigned on Nov 10 in the face of mass protests, and granted refuge to top officials from his leftist government at its embassy.

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Tuesday night that he briefly lost his memory after falling at his presidential residence in Brasilia, the capital, earlier this week.

The president’s office disclosed on Monday that Bolsonaro, 64, had suffered a fall and was taken to a hospital Monday night for a brain scan, which detected no abnormalities. Bolsonaro spent the night in the hospital and was discharged on Tuesday.

BOGOTA, Colombia, Dec 25 (NNN-PRENSA LATINA) – A strong 6.2-magnitude earthquake shook central Colombia on Tuesday, sending residents scrambling for safety, but causing no casualties or major damage, according to authorities.

According to Colombia’s Geological Service, the quake struck at 2:03 p.m. local time, with an epicentre located near Mesetas, in Meta department, and at a depth of 30 kilometres.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's oil output reached a record of 3 million barrels per day (bpd) in November, the Brazilian government said on Monday.

Last month's oil production reached 3.09 million bpd, breaking the previous record of 2.98 million bpd set in August, according to the state-run National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels.

In November, oil production grew 4.3 percent compared with October and 20.4 percent compared with November 2018.