South America

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador’s army took to the streets after President Lenín Moreno ordered the first 24-hour curfew in decades in response to a day of attacks on government buildings and media offices.

By Saturday night, soldiers had retaken control of the park and streets leading to the National Assembly and the national comptroller’s office, which had been broken into by protesters who lit fires inside the building.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Brazilian government released on Friday an official statement expressing its worry over an escalation of tensions in Syria.

According to the statement, published by the country's foreign ministry, the Brazilian government is following the recent escalation of tensions in Syria's northeastern region "with great concern."

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Anti-government protesters paraded captive police officers on a stage Thursday, defying Ecuadorian authorities who are seeking dialogue with opponents, particularly indigenous groups, after deadly unrest that was triggered by fuel price hikes.

Some of the officers were later forced to carry a coffin of an indigenous activist said to have been killed during the protests.

The brazen acts occurred in the capital of Quito at a cultural center where indigenous protesters set up a base.

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador has endured days of popular upheaval since President Lenín Moreno scrapped fuel price subsidies, a step that set off protests and clashes across the small South American country. Here’s a look at the chaos that has plunged Ecuador into one of its worst political crises in many years:

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WHY IS THE COUNTRY IN TUMULT?

CARACAS, October 6. /TASS/: Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas on Saturday at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas.

The meeting at the Venezuelan president’s office lasted less than an hour.

Prior to the meeting, Maduro said the Russian deputy premier’s visit to Caracas was very important in the wake of his recent talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

CARACAS, Oct 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov met Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday to underline Moscow’s support for the leftist leader that has helped him stay in power despite intense Western pressure to quit.

Moscow has acted as a lender of last resort for Venezuela, with the government and oil giant Rosneft providing at least $17 billion in loans and credit lines since 2006.

BOGOTA, Oct 6 (NNN-Prensa Latina) — The UN has again advocated to accelerate the full implementation of the Peace Agreement signed in 2016 between the Colombian State and the FARC-EP, following continued murders of former guerrillas, social leaders and human rights defenders.

This is reflected in a quarterly report on the subject that covers the period from June 27 to September 26, 2019, and will be officially presented on October 10 to the Security Council, the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia reported.

CARACAS, Oct 6 (NNN-Prensa Latina) — The head of the National Anti-Drug Office (ONA) Alberto Matheus reported that Venezuela has signed 42 cooperation agreements on drug matters with 37 countries.

Among the agreements, the ones signed with the United Nations Organization and the Cooperation Program between Latin America, the Caribbean and the European Union in drug policies stand out, said the official during the training on these issues to the operational units of the Coast Guard Command in the Naval Base CA. Agustín Armario, in Carabobo state.

SANTA CRUZ DE LA SIERRA (Bolivia), Oct 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Hundreds of thousands of protesters marched through the streets of Bolivia’s largest city, turning up heat on President Evo Morales as they voiced outrage over his government’s response to wildfires that have razed broad swaths of the country’s forests this year.

Protesters in the wealthy, industrial city of Santa Cruz brandished placards at the demonstration late on Friday calling for a “punishment vote” against Morales in the upcoming Oct 20 presidential election.

5 October 2019; AFP: The EU said Friday it had opened an "in-depth investigation" into plans by US aviation giant Boeing to form joint ventures with the world's number three planemaker, Brazil's Embraer, citing competition concerns.

The European Commission is "concerned that the proposed transaction may remove Embraer as the third largest global competitor in the already highly concentrated commercial aircraft industry," it said in a statement.