The Andes
Bogotá, FARC reach deal on land reform
Negotiators from Colombia's government and the FARC rebels signed an agreement on agrarian reform, calling for redistribution of illegally held or underused lands.
Tag: narco wars
Mexico
Mexico rolls back ‘drug war’ cooperation with US
President Obama said he will wait until he meets with his Mexican counterpart Enrique Peña Nieto this week to discuss Mexico's decision to curtail access of US security agencies.
Mexico
Mexico: violence escalates in Michoacán
Violence continues to escalate in Mexico’s west-central state of Michoacán, with transport suspended to several conflicted towns, leaving them cut off from the outside world.
The Andes
Colombia: narco-terrorist card in political play
Colombia's ex-VP Francisco Santos is accused of fabricating FARC attacks in a stratagem to undermine peace talks overseen by his cousin and rival President Manuel Santos.
Africa
US indicts Guinea-Bissau army chief on narco ties
The US accused Guinea-Bissau's top military official, Gen. Antonio Indjai, of plotting a cocaine-for-weapons deal with Colombia's FARC rebels—who were actually DEA agents.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan: opium crop breaks record
Opium cultivation in Afghanistan is expected to increase for a third straight year, expanding even to new areas of the country, warns the UN Office of Drugs and Crime.
Mexico
Mexico: narco-violence from Yucatan to Rio Grande
Six people were strangled to death and one decapitated in the tourist resort of Cancún, while shoot-outs and new mass graves are reported from Monterrey and Tamaulipas.
The Andes
Sinaloa Cartel kingpin nabbed in Colombia
Colombia announced the arrest of Cesar Demar Vernaza AKA “El Empresario”—accused crime boss of Ecuador and top South American operative of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel.
Central America
Honduras: top prosecutor suspended amid violence
Citing escalated criminal violence, Honduras’ Congress suspended the prosecutor general—but has not acted against the National Police chief, accused of death squad links.
The Amazon
Brazil: human trafficking crackdown in Amazon
The Brazilian state of Acre declared a state of “social emergency” in response to a surge of undocumented migrants from neighboring Bolivia and Peru.
Mexico
Mexico: Michoacán tipping into war
Several were killed in confrontations across Mexico’s violence-torn Michoacán state—including when gunmen fired on crowds commemorating the death of Emiliano Zapata.
The Andes
Colombia: peace talks advance amid violence
Colombian peasants held a mass meeting to press for agrarian reform as talks with the FARC continue in Havana—but fighting and repression continue around the country.