South America

Brazil to replace military chiefs after Bolsonaro sparks political crisis

Brazil will replace the three heads of its armed forces, the Defense Ministry said on Tuesday, as Latin America's biggest nation, already roiled by the pandemic, faced a growing crisis…

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Photo Story – ‘Gigantes Sonhadores’ (Giant dreamers) at a school in Rio de Janeiro

Artists wear costumes during a presentation of the show 'Gigantes Sonhadores' (Giant dreamers) at a school in a favela of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 25 March 2021. The show featuring…

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Brazil hits record 100,000 coronavirus cases in a day

Brazil on Thursday registered a record 100,158 new coronavirus cases within 24 hours, the Health Ministry said, underlining the scale of a snowballing outbreak that is becoming a major political…

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Brazil sees record COVID-19 deaths as pot-bangers jeer Bolsonaro speech

Brazil suffered a record 3,251 COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday, as pot-banging protests erupted across the country during an address by President Jair Bolsonaro in which he defended his pandemic response…

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Bolsonaro swears in fourth Brazilian health minister as pandemic spirals

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Tuesday swore in his fourth health minister since the coronavirus pandemic began last year, as the country struggles with a record-breaking surge in deaths that…

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Brazil sets record 90,000 COVID-19 cases

Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday said he was happy that supporters have been staging anti-social distancing protests, on the same day as the country registered more than 90,000…

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Bolivia ex-President Anez behind bars, alleges persecution over coup claims

LA PAZ (Reuters) - Bolivia's former interim President Jeanine Anez landed behind bars on Saturday in the capital of the country she led just six months ago after the new…

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Police blitz targets parties driving Brazil’s deadly COVID-19 surge

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Police broke up an illegal party with nearly 600 people in a windowless Sao Paulo nightclub in the early hours of Saturday, highlighting defiance of social…

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Brazil’s Lula, Bolsonaro fire starting gun on 2022 presidential race

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and President Jair Bolsonaro both fired an early starting gun on a 2022 election set to be dominated by the raging pandemic,…

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Brazil posts new record of 1,972 COVID-19 deaths in a day

Brazil registered 1,972 new COVID-19 deaths in a single day on Tuesday, a record, according to the Health Ministry. The country had 70,764 new cases of coronavirus, reaching a total…

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Study suggests AstraZeneca vaccine is effective against Brazil COVID-19 variant

Preliminary studies suggest the AstraZeneca vaccine will protect against the P1 variant of the coronavirus, Mauricio Zuma, the head of production at Brazil's Fiocruz biomedical institute said on Monday, confirming a Reuters report…

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Brazil prosecutor general to appeal annulling of Lula convictions, spokesperson says

Brazil's prosecutor general's office will appeal a Supreme Court justice's decision cancelling the convictions of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a spokesperson for Prosecutor General Augusto Aras said on Monday.…

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Brazil judge annuls Lula’s convictions, opens door to 2022 run

BRASILIA, March 8 (Reuters) - A Brazilian Supreme Court judge on Monday annulled the criminal convictions against former leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a move that could allow…

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EXCLUSIVE – Oxford study indicates AstraZeneca effective against Brazil variant, source says

RIO DE JANEIRO, March 5 (Reuters) - Preliminary data from a study conducted at the University of Oxford indicates that the COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca PLC is effective against…

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El Salvador’s Bukele poised for majority in mid-term votes

SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) - Salvadorans went to the polls on Sunday to vote in legislative and municipal elections that could give a broad victory to President Nayib Bukele’s party, consolidating…

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Brazil’s capital goes into lockdown to quell COVID-19 surge

The governor of Brazil’s capital city, Brasilia, decreed a 24-hour lockdown for all but essential services on Friday to curb a worsening COVID-19 outbreak that has filled its intensive care…

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Brazil investigates reports of health workers administering fake inoculations from empty syringes

Police in Rio de Janeiro launched an investigation on Wednesday into reports that doses of the coronavirus vaccine may have been diverted after images emerged of healthcare workers sticking needles…

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Ecuador to recount votes from presidential election

Ecuador’s election authority said it will conduct a recount in most of the country to ensure the transparency of Sunday’s presidential elections, after one of the candidates made accusations of…

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Rio Sambadrome lights up in tribute for victims of COVID-19

The Rio Carnival Sambadrome, empty and illuminated, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Sambadrome, which will remain empty and silent between this Friday and Ash Wednesday due to the cancellation…

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Arauz wins first round of Ecuador vote, runner-up too close to call

QUITO, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Ecuadorean economist Andres Arauz on Sunday won a first round victory in the country's presidential election, moving the Andean nation a step closer to socialism…

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Ecuadoreans vote for president as voters lean toward socialism

QUITO, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Ecuadoreans choose a new president on Sunday, with many voters weary of painful economic austerity measures and eager for a return to socialism, encouraging left-wing…

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Palmeiras seal last-gasp Copa Libertadores triumph

RIO DE JANEIRO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - A dramatic goal eight minutes into stoppage time won Palmeiras the Copa Libertadores on Saturday as a Breno Lopes header earned the Sao…

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Report: Bolsonaro carried out an ‘institutional strategy to spread the coronavirus’ – El Pais

El Pais - "The grimmest timeline in the history of public health in Brazil emerges from an investigation of directives issued by the government of President Jair Messias Bolsonaro relating…

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Photo Story: Brazil exceeds 210,000 deaths from Covid-19

Dulcineia da Silva (L), 59, a nurse from the public health network and, Terezinha da Conceicao (R), 80, who lives in a shelter for a population in a situation of…

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Argentina quake of magnitude 6.8 shakes homes, buildings; no injuries reported

An earthquake of magnitude 6.8 struck west-central Argentina on Monday, followed by at least five aftershocks that shook buildings and sent products tumbling off supermarket shelves, but there were no…

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Bolsonaro allies set to win control of Brazil’s Congress

Despite a deep recession and the world's second-deadliest COVID-19 outbreak, candidates backed by Brazil's right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro are expected to win control of Congress next month, politicians and analysts…

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Brazil health regulator sends back Sputnik V vaccine emergency use request

BRASILIA, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Brazilian health regulator Anvisa said on Saturday it sent back documents submitted by pharmaceutical company Uniao Quimica seeking approval for emergency use of the Russian…

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Photo Story: Argentine beef consumption falls to its all-time low

Cows wait in a corral to be transferred to a refrigerator for their slaughter, at the Hacienda de Liniers Market, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 12 January 2021 (issued 15 January).…

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Photo Story: Sunset at Arpoador beach, Brazil

An aerial photo taken with a drone that shows dozens of people watching the sunset at Arpoador beach, near Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 14 January 2021. EPA-EFE/Antonio Lacerda

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UK bans arrivals from South America over Brazil virus variant

LONDON, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Britain will ban arrivals from Brazil, other South American states and Portugal due to concerns over a new coronavirus variant, transport minister Grant Shapps said…

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Quake of magnitude 6 strikes Salta Province, Argentina

An earthquake of magnitude 6 struck Salta Province, Argentina, early on Sunday, GFZ German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) said. The quake was at a depth of 222 km (138…

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Brazil passes 200,000 COVID-19 deaths as cases hit daily record

Brazil's COVID-19 death toll passed 200,000 on Thursday, the health ministry said, as daily new cases accelerated to a record of 87,843 after year-end holidays in the country with the…

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Ex-president of El Salvador ordered to return $4.4 million in stolen funds

A civil court in El Salvador on Tuesday found former President Elias Antonio Saca and his wife Ana Mixco guilty of “illicit enrichment” and ordered them to return $4.4 million…

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Argentina legalises abortion

BUENOS AIRES, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Argentina on Wednesday became the first major country in Latin America to legalize abortion when the Senate voted by 38 in favor to 29…

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Argentina’s senate poised to vote on legalizing abortion, rare in region

Argentina was on the cusp of legalizing abortion on Tuesday over the objections of its influential Roman Catholic Church, with the senate preparing to vote on a measure that has the backing of the ruling party and…

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Brazilian soccer star Neymar to throw NYE party for 150 people

A New Year party for 150 people thrown by Brazilian footballer Neymar will be subject to strict health rules to try to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, organisers said. The…

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Brazil’s Petrobras to close London office, move ops to Rotterdam

Brazilian state-controlled oil producer Petroleo Brasileiro SA will close its London office to reduce costs and move the operation to Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the company said in a filing…

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Brazil’s Bolsonaro says rush for coronavirus vaccine not justified

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who has refused to take any coronavirus vaccine, said on Saturday that he did not think the world's rush for a vaccine…

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Argentine recession, exacerbated by COVID-19, increases poverty

Gustavo Delgado walks every day from his home in La Boca, a hard-scrabble neighborhood of Buenos Aires, to a nearby community pantry to find the only food that he and…

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Brazil studying 58 cases of COVID-19 re-infection

Brazil’s Health Ministry is studying 58 suspected cases of COVID-19 re-infection after confirming the first case of a person getting re-infected with the illness caused by the coronavirus, a ministry…

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Argentine Congress approves wealth tax as COVID-19 hits state coffers

Argentina's Congress approved a wealth tax late on Friday that will impose a one-off levy on people with large personal fortunes as the government of the indebted nation tries to…

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Photo Story: At least 16 dead after bus falls from a bridge in Brazil

A handout photo made available by the Minas Gerais Firefighters team that shows a bus that crashed in Joao Monlevade, Brazil . At least 16 people died and several were…

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5.2 earthquake rattles San Juan Province in Argentina

An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 shook the province of San Juan, Argentina at 0237 GMT on Thursday. The epicenter, with a depth of 124.13 km. Based on the…

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Brazil to prioritize elderly, indigenous and health workers for COVID-19 vaccine

Indigenous people, health workers and those aged 75 years and older will be at the front of the line to be vaccinated against COVID-19, Brazil's Health Ministry said as it…

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Maradona’s doctor speaks to prosecutor but no charges brought

Leopoldo Luque, the doctor of soccer legend Diego Maradona, appeared at a local prosecutor's office in the Buenos Aires suburb of San Isidro on Monday but his attorney subsequently stated he…

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Brazil’s Bolsonaro to wait ‘a bit longer’ to recognize winner of U.S. election

Brazil's far-right President Jair Bolsonaro said on Sunday he will wait "a little bit longer" to recognize a winner in the U.S. presidential election, suggesting there was evidence of fraud…

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Maradona buried next to his parents

Argentine soccer icon Diego Armando Maradona was interred Thursday alongside his parents at a cemetery on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. Only around 30 people were permitted inside the gates of Jardin…

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Pope Francis remembers fellow Argentine Maradona affectionately, praying for him

Pope Francis remembers soccer legend and fellow Argentine Diego Maradona with affection and is keeping him in his prayers, the Vatican said on Wednesday. Maradona, who died on Wednesday at his home…

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40 die in bus crash in Brazil

At least 40 people died in Brazil on Wednesday after a crash between a bus and a truck in the state of Sao Paulo, the fire service said. Local TV…

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Violence erupts in Brazil after Black man beaten to death at Carrefour store

More than 1,000 demonstrators attacked a Carrefour Brasil supermarket in the southern Brazilian city of Porto Alegre on Friday after security guards beat to death a Black man at the…

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Argentine Congress moves toward implementing wealth tax to fund COVID-19 aid

The lower house of Argentina's Congress on Wednesday approved a bill seeking to raise 300 billion pesos ($3.75 billion) through a tax on large fortunes to finance programs aimed at…

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New human-to-human virus identified in Bolivia

Researchers with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have confirmed the human-to-human transmission of a rare virus in Bolivia belonging to a family of viruses that can cause…

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Candidates backed by Brazil’s Bolsonaro sink in local elections

Shaken by the world's second deadliest coronavirus outbreak and deep economic crisis, Brazilians voted on Sunday for experienced politicians from traditional parties in local elections, a move that may damage…

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Argentina beefs up security because of possible terrorist threat

Argentina said on Saturday it would tighten security at its border with Paraguay after its embassy in the United Kingdom received an anonymous tip alerting authorities to the possiblity of…

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Argentina ‘could receive’ 750,000 doses of eventual Pfizer vaccine

Argentina President Alberto Fernandez said on Friday his country could receive 750,000 doses of an eventual coronavirus vaccine from U.S. drugmaker Pfizer Inc in December, a glimmer of hope as…

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Rio’s samba scene struggles to find a tune after COVID-19 batters Brazil

After months of coronavirus-induced inactivity, Rio de Janeiro's legendary samba scene is tentatively tiptoeing back to life, offering a sliver of hope to those whose livelihoods depend on the traditional…

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Maradona recovering from ‘successful’ surgery – Update

Update : Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona was in recovery after successful surgery to treat a subdural hematoma, a blood clot on the brain, the former World Cup winner's doctor said late…

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