Colombia

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Colombia Woman Wins Right To Die After Historic Fight

Martha Sepúlveda, who was battling ALS, has died

(Newser) - Update: A Colombia woman who, for months, was fighting for her right to end her own life, has died by euthanasia. Per the Washington Post , 51-year-old Martha Sepúlveda, who suffered from ALS, won her high-profile battle to die “according to her idea of autonomy and dignity,” per...

Colombia Nabs Feared Drug Kingpin
Colombia Nabs Feared
Drug Kingpin
Oct 24, 2021 9:30 AM CDT

Colombia Nabs Feared Drug Kingpin

Dairo Antonio Úsuga leads the violent Clan del Golfo

(Newser) - The most wanted drug trafficker in Colombia has been arrested. Per the New York Times , Dairo Antonio Úsuga, popularly known as Otoniel, was nabbed during a military operation in the remote mountains of Colombia's Uraba region. The 50-year-old was alleged to be the leader of the country's...

Nation Accepts Responsibility for Journalist's Gang Rape

International court finds Colombia tolerated, if not consented, to 2000 attack on Jineth Bedoya

(Newser) - Colombian journalist Jineth Bedoya was kidnapped at gunpoint outside a prison in Bogota, where she'd expected to interview an imprisoned paramilitary leader in May 2000. It was the start of 16 hours of torture that would include a gang-rape, reports CBS News . "All I know is that I...

Escobar Had 4 Hippos. Dozens Now Threaten Colombia

Wildlife officials are now sterilizing the invasive species, whose population has exploded

(Newser) - Play a word association game using "Pablo Escobar" to start, and you'll likely hear such terms as "drug lord," "cocaine," and "murderer." "Hippos" may also come up if you're playing with anyone from Colombia, where the animals have surged in...

Havana Syndrome Cases Hit Ahead of Blinken's Visit

Ailments surface in Colombia

(Newser) - US officials are investigating suspected cases of Havana syndrome at the US embassy in Colombia, where Secretary of State Antony Blinken is to travel next week, days after similar reports surfaced at the US embassy in Germany. Emails from US Ambassador to Colombia Philip Goldberg describe a number of "...

Authorities Cancel Woman's Planned Euthanasia

Martha Sepúlveda was ready to say goodbye today, but health authorities reversed their decision

(Newser) - The Colombian woman who had won the right to die by euthanasia went to bed Friday night ready to face her last day on Earth. But a call from her lawyers woke her and changed everything. Martha Sepúlveda has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s...

She Doesn't Have a Terminal Illness. She'll Die on Sunday

Martha Sepulveda to die by euthanasia in Colombia, which in July loosened its right-to-die rules

(Newser) - In late 2018, Martha Sepulveda was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the progressive neurological condition also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. On Sunday, the 51-year-old Colombian mother and devout Catholic will die by legally permitted euthanasia—the first in her nation to be allowed to do so despite not...

Colombia's President Flies Into Drug Hotspot, and Bullets Fly

President Ivan Duque was visiting region where coca crop flourishes for cocaine production

(Newser) - Colombia's president flew by helicopter to a region of his country crucial to the drug trade to give a talk with a high-minded title: “Peace with Legality, the Sustainable Catatumbo chapter.” The presidential helicopter of Ivan Duque now has bullet holes as a result, reports the AP...

It Killed the Dinosaurs, but Then It Gave Birth to Something Else

You can thank the Chicxulub impact for our modern rainforests: study

(Newser) - We owe a lot to the asteroid impact that killed the dinosaurs 66 million years ago. For one thing, it gave us the lush tropical rainforests that help keep our planet healthy. That's according to a first-of-its-kind study published Friday in Science that looks at the effects of the...

'Guerrillas' Try to Sway Election, Bird Blows It for Them

Attempt to influence Ecuador polls with fake 'guerrilla' vid fails after bird guide hears bird call

(Newser) - Nothing gets past an eagle-eyed, carefully listening ornithologist—not even a propaganda video meant to sway an election. Manuel Sanchez, a bird-watching guide based in Ecuador, was watching just such a video shared on social media, supposedly showing three armed left-wing men from Colombia's ELN guerrilla force deep in...

There's Only One Option: Kill Pablo Escobar's Hippos

Unchecked, Colombian herd will hit ecosystem's carrying capacity by 2039: experts

(Newser) - In the 6.5 years since we last visited Pablo Escobar's hippo herd , it's become illegal to kill any member of the Colombian population, which is considered something of a country emblem. It's no surprise, then, that the non-native animals are breeding out of control in a...

'Archbishop' Arrested Over COVID-19 'Cure'

Mark Grenon was collared in Colombia

(Newser) - Bad news for bleach drinkers: Your self-proclaimed "archbishop" is behind bars. Colombian officials have nabbed Mark Grenon and his son Joseph Grenon and accused them of selling a "miracle" drink that has already killed seven Americans, CBS News reports. The nation's top prosecutor said the Grenons were...

In Colombia, Breaking Lockdown Can Get You Killed

Armed groups are enforcing their own COVID-19 measures, rights group says

(Newser) - In many parts of Colombia, people who violate lockdown measures will have to worry about a lot more than COVID-19. Rebel groups and drug gangs have been enforcing curfews and lockdowns stricter than anything the government has in place and killing some of those who disobey, according to a Human...

DEA Agent Hit With 19 Counts in 'Black Eye' to Agency

Jose Irizarry and his wife were arrested Friday

(Newser) - A once-standout US federal narcotics agent known for spending lavishly on luxury cars and Tiffany jewelry has been arrested on charges of conspiring to launder money with the same Colombian drug cartel he was supposed to be fighting, the AP reports. Jose Irizarry and his wife were arrested Friday at...

Colombia May Sue Over Walmart's Cocaine Santa Sweater

Government agency wants monetary damages for affront

(Newser) - A Colombian government agency is demanding money and an apology from Walmart after it offered a Christmas sweater appearing to show Santa with three lines of "Colombian" cocaine. "Santa really likes to savor the moment when he gets his hands on some quality, grade A, Colombian snow,"...

The Cocaine Saved Them. Then It Got Them Busted

Suspected drug smugglers found clinging to bales in Pacific after boat overturns

(Newser) - They can thank their drug bundles for both saving their lives and possibly ruining them. ABC Australia reports that three men from Colombia were plucked out of the Pacific over the weekend after spending hours in shark-filled waters. The alleged drug-runners, who were said by authorities to have departed from...

Is That Your Real Hair, or Are You Smuggling Drugs Under a Bad Toupee?

$33K worth of cocaine was quickly spotted on nervous guy arriving in Spain

(Newser) - A nervous-looking man flew from Colombia to Spain with what authorities there describe as an "oversized" toupee beneath his hat. Beneath that hairpiece was roughly a pound of cocaine bundled up and stuck to his head, according to police in Barcelona, who shared before and after images of the...

Entire City to Undergo Exorcism via Helicopter

Move comes after girl's murder in Buenaventura, Colombia

(Newser) - A Colombian port city plagued by violent crime is about to get an exorcism. The bishop of Buenaventura, Monsignor Rubén Darío Jaramillo Montoya, will hop in a helicopter Sunday in order to sprinkle holy water over the streets while reciting a prayer meant to expel demonic spirits. In...

Venezuela's Border With Brazil 'Completely' Closed

President Nicolas Maduro warns border with Colombia may be next

(Newser) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been pushing back against efforts to send humanitarian aid into his country, an initiative led by opposition leader Juan Guaido. The latest development in that conflict came Thursday night, with Maduro announcing on state TV that he was closing the border with Brazil "completely...

10 Die in One of Most Protected Places in Colombia's Capital

Holdout rebel group suspected in Bogota attack

(Newser) - A car bomb exploded at a heavily guarded police academy in Colombia's capital on Thursday, killing 10 people and injuring dozens in an attack that recalled the bloodiest chapters of the country's drug-fueled guerrilla conflict. Videos circulating on social media show panicked officers hauling injured colleagues on stretchers...

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