US: Coca cultivation in Colombia dropped slightly in 2018

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration reported Wednesday that coca cultivation and cocaine production in Colombia dropped slightly in 2018 for the first time in six years, but it remained at historically high levels. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy said that coca cultivation in...

Brazil's Bolsonaro tries new tactic to loosen gun laws

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — President Jair Bolsonaro has issued several new decrees to loosen Brazil's strict gun laws, moving to rescue a signature campaign promise after the Senate rejected his earlier effort. The series of edicts issued Tuesday night effectively canceled a May decree that eased access to...

AP Interview: Russia hails Norway-brokered Venezuela talks

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's envoy on Venezuela said Wednesday that an international mediation effort between Nicolas Maduro's government and the opposition have raised a glimmer of hope for settling the crisis, strongly warning the U.S. against using force. Alexander Shchetinin, head of the Russian Foreign...

Venezuela gov't says it thwarted plot seeking to kill Maduro

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan officials said Wednesday they foiled a plot to overthrow the government that included assassinating President Nicolás Maduro and his closest political allies. Maduro spokesman Jorge Rodríguez said on state television that a network of mostly retired police...

UN Security Council to visit Colombia in July

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council will be heading to Colombia in July for a firsthand look at implementation of the 2016 peace agreement between the government and the country's main rebel group. Peruvian Ambassador Gustavo Meza-Cuadra and Deputy British Ambassador Jonathan Allen announced...

Castroneves optimistic about another shot at Indy 500

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (AP) — Helio Castroneves is optimistic team owner Roger Penske will give him another chance to win the Indianapolis 500 for the fourth time next year. Castroneves no longer races full-time in IndyCar after a nearly two-decade career with Penske that included Indy 500 wins in 2001, 2002...

Brazil's top court denies petition to release ex-president

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil's Supreme Court on Tuesday denied a petition to release jailed former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is serving a sentence for corruption. In a 3-2 vote, a panel of judges rejected freeing da Silva while they consider a petition from his defense team demanding...

Brazil's Supreme Court rejects another attempt by ex-President da Silva to get out of jail in corruption case

Blind children in Chile get solar eclipse experience

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — A group of children at a Chilean school for the blind used sound and braille Tuesday to experience conditions that resemble a total solar eclipse. The project at the Hellen Keller school in Santiago comes a week before a July 2 solar eclipse that will plunge parts of South America...

Uruguayan prison chief quits after Italian mobster escapes

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) — The director of Uruguay's prison system has resigned following the escape of a top Italian organized crime boss from the jail where he was being held while awaiting extradition to Italy. The government announced Tuesday that it had accepted Alberto Gadea's resignation. Rocco...