Are Police-Run Militias Spreading Across Brazil?
Warnings that militias made up of police may have been responsible for dozens of murders during recent police strikes in Bahia, north Brazil, draw attention to the spread of these…
Drop in Mexico Seizures Shows Cocaine Trade Shifting to Central America: UN
Cocaine seizures in Mexico have dropped by about four fifths since 2007, which the UN says is evidence that cocaine trafficking is shifting to Central America.
Oil Workers Kidnapped in Colombian Region of FARC, ELN Activity
Colombian Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon has retracted his announcement of the release of nine oil workers, who were kidnapped Tuesday in a department where both the FARC and ELN…
Guatemala Court Rules to Extradite ‘Juan Chamale’ to US
A Guatemalan court ruled that one of the country's most notorious alleged criminals, Juan Alberto Ortiz Lopez, alias 'Juan Chamale,' can be extradited to the United States, suggesting the practice…
Colombian Attorney General Removed, Amid Accusations of Paramilitary Ties
Colombia's attorney general, Viviane Morales, was removed from her position by the country's Council of State after they deemed her 2010 election by the Supreme Court to be void.
Why Monitoring Precursor Chemicals Won’t Halt Cocaine Production
Peru's IDL-Reporteros takes a look at the chemicals used to manufacture cocaine, and the reasons why governments in Peru and elsewhere in Latin America have had such a hard time…
US-Funded Naval Base Stirs Controversy in Dominican Republic
Plans for a US-funded naval station on an island off the coast of the Dominican Republic have sparked a controversy over sovereignty and natural resource issues.
FARC Diversifying Tactics with Unconventional Explosives
With Colombia's largest rebel army increasingly relying on hit-and-run tactics, they have demonstrated cunning methods of orchestrating bombings, using trees and animals to mask explosive devices.
Mexico Case Reveals Vast Human Trafficking Scheme
The case of a Mexican organization which allegedly paid mothers to put their children up for adoption has highlighted the fine line between adoption and child trafficking, and suggests that…
US to Change Mexico Deportation Policy, Aims to Drive Down Border Violence
The United States Homeland Security secretary, Janet Napolitano, has annonced that the US government will change its deportation policy for illegal Mexican migrants, flying them to their place of origin…
Panama Dismisses Drug Legalization
Panama's government has stated its opposition to drug legalization, ahead of a visit by Guatemala's vice president to promote debate on the issue.
Why the FARC May Actually Mean What It Says About Kidnapping
The announcement that Colombia's FARC, the region's oldest and largest insurgency, would halt kidnappings was greeted with mixed emotions. But while the skeptics seem to outnumber the optimists, the new…