Colombia

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'Colombia Fritzl' Fathered 11 Kids With Daughter

Man accused of imprisoning girl, raping her from age 9

(Newser) - A Colombian man has been accused of imprisoning his daughter and raping her from the age of 9 and fathering 11 children with her, the BBC reports. He denies incest and rape charges, insisting his daughter was adopted and that the two “agreed to have a romantic relationship because...

Fellow Hostages Rip Betancourt

(Newser) - Three Americans freed in a daring hostage rescue in Colombia last year were thrilled to  escape their FARC captors—and nearly as happy to be free of fellow hostage Ingrid Betancourt. In a new book, the Americans portray Betancourt as a self-centered and malicious prima donna, the New York Times...

FARC Tortures, Kills 17 Native Colombians

Paramilitary swooped into village, kidnapping pacifist tribesmen

(Newser) - The Colombian paramilitary that held Ingrid Betancourt hostage tortured and killed 17 indigenous people who they believed were aiding the government, human rights groups say. CNN reports that FARC members swept into a remote village in southwest Colombia and kidnapped the pacifist Awa Indians, including two minors. One young man...

Latin American Leaders Slam Failed US Drug War

Group of ex-leaders calls for US to move away from prohibitionist policies

(Newser) - Some of America's firmest allies in the war on drugs say the battle is shattering their societies while failing to stop the flow of drugs, reports the Wall Street Journal. A report from a panel headed by the former leaders of Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico—all conservatives who hit hard...

Meet Titanoboa, 45-Foot Snake
 Meet Titanoboa, 45-Foot Snake 
Feb 5, 2009 11:32 AM CST

Meet Titanoboa, 45-Foot Snake

(Newser) - A 45-foot, 1.25-ton snake stalked the jungles of South America in the period shortly after dinosaurs went extinct, the Times of London reports. Researchers have found 28 individual “Titanoboas” in Colombia’s Cerrejon Coal Mine; with every specimen at least 40 feet long, scientists say it’s likely...

Coffee Nations Eye Shares in Starbucks

Colombia may buy stock, at bargain prices, in first quarter of 2009

(Newser) - The world’s coffee growing nations may swoop in to grab cheap Starbucks shares as the ailing company shutters stores and battles declining demand for premium beverages, Reuters reports. Colombia—the third-largest producer—could buy more control over the supply chain by nabbing “an important share” of the Seattle...

García Márquez Back at Work on New Novel

(Newser) - Two years after announcing that he had given up writing, Gabriel García Márquez is at work on a new novel, says a close friend. Fellow writer Plinio Apuleyo Mendoza confirmed rumors that the Nobel Prize-winning 82-year-old is working on a love story, the Guardian reports.

FARC Defector Gets Asylum in France, $400K

Former rebel carried 8-year hostage out of the jungle

(Newser) - A commander who deserted Colombia's rebel group FARC has been offered $400,000 and asylum in France alongside Ingrid Betancourt, their former hostage. Wilson Bueno Largo fled the jungle in October after years in FARC, carrying a kidnapped congressman on his back. Bueno's defection from the group dealt a substantial...

Coffee Shortage Percolating
 Coffee Shortage Percolating 
Dec 9, 2008 12:42 PM CST

Coffee Shortage Percolating

Brazil likely to produce fewer beans next year

(Newser) - A smaller coffee crop in Brazil could lead to a worldwide shortage in 2009-2010, Bloomberg reports. And the news is already affecting prices: Arabica beans, the kind used by Starbucks, jumped yesterday after a Brazilian official warned of a 22% drop in output. Other countries can't make up for "...

Betancourt Back in Colombia for Anti-FARC Tour

Ex-hostage aims to disarm rebels; some see only her ambition

(Newser) - Former FARC hostage Ingrid Betancourt returned to Colombia yesterday to kick off a tour aimed at getting the rebels to disarm, AFP reports. "I am so very happy to be here," said Betancourt, who has received death threats from FARC and will keep her Colombia visit brief. She...

Obama Urges Bush to Help Automakers
Obama Urges Bush
to Help Automakers
Nov 11, 2008 3:53 AM CST

Obama Urges Bush to Help Automakers

But president links Detroit aid to Dem backing for Colombia free trade pact

(Newser) - Barack Obama urged President Bush during their White House meeting yesterday to extend emergency aid to the auto industry, the New York Times reports. The president indicated that he might be willing to approve Detroit aid and a broader economic stimulus package—but only on the condition that the president-elect...

Betancourt: Pope, Faith Saved Me
Betancourt: Pope, Faith Saved Me
Sep 1, 2008 2:54 PM CDT

Betancourt: Pope, Faith Saved Me

Ex-hostage thanks pontiff for support during 7-year captivity

(Newser) - Ingrid Betancourt realized her dreams today when she met privately with Pope Benedict, Reuters reports. The freed French-Colombian hostage says she was overcome with emotion after hearing the pope appeal for her release on the radio during her 7 years in captivity. The 46-year-old Catholic had never read the Bible—...

Red Cross Cries Foul Over Colombia Deception

Objects to symbol use in hostage rescue

(Newser) - The Red Cross chided the Colombian government today for its "deliberate misuse" of the Red Cross symbol during a mission to rescue hostages, the BBC reports. “If authenticated, these images would clearly establish an improper use of the Red Cross emblem, which we deplore,” a spokesman said...

1M-Plus March for Colombian Hostages

Cities across the globe show support for captives

(Newser) - More than a million people marched in Bogota, Columbia and other world capitals today demanding the freedom of captives held hostage by leftist rebels in the Columbian jungle, AFP reports. Recently liberated captive Ingrid Betancourt led chants of "No More hostages" in Paris on Columbia's independence day, as famous...

Colombia to Americans: Cocaine Kills Environment

Drug-makers are destroying Colombia's precious rainforest

(Newser) - Colombia is adding a new tactic in its campaign to persuade Americans to stop buying cocaine: a plea for the environment. The government wants to spread the message to users—especially, say, wealthy professionals who dutifully recycle but also partake of the drug—that cocaine growers are running roughshod over...

Mexico Seizes Homemade Drug Submarine

Crew says it was forced to pilot makeshift vessel

(Newser) - Mexico's navy seized a homemade submarine carrying a drug shipment off the Pacific coast yesterday and arrested its four-man crew. The 30-foot makeshift vessel was detected heading north about 200 miles off the southern state of Oaxaca, and intercepted when it surfaced. The crew offered no resistance, and say drug...

Freed US Hostages Bare Brutal Life With 'Animals'

Captives chained by the neck

(Newser) - Three freed American hostages who spent more than five years as captives of Colombian guerrillas paint a harrowing picture of their treatment in a CNN interview. Keith Stansell, Marc Gonsalves and Thomas Howes, rescued last week, spent much of their time in captivity chained by the neck, and were subjected...

Betancourt Bares 'Soul Hell' of Captivity

Death was her 'constant companion' in 6-year ordeal

(Newser) - Freed hostage Ingrid Betancourt lived in "soul hell" for years in captivity under a constant threat of death, she said in a riveting interview on CNN's Larry King Live. "I lived for nearly seven years with the awareness that death was my everyday companion," she said. "...

Our Marriage May Be Over: Betancourt Hubby

Lecompte says love might have died in 6-year internment

(Newser) - The husband of rescued Colombian hostage Ingrid Betancourt says their marriage may be over. In an interview with the Bogota newspaper El Tiempo, Juan Carlos Lecompte acknowledges what many noted when the two reunited in front of TV cameras after last week's rescue—Betancourt greeted him coldly.

Hostages Captivate Hollywood

Abductees, rescuers become hot properties for book, movie deals

(Newser) - Film projects revolving around last week’s rescue of 15 FARC prisoners are already taking shape, Variety reports. Rumors abound about rights deals and production agreements. Although not everyone is convinced that the bloodless rescue is dramatic enough material for a box office blockbuster, "it's as memorable as Entebbe,...

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