Latin America

Intelligence reports indicate the group is building small networks in tourist and urban areas to avoid detection, with criminal activities that include street-level drug sales, human trafficking for sexual exploitation and acts of torture.

As reported by El País, Alberto Trentini and Mario Burlò were the Italian nationals who returned to Rome on Jan. 13 after spending more than a year imprisoned in Venezuela.

Marcela Figueroa Franco, head of the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Security System, said intentional homicides have followed a downward trend for the past 14 months.

According to the Miami Herald, MSF has been forced to suspend operations at its clinics several times over the past two years, with some facilities closing permanently as violence continues to escalate.

Carlos Manzo, the mayor of Uruapan in the western Mexican state of Michoacán, was fatally shot on Nov. 1 in an attack authorities say is linked to the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG). The country's top security official says the investigation into the killing is making progress.

Honduran opposition lawmaker Gladys Aurora López was injured in an explosive attack on Jan. 8, collapsing to the floor before being taken to a local hospital in Tegucigalpa.

Cuba announced that 32 of its citizens were killed during the operation while carrying out missions on behalf of the Cuban Armed Forces and the Interior Ministry.

Mexico's Navy Secretariat confirmed an additional death linked to the derailment of the Interoceanic Train that occurred Dec. 28.

During a news conference on Dec. 30, Sheinbaum said those affected will receive full compensation for damages, in addition to the initial support announced a day earlier of 30,000 pesos, about $1,700.

In a video circulating on social media, one passenger said the train appeared to be traveling at a high speed before the crash. "We felt the train was going very fast. We don't know if it lost its brakes," the passenger said.

As of Dec. 15, Foro Penal had recorded 902 political prisoners in Venezuela, noting that since 2014 the organization has documented 18,612 people arrested by Maduro's government on similar grounds.

A new report, based on testimony from government intelligence officials, states that Mexican authorities only became aware of Tren de Aragua's operations last year, after clashes between the gang and rival groups in Mexico City.

El Salvador's Attorney General's Office did not clarify whether the convicted gang members were captured under the state of exception in place since March 2022 against violent gangs, or if they were already in prison before the measure.

South America is expected to lead in 2025, with growth of 2.9%, supported by recoveries in Argentina, Bolivia and Ecuador after contractions last year, ECLAC reveals

Several of the region's most widely held names are companies with strong balance sheets and pricing power, which investors see as better positioned to absorb shifts in monetary policy

The United States continues to be the dominant source of remittances to Latin America, accounting for the majority of flows, followed by Spain

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has volunteered to serve as a mediator between Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and U.S. President Donald Trump

Latin American companies and governments are issuing debt at a pace that has far exceeded expectations, with bond sales reaching record levels despite a volatile global backdrop tied to President Donald Trump's return to the White House.

New offshore projects in Brazil and Guyana shift global supply dynamics as output growth outpaces expected demand

Activities such as illegal mining, human trafficking and extortion have allowed organized crime to extend its reach over institutions, territory and entire communities, experts say.

he new policy framework signals Beijing's intention to expand that role, saying it aims to "promote stable industrial and supply chains" and support Latin American countries

Informality continues to dominate labor markets in the region, affecting 46.7 percent of all workers—nearly one in two people employed

Admiral Alvin Holsey, the head of U.S. Southern Command, retired Friday roughly two years earlier than expected, handing over authority as U.S. military operations in Latin America draw increased scrutiny and tensions with Venezuela intensify.

Bank of America expects the U.S. dollar to weaken in 2026 and is recommending investment strategies tied to Latin American currencies, particularly the Brazilian real.

Another report by McKinsey showed companies in the region adopting AI early in the business-building process see "substantially higher" returns and faster development cycles

Chile leads regional rankings, followed by Costa Rica and Uruguay, but even those top performers face persistent gaps in productivity and innovation ecosystems

Despite Maduro's assertions, experts warn that a prolonged war with the United States would jeopardize Venezuela's economy, and the country's limited resources to sustain an armed conflict would only deepen the ongoing crisis in the Latin American nation.

The project aligns with Brazilian president Lula's strategy to attract major technology investments and promote Brazil as a regional center for data hosting

Latin America's billionaire population and wealth declined over the past year, even as the number of billionaires worldwide continued to rise, according to new figures from Altrata's Billionaire Census 2025.

A recent report by The New York Times concluded that the U.S. military used a mix of munitions that relied on both drones and piloted aircraft, a shift away from the traditional stop-and-board approach.