Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Jan 24 (EFE).- A group of women removed their bikini tops on Rio de Janeiro's Ipanema beach on Sunday to raise awareness of breast cancer in Brazil and challenge a ban on topless sunbathing. A conviction for violating the law banning topless sunbathing could land the women in prison for between three months and a year. The "Topless in Rio" project drew a...

Source: Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Dec 29 (EFE).- Rio de Janeiro firefighters are beginning to use drones equipped with cameras and floating life preservers for quicker rescues and to prevent people from drowning at beaches like Ipanema and Copacabana, authorities said Tuesday. A drone's camera will be able to transmit the exact position of a person in danger and its life preserver c...

Pixabay Commons Rio de Janeiro, Dec 22 (EFE).- A 33-year-old man was attacked by a shark, which tore off his hand and part of his arm, while he was swimming a few meters (yards) offshore at a beach on the Brazilian island of Fernando de Noronha, medical personnel reported on Tuesday. The victim, whose name was withheld, was transported on Tuesday morning to a hospital in the mainland city o...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, Dec 13 (EFE).- Thousands of people participated in protests Sunday in more than 100 cities across Brazil, demanding an end to the administration of President Dilma Rousseff, who faces impeachment in the lower house of Congress. One of the biggest protests took place in Brasilia, the country's capital, where about 5,000 people, according to police estimates, ga...

Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Dec 9 (EFE).- Two Brazilian brothers ages 17 and 20 were arrested Wednesday after dressing in typical Arab robes and saying they were going to detonate a fake bomb on a public bus in the town of Pelotas, in Rio Grande do Sul state, local media reported. In a video provided by one of the witnesses showing the moment when the two young men boarded the bus, on...

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--After a decade-long commodity super cycle, the 2016 growth outlook for Latin America remains subdued as external and domestic risks persist, says Fitch Ratings in a new special report. Against this backdrop, Fitch expects little upward sovereign rating movement in the region in 2016. To the contrary, negative rating pressures could increase if countries are unable to adj...

Source; Google Maps Lima, Nov 24 (EFE).- An earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale on Tuesday struck the mutual border area between Peru, Brazil and Bolivia but there have been no reports as yet of any injuries or material damage. The powerful quake occurred at 5:44 p.m. and had its epicenter in the Madre de Dios Amazon region, 83 km (51 mi.) south of the town of Esperanza some 90 km...

Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Nov 22 (EFE).- Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes on Sunday formally handed over a newly-constructed golf course, one of the most controversial projects in the preparations for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, to the Olympic Organizing Committee. The 18-hole course covering about a square kilometer (a little over 1/3 square mile) was taken over by the organizing ...

Flickr Commons Rio de Janeiro, Nov 8 (EFE).- Rescue teams on Sunday found the bodies of two people who died in the avalanche of mud and mining residue that virtually wiped out seven Brazilian towns last week after two dikes ruptured. The governor of the state of Minas Gerais, Fernando Pimentel, said Sunday that hopes are dwindling for finding alive any of the 28 people who went missing when...

Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Nov 2 (EFE).- A 17-month-old boy bit and killed a poisonous snake he found in the yard of his family's house in Mostardas, a coastal city in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state, Radio Gaucha reported on Monday. The boy, whose name is Lorenzo, was playing on Sunday afternoon in the house's concrete-covered yard in an urban area where snakes are rarely seen, rel...

The killer in Merciless stalks his next victim. Source: Globo International Globo’s production of series, known worldwide for its unique character and high quality, is set to delight the Costa Rican audience. Teletica, the largest TV network in Costa Rica, has licensed six titles from the Brazilian broadcaster’s 2015 catalog: the series ‘Merciless’ and ‘The Hunter’, the miniseries ‘Doomed’ and...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Oct 20 (EFE).- A group of taxi drivers took to the streets of Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday to protest a ruling by a state judge suspending a municipal ordinance in the Brazilian city that banned the use of the Uber ride-sharing application to hire private vehicles. Taxi drivers gathered at Santos Dumont Airport, located near downtown ...

Source: Indian Sao Paulo, Oct 8 (EFE).- Domestically manufactured electric motorcycles and the arrival in Brazil of U.S. brand Indian highlighted the opening day of the Two Wheels Trade Show in Sao Paulo, South America's biggest motor-bike event. The first day of the biennial fair was highlighted by new scooter designs and features, iconic American motorcycle brand Indian's entry into the B...

Rio de Janeiro, Sep 28 (EFE).- One of Rihanna's bodyguards started throwing punches at photographers in Rio de Janeiro this Sunday as the Barbadian songstress was leaving a restaurant, local media reported while airing a video of the brawl. The bodyguard's fists started flying when he found a crowd of paparazzi milling around the door to the restaurant where Rihanna had dined. The photograph...

Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Sep 25 (EFE).- A Brazilian court has ordered the seizure of assets totaling 188.8 million reais (some $47 million) from soccer star Neymar to ensure payment of alleged unpaid taxes related to his signing by FC Barcelona, judicial sources said Friday. In a Sept. 11 ruling, Judge Carlos Muta of the Sao Paulo-based Regional Federal Court of the 3rd Region orde...

Rio de Janeiro By Manuel Perez Bella Rio de Janeiro, Sep 17 (EFE).- A Catholic church in Rio de Janeiro has become a welcoming shelter along the flight routes of Syrian refugees who leave their country because of the ongoing civil war there and move to Brazil. Stories of bombardments, of families separated by war and fleeing on foot across international borders are exchanged among the ni...

An Uber driver in Bogota. Wikimedia Commons Sao Paulo, Sep 9 (EFE).- Taxi drivers here in Brazil's largest city blocked traffic on Wednesday to protest against Uber, the app-based private driver service that has triggered controversy and legal disputes around the world. The cabbies gathered in front of Sao Paulo city hall, where the councilors are scheduled to vote on Wednesday for a second...

Former Brazilian President Lula with football star Ronaldinho. Wikimedia Commons Rio de Janeiro, Aug 28 (EFE).- Former two-term President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva acknowledged Friday that he is weighing the possibility of seeking to return to Brazil's highest office in the 2018 elections. "I can't say that I am or that I'm not (a candidate)," Lula said during an interview with Radio Itatia...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, Aug 17 (EFE).- Brazilian police dismantled Monday a religious sect accused of subjecting its faithful to slavery-like conditions while accumulating a fortune of close to 100 million reais (some $28.6 million) in donations from its followers, officials said. At least six people were arrested in an operation aimed at dismantling a criminal organization "that use...

Former President Mujica, right, shakes hands with former President Lula of Brazil Sao Paulo, Jul 31 (EFE).- The think-tank led by former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva reported Friday that its headquarters was the target of "a political attack with an explosive device," adding that "fortunately no one was hurt." "The bomb was thrown at the building from a car," said the note ...

Garcia Marquez. Source: Flickr Commons Bogota, Jul 22 (EFE).- Brazilian journalist Dorrit Harazim was awarded the Gabriel Garcia Marquez Journalism Prize for career excellence on Wednesday in honor of her coverage of international events spanning a half-century, award organizers said. The 72-year-old Harazim, a native of Croatia, is currently a columnist for the Rio de Janeiro daily O Globo...

Source: Riverside BT San Jose, Jul 5 (EFE).- A video game developed in Costa Rica aims to raise awareness in Latin America of the need to protect the Amazon river dolphin, or pink dolphin, and other river species, such as the manatee, that are threatened by illegal fishing and habitat loss. The game, titled "Apu, el espiritu del rio" (Apu, the Spirit of the River), takes players on a journe...

US NSA Headquarters. Source: Wikimedia Commons Sao Paulo, Jul 4 (EFE).- Whistle-blower Web site WikiLeaks on Saturday published the names of more than 29 members of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's administration who were spied on by the U.S. National Security Agency at the start of her first term in office, which began in January 2011. The release of the list of phone numbers linked to...

Wikimedia Commons Brasilia, Jun 29 (EFE).- Some 3,350 Web sites have been set up to promote sex tourism in Brazil, press reports said. The top city for sex tourism is Rio de Janeiro, which will host the Summer Olympics next year, the O Globo newspaper reported, citing a study by consulting firm Axur. "Unforgettable erotic vacations amid the beauty and enchantment of Rio de Janeiro, on th...

Rio de Janeiro, May 19 (EFE).- Brazilian police are investigating the murder of investigative reporter Evany Jose Metzker, who was found decapitated earlier this week in the town of Padre Paraiso, in Minas Gerais state, authorities said Tuesday. Commissioner Fabricia Nunes, who is in charge of the case, is pursuing two investigative lines, that it was either a crime of passion or that it was carr...

A massive Corinthians club flag,. Wikimedia Commons Sao Paulo, Apr 19 (EFE).- Armed men gunned down eight members of a radical fan group for Corinthians, one of Brazil's most popular soccer teams, although police on Sunday ruled out linking the massacre to a fight among rival teams' supporters. The killings occurred after 11 p.m. on Saturday in front of the Pavilhão Nove group's headquarter...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, Apr 16 (EFE).- At least 37 tons of dead fish have been removed over the past week from this Brazilian metropolis' Rodrigo de Freitas lagoon, one of the venues for the 2016 Rio Olympics, officials said Thursday. Employees of the Comlurb municipal waste management company were continuing to use nets to remove the silvery fish, called twaite shad, many thousands ...

Source: Flickr Commons Sao Paulo, Mar 30 (EFE).- A Brazilian man strangled his pregnant 16-year-old girlfriend, decapitated her and turned himself into police two days later after riding across Sao Paulo in a bus with her head in a plastic bag, local media reported Monday. The situation unfolded in the Pedreira neighborhood in the extreme southern part of Brazil's largest city, when handyma...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, Mar 10 (EFE).- Brazil's professional soccer clubs will be penalized in the standings for failing to pay players on time, the Brazilian Soccer Confederation, or CBF, announced Tuesday. Under the CBF's "labor fair play" initiative, offending clubs will lose three points for every match played with salaries in arrears. Only players, their attorneys and the pla...

Brazilian law enforcement agents said the cocaine was hidden in a truck and they had acted on a tip from a taxi driver who apparently was a member of the band of drug traffickers. EFE/File .- Brazilian police seized about 1.5 tons of cocaine in an operation in Mato Grosso do Sul state, which borders on Paraguay and Bolivia, the largest confiscation of the drug in the past 10 years in Brazil, a...

The booming voice of play-by-play broadcaster Mario McGregor is well-known by football fans in Costa Rica who enjoy listening to live matches on the radio. When Mr. McGregor, who is an Afro Costa Rican from the Caribbean province of Limon, takes the microphone of Radio Columbia 98.7 FM, he gives it to you with as much love and emotion as he can muster.   While broadcasting from Brazil d...

Source: Flickr CC If you find traffic jams in Costa Rica exasperating, you may not want to drive in Rio de Janeiro, ever. This magnificent and populous Brazilian megacity is among the most beautiful in the world, but gridlock has been tarnishing Rio's facade; particularly after news media reported on the horrible traffic conditions during the FIFA World Cup earlier this year as well as during ...

Source: Wikimedia Commons The National Men's Football Teams of Costa Rica and Mexico have chosen their respective training facilities ahead of the FIFA 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Although both teams will be hosted by Santos FC, Mexico chose the magnificent Rei Pele (Pele the King) training center, which features a state-of-the-art gym and two modern pitches. Costa Rica, on the other hand, will ...

Nature in Lidice, site of the murder. Spanish citizen Gonzalo Alonso Hernandez and Jairo Mora of Costa Rica had a lot in common: Both were deeply courageous biologists committed to environmental conservation whose dedication may have caused them to die at the hands of despicable criminals. Costa Rican online news media site El Pais, which is known for its strong defense of environmental aff...

Although at first sight Brazil and Costa Rica seem to be sharply different nations, these two Latin American countries shared some unfortunate similarities during June 2013. In a recent opinion piece in El Pais, an online publication that often gives a voice to the current government's opposition, journalist and academic Juan Manuel Fernandez C. made four important observations about the ongoing p...

By Mike Collett SAO PAULO | Mon Dec 17, 2012 4:48pm EST SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil has problems like most countries but one that appears to be rapidly disappearing is the notion that it will not be ready to host the World Cup in just over 18 months' time. While anxieties remain about the Amazoni...

By Alastair Himmer TOKYO | Sat Dec 15, 2012 5:13am EST TOKYO (Reuters) - The abandonment of last Wednesday's Copa Sudamericana final following shocking accusations police had pulled guns on players should serve as a warning for Brazil's World Cup organizers, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said on Saturday. Argentina's Tigre refused to emerge for the...

BRASILIA | Fri Dec 14, 2012 10:21am EST BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff remains highly popular despite a stalled economy and political scandals that have tarnished the reputation of her ruling Workers' Party, an opinion poll published on Friday showed. Rousseff's personal approval rating rose slightly to 78 percent from 77 percent...

RIO DE JANEIRO | Tue Dec 11, 2012 9:29am EST RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva knew about and used funds from a far-reaching vote-buying scheme to pay for personal expenses, according to testimony by a convicted former consultant to the ruling Workers' Party. The testimony, reported on Tuesday by the Estado d...

BRASILIA | Thu Dec 6, 2012 9:58am EST BRASILIA (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez looks set to miss a regional trade summit in Brazil on Friday after going to Cuba for cancer-related medical treatment, officials said. Chavez had been enthusiastic about attending the Mercosur bloc's meeting in Brasilia to celebrate Venezuela's entry, so his abse...