Colombia

BOGOTA, April 27 (Reuters) - Colombia's Liberal Party, which won more seats than any other in the lower house and the third most seats in the Senate in recent legislative elections, on Wednesday threw its weight behind center-right presidential candidate Federico Gutierrez.

Party alliances could help push candidates over the line in the May 29 contest and are likely to affect the eventual winner's ability to push through legislation when their term starts in August.

BOGOTA, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Colombia’s President Ivan Duque inaugurated the world’s largest genetic library for beans, cassava and tropical forages for feeding livestock, which will provide long-term crop conservation and could help shock-proof global food systems.

Increasing demand for food and falling crop output amid climate change mean researchers must breed new plant varieties to withstand the twin impacts of rising temperature and extreme weather events, according to the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).

BOGOTA, March 13 (Reuters) - Colombians were voting on Sunday to elect members of congress and participate in one of three presidential primaries for candidates from right, left and centrist coalitions.

Seats in the country's legislature of 108 senators and 187 lower house representatives have in recent elections been won by myriad parties, forcing presidents to build big tent coalitions in order to pass legislation.

BOGOTA, Feb 11 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Colombia took a step toward recovering a long-lost Spanish wreck and its fabled riches, but it may be a rough ride as Spain and native Bolivians have also staked claims on the booty.

Long the daydream of treasure hunters worldwide, the wreck of the San Jose galleon was first located off Columbia’s coast in 2015, but has been left untouched as the government determines rules for its recovery.

BOGOTA, Feb 11 (NNN-TELESUR) — Two people died and five others were injured due to a car bomb attack against the Colombian Army 21st Infantry Battalion in the Meta department.

The fatal victims are a motorcyclist who was passing by and Yover Rojas, a soldier who tried to prevent the entrance of the bomb car to the battalion’s facilities in the Wednesday attack.

BOGOTA, Jan 25 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Colombian President Iván Duque announced the extension of Operation Artemisa, a scheme devised to protect Colombian seas from illegal fishing while standing up for biodiversity in national waters.

Duque launched the commencement of a new phase of Operation Artemisa during a visit to the Gorgona Natural Park on the Colombian Pacific shore. The new stage will be focused biodiversity and the threats posed to it by poachers.

BOGOTA, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Colombian Victor Escobar became the first person in the Andean country with a non-terminal illness to die by legally regulated euthanasia late on Friday, his lawyer Luis Giraldo confirmed.

"We reached the goal for patients like me, who aren't terminal but degenerative, to win this battle, a battle that opens the doors for the other patients who come after me and who right now want a dignified death," Escobar, 60 said in a video message sent to media by Giraldo.

BOGOTA, Dec 15 (NNN-XINHUA) – At least three people were killed, including two policemen and a civilian, when two explosive devices detonated at the Cucuta international airport, in north-eastern Colombia, Defence Minister, Diego Molano, confirmed yesterday.

The official explained that the first device exploded on a civilian and minutes later, two police officers died, while trying to deactivate another explosive device.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombian police killed at least 11 people during protests that broke out in September of last year, following the death of a taxi driver who was beaten to death while in police custody, a report backed by the United Nations found.

BOGOTA, Nov 18 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A Colombian nun who was kidnapped and held by armed groups in Mali for more than four years has returned home.

Sister Gloria Cecilia Narvaez, 59, was greeted by a dozen fellow nuns, singing “Welcome, welcome, our heart welcomes you”, as she arrived at Bogota airport on Tuesday.

She was freed on Oct 9 following a joint effort by the governments of Mali and Colombia.

While details of how her release was secured remain unclear, the Colombian police had previously said the group that abducted her had demanded a ransom.