Americas

Eight South American countries that are part of the regional PROSUR bloc are coordinating their response to the new coronavirus, said Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno, quoted by the DPA.

Ecuador, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Colombia, Peru and Guyana have agreed to "unify measures for the entry of people into each country," Moreno wrote on Twitter.

Turkish tomato exports to Russia have resumed on March 7 after a month-long disruption due to the yearly quota limit.

Moscow decided to lift the yearly quote from 150,000 tons to 200,000 tons after some containers carrying Turkish tomatoes were returned last month, saying that the quota limit was already met.

Some 80 armed men attacked an indigenous community on Nicaragua's northern Caribbean coast, killing several people, authorities said on Jan. 30. Local leaders said there were six dead, while police said two died.

Puerto Rico authorities declared a state of emergency on the island after the severe earthquakes that led to disruption of the transmission system, infrastructure and the destruction of buildings, according to El Nuevo.

Puerto Rico has been shaken by several major earthquakes that have destroyed one of the island's most popular landmarks, the Punta Ventana Rock Formation.

The strong earthquakes off the coast of Puerto Rico have killed at least one person - the 73-year-old disabled Nelson Martinez. 

At least eight people were also injured, Mayita Meléndez, the mayor of Ponce, located near the epicentre of the quake, told local WAPA television station, The Sun reported.

A 6.6-magnitude earthquake shook the territory off the coast of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The tremor was registered at 08:24 GMT. The epicentre is located 10 kilometers south of Indios Municipality. The depth was 7 kilometers.

There is no information about victims and destruction. No tsunami threat has been issued.

Jamaica's Toni-Ann Singh was crowned as Miss World 2019 on Dec. 14 and said she wanted to use her title to work for "sustainable change" for women and their children.

A group of 226 Cuban doctors are returning from Bolivia to Cuba after a decision by the Havana authorities taken due to a change in Bolivia's governance, according to BGNES.

Rolando Millares, Interpol's Bolivian spokesman, said a plane with 226 Cuban nationals had flown to Cuba, adding that all the passengers were doctors returning to Cuba.

Bolivians languished in long lines on the streets of La Paz on Nov. 17 to secure chicken, eggs and cooking fuel as supporters of ousted President Evo Morales crippled the country's highways, isolating population centers from lowland farms.

Bolivia's interim government said on Nov. 15 it had asked Venezuelan officials to leave the country, and accused Cubans, including doctors, of instigating unrest after the resignation of former president Evo Morales.