Daily Headlines: July 24, 2012

* Argentina: Former dictator Jorge Videla, who was convicted weeks ago for the kidnapping and illegal adoptions of over thirty kids, said that the Catholic hierarchy “advised” him on how to deal with the disappearing of “Dirty War” dissidents.

* El Salvador: A truce between the Barrio 18 and Mara Salvatrucha street gangs has led to a plummeting murder rate as well as renewed optimism in the Salvadoran economy.

* Colombia: Four suspected FARC rebels were convicted by an indigenous tribunal and will be punished via public flogging.

* Ecuador: President Rafael Correa claimed that he would make a decision regarding Wikileaks founder Julian Assange’s asylum request “according to humanist principles.”

Video Source – YouTube via Al Jazeera English (In 2010 ex-dictator Jorge Videla was sentenced by an Argentine court to life in prison for human rights abuses during his rule between 1976 and 1983.)

Online Sources- Irish Times, The Latin Americanist, Businessweek, Fox News Latino, Bernama