According to an official source, at least 12 people were killed in Juliaca in southeastern Peru on Monday in clashes between security forces and anti-President Dina Poloarte demonstrators who tried to storm the city’s airport.
“We have confirmed that 12 people were killed in Puno during clashes that took place today with law enforcement forces near the Juliaca airport,” a source at the local ombudsman’s office told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Nevardo Henriques Barrales, coordinator for the city’s ombudsman’s office, told AFP shortly before that “there are 12 dead so far in the mortuary from the clashes in Juliaca.”
Demonstrators are demanding the resignation of President Polarte, who was Pedro Castillo’s vice president, but Parliament nominated her to replace him when it fired him in December in response to the Socialist president’s attempt to dissolve the country’s legislature.
Polwarti became the sixth person to take office in five years in a country in a chronic political crisis marred by accusations of corruption.
The protesters demand the resignation of Polarti, the dissolution of parliament and immediate elections.
The authorities partially gave in to the demands of the demonstrators, deciding to postpone the election date from 2026 to April 2024.
And the Puno region bordering Bolivia is the center of protests in the country, where an indefinite strike has continued since January 4.
