Violent protests: access to the Inca site of Machu Picchu closed

Peru
Violent protests: access to the Inca site Machu Picchu closed for the time being

Machu Picchu is one of the most famous attractions in South America

© Isabelle Schmidt / DPA

Violent protests are raging throughout Peru, with numerous deaths. The famous Inca site Machu Picchu has therefore been closed.

The world cultural site Machu Picchu is inaccessible for the time being: due to the ongoing unrest in Peru, the attraction, which is popular with tourists from all over the world, has been closed. The Peruvian Ministry of Culture announced on Saturday in Lima that the closure of the historic Inca site had been ordered “because of the social situation and to protect the integrity of the visitors”. The measure applies “until further notice”.

During the protests, access to Machu Picchu was repeatedly restricted. The operation of the nearby airport of Cusco was suspended. Hundreds of foreign tourists were stranded around Machu Picchu in mid-December.

Dozens of people have already died

Peru has been wracked by unrest since the ouster and arrest of leftist President Pedro Castillo on December 7. The demonstrators are demanding the resignation of his successor, Dina Boluarte, and the dissolution of parliament in order to hold new elections without delay. Dozens of people died in the wave of protests. A state of emergency has now been declared for almost a third of the Andean country.

Another fatality was reported from the small town of Ilave in the southern Puno region on Saturday. A man was seriously injured during a protest on Friday and was hospitalized as a result, an official told the AFP news agency. He succumbed to his injuries on Saturday.

Brutal action by the police

According to hospital reports, ten other people were injured in the clashes between members of the indigenous Aymara people and the police. The police crackdown on the protests so upset demonstrators in Ilave that they set fire to a police station on Saturday morning, according to television footage.

A police station was also set on fire in Zepita, in the Puno region. Nobody got hurt.

tis
AFP

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