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Protests in Peru leave more than 50 injured amid rising tensions across the country

Dozens of Peruvians were injured on Friday night (20) after police clashed with protesters during anti-government demonstrations that are spreading across the country.

In the capital Lima, police used tear gas to repel protesters who were throwing glass bottles and stones, while local TV images showed several fires in the streets.

In the Puno region, in the south of the country, around 1,500 people attacked a police station in the town of Ilave, Interior Minister Vicente Romero said in a press release.

A police station in Zepita, in the same region, was also set on fire, Romero said.

Health authorities in Ilave reported eight patients hospitalized with injuries, including broken arms and legs, eye injuries and a punctured abdomen.

By late afternoon, 58 people had been injured across the country during the demonstrations, according to the country’s ombudsman.

A day earlier, on Thursday, one of the most important historic buildings in Lima had been burned to the ground, while President Dina Boluarte promised to toughen measures against “vandals”.

The destruction of the building, a nearly century-old mansion in downtown Lima, was described by authorities as the loss of a “monumental asset”. Authorities are investigating the causes.

Romero said on Friday that the fire was “properly planned and arranged”.

Thousands of protesters have descended on Lima this week calling for change, angered by the rising death toll in the demonstrations, which officially reached 45 on Friday.

You protests have gripped Peru since President Pedro Castillo was ousted in December after trying to dissolve the legislature to avoid an impeachment vote.

Until this week, the focus of demonstrations has been in southern Peru.

Source: CNN Brasil

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