Venezuela

Anti-immigrant backlash is nothing new, say sociology and criminology experts, who point to attacks against Irish, Italian and Polish immigrants about 100 years ago

Elias Díaz may be the most unlikely All-Star MVP. Just 3 1/2 years after Pittsburgh failed to offer a contract and allowed him to become a free agent, his go-ahead, two-run homer off Félix Bautista in the eighth inning lifted the National League over the American 3-2.

Colombia is home to about 1.7 million who fled neighboring Venezuela in recent years. Now that it has shut down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the migrants say they are extra vulnerable.

Nicholas Maduro says a "low-level war" was the cause of an electricity outage that affected 70 percent of the country, including the capital, Caracas.

A Russian lawmaker's tweet set off a flurry of reports saying the "NSA leaker" would be getting asylum in Venezuela. Then that tweet disappeared, news outlets started citing each other as sources, and the story just got all botched up.

The comments by Alexei Pushkov, the head of the foreign affairs committee in Russia's parliament, may mean Moscow is keen to be rid of the former NSA contractor who leaked details of classified U.S. surveillance programs.

Lead singer Henry D'Arthenay looked to his Venezuelan home for inspiration in constructing the band's latest album, Será.

The high crime rate throughout Latin America has many causes. In many countries, residents claim that police and security force members are part of the problem. In Venezuela, one family says the police are linked to multiple killings that have devastated the family.

Latin American cities rank as the most violent in the world. The region suffers from sky-high homicide rates, drug wars and gang violence. NPR is examining the region's turmoil in a series of reports, beginning with a look at the rampant kidnapping problem in Venezuela.

A divide that began under President Hugo Chavez has grown deeper in the weeks since his death. "The country is simply split in two," says one Venezuelan, in the wake of violent protests after the disputed presidential election that Chavez's hand-picked heir won by a slim margin.