LA Times News

LA Times News

Archaeologists hope to unearth some Richard III mysteries

Posted: 04 Sep 2012 07:15 PM PDT

Experts fight against time to clear up questions about Richard III, the man synonymous with royal villainy, thought to lie under a small government parking lot in Leicester.

LEICESTER, England — A parking lot, a parking lot! His kingdom for a parking lot?

Syria rebel-captured town Azaz lies mostly in ruins

Posted: 04 Sep 2012 06:49 PM PDT

In Azaz, Syria, a town held by rebels, few residents are left and a deadly airstrike last month still inspires fear, underscoring the high cost of victory.

AZAZ, Syria — This battered agricultural hub near the Turkish border is one place where the Free Syrian Army has triumphed, scattering the forces of Syrian President Bahar Assad. It has proved to be something of a Pyrrhic victory.

Mexico navy says it captured Gulf cartel leader

Posted: 04 Sep 2012 05:01 PM PDT

Mario Cardenas Guillen, alias El Gordo, is accused of being one of the two top leaders of the Gulf cartel of Mexico.

MEXICO CITY — Mexico's U.S.-backed naval special forces have captured a man believed to be one of the two top leaders of the Gulf cartel, a drug-trafficking organization that once dominated the northeast border region but has recently engaged in devastating battles with the vicious Zeta paramilitary force, authorities said Tuesday.

Colombia president announces peace talks with FARC rebels

Posted: 04 Sep 2012 04:34 PM PDT

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos takes a political risk in agreeing to negotiate a peace deal with the FARC.

BOGOTA, Colombia — Prospects for an end to more than four decades of armed rebellion in Colombia inched closer to reality Tuesday as President Juan Manuel Santos announced that his government had agreed to start peace talks with the country's largest insurgent group.

In Venezuela, killings of Caracas police are on rise

Posted: 04 Sep 2012 12:17 AM PDT

The increase in cop deaths is attributable in part to Venezuela's out-of-control crime, which has become the No. 1 issue in the presidential race.

LOS TEQUES, Venezuela — As he and his partner drove at dusk through a warren of metal and concrete-block shacks that's a haven for car thieves, bank robbers and kidnappers, Alexander Reyes said he's just hoping to survive eight more years to retirement age.