Friday Mar 31, 2023 - Colombia - Removing Pablo Escobar's hippos cost, Ultra Air ceases operations, Peru ambassador withdrawn from Colombia

These are the trending news headlines in Colombia on Friday March 31, 2023

Colombia is making progress in removing 70 hippos left behind by the late druglord Pablo Escobar, but the task comes with a hefty price tag of $3.5 million. These African beasts were brought to Colombia in the late 1980s and have since multiplied to 150 animals, causing havoc in their environment. The authorities plan to capture and move nearly half of them, with 10 going to a sanctuary in northern Mexico and 60 to India. Ernesto Zazueta, the owner of the Mexican sanctuary, estimates the operation will cost $3.5 million. The hippos were declared an invasive species last year, but the transfer plan is seen as a life-saving measure.

Colombian low cost carrier, Ultra Air, has ceased operations just 14 months after starting flights. The airline had been flying to cities throughout Colombia with a fleet of six Airbus A320 aircraft. The airline cited the rising cost of fuel and foreign exchange rates as reasons for its demise, as well as the collapse of Viva Air last month. The Colombian government has said that Ultra Air's inability to raise additional capital is the cause of its failure. Ultra Air is the fourth Latin American airline to fold this year, following the closures of Viva Air Colombia, Viva Air Peru, and Aeromar last month.

The coup regime in Peru has ordered the "definitive withdrawal" of the country's ambassador to Colombia, Félix Ricardo Americo Antonio Denegri Boza, in response to President Gustavo Petro's criticism of human rights abuses committed in Peru following the coup against Pedro Castillo. This follows a vote in Congress last month that declared Petro as 'persona non grata' over his comments criticizing the coup. The regime's use of excessive force against anti-coup protests and strikes has resulted in over 60 deaths since December. The regime is deeply unpopular, with a 77% disapproval rating among Peruvians. The regime's actions have burned relations with numerous Latin American countries, with whom they have long had good relations. They have threatened to withdraw their ambassadors to Bolivia and Argentina, whose governments do not recognize the unelected Boluarte regime as legitimate.

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