BUENOS AIRES (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th December, 2022) Peruvian airports that saw violent clashes between protesters and police are gradually resuming operations, Peruvian Minister of Transportation and Communications Paola Lazarte said on Sunday.
"As for the Cusco airport, everything is going back to normal. We were able to restore operations with the help of the police and the armed forces. As for the airport in Ayacucho, it will most likely reopen on Tuesday, December 20," Lazarte told the Radio Programas del Peru (RPP) broadcaster.
The airport in the city of Juliaca will resume operations on Monday, with the airport in Arequipa expected to start functioning in the coming days, the minister said.
All of these airports are usually busy with both domestic and international flights.
On December 7, Peru's parliament impeached former President Pedro Castillo. Then-Prime Minister Dina Boluarte took an oath as the country's new president within two hours of the impeachment vote, vowing to serve out the rest of Castillo's term, until July 2026. Castillo, who had tried to dissolve the parliament before the vote, was arrested after the impeachment procedure and the Peruvian prosecutor's office has launched a criminal case against him on charges of a coup attempt and crimes against the state.
These events have sparked a wave of protests across the country. Demonstrators denounce the post-impeachment government, and call for an immediate presidential election and termination of the country's parliament. At least 20 people have so far died in the protests, local media reported.
