Lima, (EFE).- The airport international Alfredo Rodríguez Ballón de Arequipa, the second city of Peru, suspended its operations from 11:00 local time (16:00 GMT) “to safeguard the integrity of the citizenry” and in the presence of anti-government protests, reported the Ministry of Transport and Communications .
The closure of the airport was announced on the ministry’s Twitter account, where it specified that “this action is carried out to safeguard the integrity of citizens and the safety of aeronautical operations.”
The southern region of Arequipa was the scene this Thursday of a confrontation between protesters and the Peruvian National Police (PNP), at the beginning of a national day of protests that aims to march in Lima to demand the resignation of President Dina Boluarte .
Civil construction workers blocked one of the accesses to the city of Arequipa, at the height of the San Isidro bridge, and clashed with the Police when the agents arrived to clear the area with the use of tear gas canisters, according to the RPP radio station.
As a result of the confrontation, three protesters were injured and were referred to the Arequipa regional hospital, the outlet added.
The great national march called “the takeover of Lima” has activated a series of protest actions in different parts of the country and, so far, the number of deaths has risen to 54, after confirmation of the death of a 51-year-old woman. years and a baby who died in the womb of his teenage mother, according to the Ombudsman’s Office.
The Peruvian National Police announced that it has deployed 11,800 agents to control the demonstrations called for this Thursday.
The head of the Lima Police Region, Víctor Zanabria, reported on the RPP radio station that the agents “will be on duty so that no excesses occur and we ensure activities in the city of Lima.”
The Police will have 120 vans, 49 military vehicles and 6 multipurpose vehicles for the movement of agents, Zanabria added.
On the other hand, the roadblocks have increased in the last hours and on the South Pan-American highway, at the height of the Ica region, neighboring Lima, there are at least four sectors with pickets of protesters in Chinatown, La Expansión , Alamo and Santiago.
