Peruvian Defense Minister Jose Huerta, a retired general, died Monday of a heart attack during a visit to military bases, the government announced. He was 71.

Two days of national mourning were declared in honor of Huerta, who passed away after arriving in Santa Maria de Nieva, a town in Peru's Amazonas region, state media said.

He collapsed as he was boarding a helicopter.

President Martin Vizcarra paid tribute to Huerta's service to the nation, and called the news of his death "painful."

Huerta was given full military honors when a coffin bearing his remains was flown back to the capital Lima. Lawmakers observed a moment of silence.

Huerta assumed office just nine days after Vizcarra took over from former president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, who stepped down in March last year.

Monday and Tuesday were designated as official days of mourning. The country's flag will be flown at half-staff on all public buildings, military bases and police barracks. </s> El ministro de Defensa, José Huerta, falleció la mañana del lunes, a los 71 años, a causa de un paro cardíaco. Ocurrió cuando se encontraba en el distrito de El Cenepa, provincia de Condorcanqui, región Amazonas .

De acuerdo con un comunicado difundido por el Ministerio de Defensa, José Huerta Torres sufrió un desvanecimiento mientras hacía una visita de inspección al Puesto Integral de Vigilancia y Control Territorial N° 4 (PIVCT 4) en la provincia de Condorcanqui, frontera con Ecuador.

El titular de Defensa se encontraba acompañado por miembros del Comando Conjunto de las Fuerzas Armadas y del Ejército.

Huerta Torres "recibió los primeros auxilios y fue traslado en helicóptero al Hospital de Santa María de Nieva, donde recibió la atención de emergencia", indica el informe. Lamentablemente, dejó de existir al promediar las 10:00 de la mañana.

Con profundo pesar, expresamos nuestras más sentidas condolencias por el repentino fallecimiento del ministro de Defensa, José Huerta Torres, mientras trabajaba incansablemente por el país, al que amaba profundamente y al que le otorgó hasta el último minuto de su vida. pic.twitter.com/4hiXjHBGuH — MINDEF PERU (@MindefPeru) 24 de junio de 2019

APOYÓ CAMPAÑA DEL MINISTERIO DE LA MUJER



La semana pasada, el titular de Defensa había expresado su respaldo total a los miembros del Ejército que habían participado en una campaña del Ministerio de la Mujer y Poblaciones Vulnerables.

"Estas prendas no denigran para nada el uniforme de las Fuerzas Armadas. No se denigra, es parte de una campaña [...] Esa es mi opinión como ministro de Estado y acá no va a haber persona que vaya a ser castigada, sancionada ni cuestionada por esta situación", dijo sobre las críticas por el uso de un mandil rosa por parte del alto mando del Ejército.

José Huerta era viceministro de Políticas para la Defensa cuando fue nombrado como titular del ministerio por el presidente Martín Vizcarra en abril del 2018. </s> Ministro de Defensa de Perú.

(CNN Español) — José Huerta Torres, ministro de Defensa de Perú, falleció este lunes de un paro cardiaco, reporta la agencia Andina.



Huerta Torres estaba en la selva en actividades de su cargo, dice Andina.

El ministro tenía 71 años.

El presidente de Perú, Martín Vizcarra, tuiteo un mensaje para la familia de Huerta Torres:

Lamento profundamente el fallecimiento del ministro de Defensa José Huerta, quien nos ha dejado sirviendo a su Patria. Esta es una noticia dolorosa y que nos apena profundamente. Mis sentidas condolencias a la familia. — Martín Vizcarra (@MartinVizcarraC) June 24, 2019

Por su parte, el presidente del Consejo de Ministros de Perú, Salvador del Solar, lamentó la muerte en su cuenta de Twitter: </s> LIMA, Peru -- Former Peruvian President Alan Garcia died Wednesday after shooting himself in the head moments after police attempted to detain him amid corruption allegations in Latin America's largest graft probe.

President Martin Vizcarra announced on Twitter that Garcia died after undergoing emergency surgery hours earlier. Doctors at the Jose Casimiro Ulloa Hospital in the capital city of Lima said they provided cardiac resuscitation three times while trying to save his life.

“Distraught over the death of ex-President Alan Garcia,” Vizcarra wrote. “I send my condolences to his family and loved ones.”

The shocking end for the man who twice ruled Peru but more recently was ensnared in the Odebrecht corruption scandal comes amid national upheaval over endemic corruption involving nearly every former living president.

Garcia repeatedly professed his innocence and said he was the victim of false testimony by political enemies who accused him of taking more than $100,000 from the Brazilian construction giant. Odebrecht admitted in a 2016 plea agreement with the U.S. Justice Department that it paid nearly $800 million throughout Latin America in exchange for lucrative public works contracts.

The 69-year-old former head of state's attorney accused authorities Wednesday of neglecting to provide Garcia information on why he was being detained or show their official identifications when they showed up to arrest him.

“The president, upset over this situation, knowing his absolute innocence ... had this terrible accident,” attorney Erasmo Reyna said.

Interior Minister Carlos Moran said police found Garcia on the second floor of his home when they arrived. He asked for a moment to call his lawyer, entering a bedroom of the leafy mansion in Miraflores and closing the door behind him.

“Minutes later the sound of gunfire was heard,” Moran said. “Police forced their way into the room and found him.”

He was immediately transported to the hospital, arriving at 6:45 a.m. local time. A team of doctors, some called from outside hospitals, began operating at 7:10 a.m., according to Peru's health ministry.

“The situation is very critical,” Health Minister Zulema Tomas said shortly after the incident. “It's grave.”

The stunning turn of events comes four months after Garcia tried to seek asylum in Uruguay as prosecutors in Peru investigated allegations he illegally took payments from Odebrecht. He remained there for a little more than two weeks before having his request denied. In rejecting his claim, the South American nation's embassy said there was no evidence to support Garcia's contention that he was being targeted politically.

“In Peru, the three branches of government function freely and autonomously, especially in the case of judicial power,” Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez said.

Peru has gone further than any other country outside Brazil in prosecuting politicians tied to the Odebrecht probe. All but one living former head of state is being investigated for corruption tied to the scandal.

Just last week, former President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski was also detained for alleged money laundering tied to the probe. Congressional allies said he was taken Tuesday night to a local clinic with high blood pressure.

On Wednesday, Alberto Quintanilla, a congressman from the left-leaning political party Nuevo Peru, expressed solidarity with the family of Garcia and said that he hoped officials “would advance knowledge of the truth” through their investigations, but also respect due process.

Garcia was a populist firebrand whose erratic first presidency in the 1980s was marked by hyperinflation, rampant corruption and the rise of the Shining Path guerrilla movement.

When he returned to power two decades later he ran a more conservative government, helping usher in a commodities-led investment boom in which Odebrecht played a major supporting role.

A judicial order obtained by The Associated Press shows Judge Juan Sanchez ordered authorities to arrest Garcia and search for documents in his home related to money laundering allegations.

Prosecutors suspect the former president received more than $100,000 from Odebrecht, disguised as a payment to speak at a conference in Brazil. </s> Barbara Weldens dropped dead on stage at her own concert in France. The French singer was only 35 when she died.

French singer Barbara Weldens died suddenly while performing in France, according to La Parisien.

The up-and-coming young singer was only 35-years-old. The cause of her death is still unknown, but it is speculated to have been electrocution because she performed barefoot or possibly cardiac arrest.

An investigation into Barbara Weldens’ death has been opened, and an autopsy will be performed on her body.

A spokesperson for the French singer told Europe 1 that they “will see in the next weeks if a reevaluation” is necessary. They also told the publication that they plan to determine if and why an electrical malfunction had occurred.

Weldens performed at a church in the French village of Gourdon for the Léo Ferré Festival when she just collapsed on stage suddenly. Paramedics rushed to her side, but she died immediately.

The French singer was scheduled to perform her debut album, Le grand H de l’homme, across France and Belgium over the next few months. She regularly performed with a pianist and acoustic guitarist.

Mediapart reviewed her album and praised her for the “softness of the melodies” and “the feminity and masculinity” of her work.

According to BBC News, one of her biggest musical influences was singer and songwriter Jacques Brel.

Barbara won first place in the Jacques Brel Festival’s Young Talents 2016 contest and the Pic D’Or prize.

The organizers of the Pic D’Or prize made a statement saying that they were “deeply disturbed” by the “brutal disappearance” of the singer who made an appearance on the stage of the Theater des Noveaux on May 20, the Independent reported.

Barbara Weldens spent her childhood in circuses, learning how to juggle, do acrobatics, and trapeze with her parents. She was also a poet, according to her website.

She told Midi Libre newspaper last year that she had “always written poems,” even when she was “little” and that once she had taken piano lessons, all she “wanted to do was compose.”

No further information about the sudden death of French singer, Barbara Weldens, is available at this time. </s> Russian officials said Vitaly Churkin, its ambassador to the United Nations, died suddenly in New York City on Monday.

Russia's deputy U.N. ambassador, Vladimir Safronkov, told the Associated Press that the 64-year-old Churkin became ill in his office at Russia's U.N. mission and was taken to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, where he died. His cause of death wasn't immediately known.

Churkin has been Russia's envoy at the United Nations for a little over a decade and was considered Moscow's great champion at the U.N.

He had a reputation for an acute wit and sharp repartee especially with his American and Western counterparts. . . .

He died Monday at age 64, one day before his 65th birthday.

Churkin suffered from cardiac arrest while at the Russian Mission on East 67th Street, a law enforcement official said. He was taken to New York's Presbyterian Hospital, where he died.

Churkin was known as a confident, combative, disarming and humorous fixture at the UN Security Council. . . He stood firm in supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime against Western attacks. And he cited US policy in Libya as a symbol of failure by Western countries who favored regime change.

Susan Rice, former US ambassador to the UN, said Churkin was "a formidable adversary, but always a friend."

Another former US ambassador, Samantha Power, said she was heartbroken by Churkin's death and credited him with trying to help Russian-US relations.

"Devastated by passing of UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin," Power tweeted. "Diplomatic maestro & deeply caring man who did all he could to bridge US-RUS differences." http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/20/europe/russia-un-ambassador-vitaly-churkin-dead/index.html </s> MADRID: Spain's Culture Minister Maxim Huerta resigned on Wednesday from a week-old government, following local media reports he avoided taxes while he was working as a TV journalist a decade ago.

Huerta, who was named to the cabinet by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez last week, told a news conference in Madrid he was "absolutely innocent" and had paid a fine to the tax ministry related to the period 2006-2008 after a change in their criteria. </s> Spain's Culture Minister Maxim Huerta attends a news conference to announce his resignation in Madrid, Spain June 13, 2018. REUTERS/Juan Medina

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain’s culture minister resigned on Wednesday from a week-old government following local media reports that he had avoided paying taxes while working as a TV journalist 10 years ago.

Maxim Huerta, who was named to the cabinet of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez last week, said he had paid a fine related to his declared income in 2006 and 2008, and was “absolutely innocent”.

“I have paid the fine twice, at the time and now, here,” he told a news conference in Madrid, saying the penalty had resulted from a change in the tax authority’s criteria.

Huerta added that he was fully up to date with his tax payments.

Sanchez toppled his predecessor, Mariano Rajoy, in a confidence vote over a long-running corruption scandal.

El Confidencial newspaper had reported that Huerta had been found to have avoided paying tax amounting to more than 200,000 euros ($235,700).

Spaniards have been enthusiastic so far in their reception of Sanchez’s Socialist government, which broke with six years of right-wing domination and contains more women than men in ministerial posts for the first time in the country’s history.

His party rebounded in opinion polls after taking power, overtaking rivals which had poached its voters in recent years, including market-friendly Ciudadanos and anti-austerity Podemos.

Despite these encouraging signs, Sanchez will have his work cut out to make any major policy changes, as he controls less than a quarter of the seats in parliament. ($1 = 0.8485 euros) </s> Cyclist Michael Goolaerts dies after crash while racing in Paris-Roubaix

Belgian rider Michael Goolaerts has died of cardiac arrest after crashing while competing in the Paris-Roubaix race.

Goolaerts' team said the 23-year-old died in a Lille hospital where he had been taken by helicopter from the one-day classic on Sunday.

"It is with unimaginable sadness that we have to communicate the passing of our rider and friend Michael Goolaerts," his team, Veranda's Willems-Crelan, said in a statement.

The team said Goolaerts died "in the presence of his family members and loved ones, who we keep in our thoughts". It added that he "died of cardiac arrest, all medical assistance was to no avail".

David Lappartient, president of cycling's peak body UCI, offered his condolences to the rider's family.

"On behalf of the Union Cycliste Internationale and the cycling family as a whole, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the family, team and friends of Michael Goolaerts, who left us too early today. We share their immense sadness," Mr Lappartient wrote on Twitter.

Goolaerts had been airlifted to hospital after collapsing about 150 kilometres from the finish.

No images of the incident itself were available but TV footage of the race showed Goolaerts lying unresponsive on the side of the road as the peloton passed him. He was then attended by a medical team and appeared to receive CPR.

Goolaerts rode in support of cyclo-cross world champion Wout van Aert of Belgium. His most significant result this season was 20th at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne.

Peter Sagan won the race ahead of Silvan Dillier of Switzerland.

But the champion Slovak's thoughts post-race turned to Goolaerts.

"All the thoughts and prayers of the @BORAhansgrohe team and myself are with Michael Goolaerts. Such a sad news …," Sagan wrote on Twitter.

The Paris-Roubaix race has been nicknamed the 'Hell of the North' due to the toughness of the race which features 29 sections of cobblestones.

There have been numerous deaths among professional cyclists while competing in recent years, including others by cardiac arrest.

Goolaerts' death came two years after Belgian cyclist Daan Myngheer died following a heart attack during the Criterium International race in Corsica.

Another Belgian cyclist, Antoine Demoitie, died the same year following a crash in the Gent-Wevelgem race.

Also in recent years, Iranian Paralympian Bahman Golbarnezhad also died of cardiac arrest on the way to hospital after crashing during the S4 race at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

American Chad Young and France's Mathieu Riebel died from head injuries in crashes on descents during the Tour of Gila and Tour de Nouvelle Caledonie in 2017 respectively.

Belgian Wouter Weylandt, a stage winner at the Vuelta a Espana and Giro d'Italia, died instantly when he hit a guard rail in the third stage at the 2011 Giro.
The Defense Minister of Peru, José Huerta, suddenly dies of cardiac arrest while worked.