Red Cross convoy arrives in Homs bringing Baba Amr aid

A Red Cross convoy has arrived in the Syrian city of Homs and is set to deliver supplies to the Baba Amr district after a month-long siege.The Red Cross and Syrian Red Crescent have organised the seven-lorry aid convoy, and are also planning to evacuate the wounded.The area has suffered heavy bombardment by government forces in recent weeks.The rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) said on Thursday it was leaving the district in a "tactical withdrawal".Of the 100,000 people who normally live in Baba Amr only a few thousand remain, with the FSA saying it had pulled back to save those still there from an all-out assault.Meanwhile, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said it had received reports of "a particularly grisly set of summary executions" in Homs.

Also on Friday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said France was closing its embassy in Damascus.

Syrian Red Crescent operations chief Khaled Erksoussi told Agence France-Presse news agency the convoy was "carrying food, medicines, blankets, milk for babies and other equipment".

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Drug cartels threaten Latin American democracy - OAS

Drugs gangs are posing a growing threat to democracy in Latin America, the Organization of American States (OAS) has warned.

Cartels are influencing elections by threatening politicians and even running their own candidates, OAS Secretary for Multidimensional Security Adam Blackwell said.
He was speaking at an OAS conference on transnational crime in Mexico City.
The two-day meeting brings together prosecutors from across Latin America.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon told delegates that countries in the Americas needed to work together to defeat gangs.
"In the face of transnational organised crime, we must create an international front where societies and governments are not faced with resolving this challenge alone," he said. More than 45,000 Mexicans have died in drug-related violence since 2006, when he began deploying the military to combat the cartels.

The flow of South American cocaine north to the US has also helped turn Central America into one of the most violent regions in the world, with Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador particularly affected.
"Crime and violence are today the biggest threat to security in our region," Mr Blackwell said.
"The participation of criminal bands in the election process is another expression of the risks that organised crime poses to the preservation of our democratic organisations," he added.
Throughout Americas, Mr Blackwell said there had been 150,000 homicides in 2010. Crime and violence are today the biggest threat to security in our region," Mr Blackwell said.
"The participation of criminal bands in the election process is another expression of the risks that organised crime poses to the preservation of our democratic organisations," he added.
Throughout Americas, Mr Blackwell said there had been 150,000 homicides in 2010.
Officials at the meeting also expressed optimism that, through co-ordinated action, criminal gangs could be successfully confronted.