U.S. Cuts Anti-Drug Force in Peru Jungle
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LIMA, Peru — The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has reduced its operations in Peru’s cocaine-producing jungle for security reasons, U.S. officials said Friday.
The cutback began two months ago after the security chief of the U.S. Embassy received a minor leg wound in January by gunmen firing at a U.S. helicopter from the ground, said embassy spokesman Charles Loveridge.
The violence occurred in the Upper Huallaga Valley near Tingo Maria, 240 miles northeast of Lima. Officials say more than 60% of the world’s coca, the raw material of cocaine, is grown in the region.
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