CNN
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Tourists in Machu picchu The Citadel and the Inca Trail Network have been suspended until further notice due to ongoing unrest in Peru, country officials said on Saturday.
The Directorate for Decentralized Culture and the Machu Picchu Historical Reserve Board of Directors said in a statement a day earlier that tourists with tickets for January 21 onwards can request a refund within up to one month after the end of the protests.
Earlier this week, protests in Peru continued across the country leaving at least 30 people injured. At least two police officers were injured and 11 were detained when protests turned violent in the southern city of Puno on Friday. A police station in Puno was set on fire. Interior Minister Vicente Romero said protesters attacked police stations, government buildings and private businesses around the country on Friday.
On Saturday, the Peruvian National Police stormed the National University of San Marcos to remove the protesters, the force said on Twitter. According to the tweets, the university’s legal representatives have asked authorities to identify unidentified persons “who have used violence” against university staff and control of the campus. school, including school doors.
The university said on Saturday that the National Police had cleared the doors of the university, which had been occupied by protesters “participating in marches at the national level.”
According to the state news agency Andina, between 200 and 300 police entered the university campus with the support of an armored vehicle to disperse the protesters. Authorities used tear gas to disperse protesters stationed near the entrance, the news agency added.
Peru is seeing some of its worst political violence in recent decades. The protesters wanted new elections, Boluarte’s resignation, constitutional change and the release of Castillo, who is currently in pre-trial detention. At the heart of the crisis are demands for better living conditions that have not been met in the two decades since democracy was restored in the country.
According to Andina, parts of the Urubamba-Ollantaytambo-Machu Picchu railway line were damaged during anti-government protests on Thursday, forcing train services to be halted until further notice. The suspended train service left 417 people – including 300 foreign nationals – stranded in the Machu Picchu district.
According to Peruvian Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism Luis Helguero, at least 300 of these visitors are foreigners.
“People are still stuck in Machu Picchu,” Helguero said. “417 tourists cannot leave the city, more than 300 are foreigners.”
Helguero said authorities were assessing and repairing the damage so tourists could be evacuated. Some tourists were evacuated on foot, but the trip, Helguero said, lasted at least six to seven hours.
PeruRail said on Thursday it was suspending services to and from Machu Picchu, among other destinations, because of blocked and damaged tracks in many places.
“However, we regret the inconvenience this has caused our passengers due to the situation beyond the control of the company because of the protests in Cuzco,” the statement said.
