poverty

Evicted after a life lived in Venezuela’s “High Rise Slum”

Evicted after a life lived in Venezuela’s “High Rise Slum”

40 Photos

Venezuelan soldiers and officials began moving hundreds of families Tuesday out of a half-built 45-story skyscraper that dominates the Caracas skyline and is thought to be the world’s tallest slum.

The mass eviction from the “Tower of David,” originally intended to be a bank center but abandoned since 1994 and later home to some 3,000 needy Venezuelans, proceeded peacefully.

“Necessity brought me here, and the tower gave me a good home,” said Yuraima Parra, 27, cradling her baby daughter as soldiers loaded her possessions into a truck before dawn.

“I was here for seven years. I’m going to miss it, but it’s time to move on.”

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April 12 Photo Brief: Fire, flooding, poverty, Merkel muffins and bird flu

April 12 Photo Brief: Fire, flooding, poverty, Merkel muffins and bird flu

20 photos

Angela Merkel muffins served in Germany, poverty continues its devastating toll in India, the volcanic Mount Etna erupts in Italy, poultry production ramps up rapid testing for H7N9 in China and more in today’s daily brief.

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