Nicaragua arrests 24 after attack in indigenous land dispute

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Nicaraguan authorities say they have arrested 24 settlers after they allegedly attacked an indigenous community as part of a land dispute. It was the first large-scale arrest of non-indigenous settlers after several years of invasions and attacks in the territory of Miskito and Mayangna communities. Nicaragua’s National Police said Friday that 22 men and two women were detained in the Caribbean coastal region the previous day. Police say indigenous residents told them the attackers were armed with sticks, stones and machetes. Nicaraguan authorities have been slow to investigate such attacks, and activists said Friday the settlers had actually been detained by residents, who turned them over to police.