Death toll climbs in Peru as fuel price hike stokes anger

Peruvian authorities have said that a fifth person died in the ongoing anti-government protests sparked by rising fuel prices, a sign of how the global energy crunch linked to the assault on Ukraine is stoking unrest in countries around the world.

Peru's Ministry of the Interior said on Wednesday a 25-year-old man had died and that it was investigating. 

A union representing agricultural workers in the southern Peruvian city of Ica said the man had died in clashes with police.

A farm worker who took part in a road block protest died following clashes with police while several others were injured, a hospital said.

"Fifteen injured people have come in, we have one seriously injured. There is a civilian who came in dead as a result of the conflict," Carlos Navea, director of the hospital in Ica some 300 kilometres south of Lima, said on Facebook.

Navea said 12 police officers and three civilians were injured.

The violence came a day after President Pedro Castillo called off a curfew in Lima aimed at curbing nationwide protests against rising fuel prices.

Russia-Ukraine conflict impact  

The protests were triggered by rising fuel and fertiliser costs due to sanctions on Russia, which attacked Ukraine in late February. The unrest has escalated in recent days, rattling the government of center-left President Castillo.

Authorities are struggling to unblock key highways that are essential for food supplies in Peru's largest cities. 

Castillo is also fending off calls for his resignation from the opposition and some influential local newspapers.

Castillo, who recently survived a second impeachment attempt less than a year into office, on Tuesday called off a mandatory curfew in Lima, the capital, that sought to stifle protests after thousands defied the order and took to the streets.

Those protests turned violent at night with looting reported in several government buildings.

The General Confederation of Workers of Peru –– the country’s main trade union federation –– has called for more protests on Thursday.