Argentina farmers said Monday a strike against the government's economic policies had all but shut down food production in Argentina, which counts among the world's biggest producers. The strike, which got underway on Saturday and is scheduled to last through Wednesday, was backed by farmers across the country, according to strike organizers. Farmers want a change in the way grain exports are taxed. They are seeking a progessive system whereby larger exports volumes are hit at a higher rate.

Argentine President Cristina Kirchner reshuffled part of her cabinet late Thursday, appointing new defense and security ministers, her spokesman said. National Deputy Agustin Oscar Rossi, who leads the ruling Front for Victory block in the lower chamber, will replace Arturo Puricelli as defense minister in the surprise move, spokesman Alfredo Scoccimarro told reporters. Puricelli, in turn, will replace Security Minister Nilda Garre, who will be nominated as ambassador to the Organization of American States.

The "Era K," as the decade-old rule of Cristina Kirchner and her late husband Nestor is known in Argentina, is showing its age. Together the couple have dominated Argentina since Nestor Kirchner was first elected president on May 25, 2003, with Cristina by his side, leading the country out of a devastating economic crisis to a heady period of surging growth. Cristina, who succeeded Nestor in 2007, has had a more turbulent ride, weathering her husband's death of a heart attack in 2010 as she presided over a flagging economy that now appears threatened by high inflation.

Buenos Aires, May 17 (EFE).- Gen. Rafael Videla, the emblematic figure of the military junta that ruled Argentina from 1976-1983, died Friday inside the jail where he was serving a life sentence for crimes against humanity, prison officials confirmed. He was 87. The news of the former strongman's death was first disclosed by Cecilia Pando, a military spouse known for defending the actions of the junta.