Nearly 100 monkeys ran loose through neighborhoods in central Thailand after escaping from a government-run enclosure overnight, prompting authorities to launch a large-scale effort to capture the animals.

Officials said nearly 100 monkeys broke through part of an enclosure at the Lopburi Municipality Animal Nursery.

The monkeys were being housed under the care of local authorities after being transferred from Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation. Workers were able to prevent more than 1,000 other monkeys at the facility from escaping.

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Provincial officials, wildlife authorities and municipal workers searched nearby residential areas Tuesday after the escape.

Authorities used food-baited cages to lure some of the escaped monkeys back into custody. Other monkeys, including some of the larger and more dominant macaques, had to be subdued with tranquilizer darts before they could be captured.

Crews repaired the damaged enclosure while officials continued efforts to recapture the escaped monkeys.

MAN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER, RELEASED AFTER ALLEGEDLY FORCING TODDLER INTO CROCODILE ENCLOSURE AT ZOO

Monkeys wait to be fed inside an enclosure during the annual Monkey Banquet at Lopburi Zoo in Lopburi, Thailand, on Nov. 24, 2024. Authorities launched a large-scale operation after nearly 100 monkeys escaped from a municipal enclosure in the city. (Anusak Laowilas/NurPhoto)

Lopburi Gov. Weeraphong Ritrod said the damaged enclosure had been repaired and reinforced to help prevent additional escapes.

He said officials also plan to build a more secure, double-layer enclosure designed to keep dominant monkeys from breaking out in the future.

The governor said the province is also preparing to establish a foundation to help support food costs and improve the monkeys’ welfare.

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A captured monkey sits inside a cage during a sterilization program at the Monkey Hospital in Lopburi province, Thailand, on June 21, 2020. Officials have worked for years to manage Lopburi’s macaque population after the animals caused problems for residents and businesses. (Anusak Laowilas/NurPhoto)

Mayor Chamroen Salacheep said the monkeys may have escaped because of hunger, extreme heat, overcrowding or their natural instinct to roam.

He also apologized to residents affected by the incident and encouraged anyone whose property was damaged to report it so authorities could assess the damage and determine what assistance may be available.

Lopburi has long been known for its large population of free-roaming macaques.

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The monkeys have also caused problems for residents and businesses because of property damage and aggressive behavior. Authorities have worked in recent years to reduce the monkey population through sterilization programs and by relocating some animals to dedicated enclosures.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Lopburi Municipality and Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Sin el presidente Javier Milei, la cumbre del Mercosur inició este martes sus deliberaciones con el anunciado comienzo de las negociaciones de un Acuerdo de Asociación Económica (AAE), equivalente a un tratado de libre comercio, entre el bloque regional y Japón.

“Celebro que lanzamos las negociaciones (…) del acuerdo de libre comercio con Japón”, señaló el presidente de Paraguay, Santiago Peña, en la LXVIII Cumbre de Jefes de Estado y de Gobierno del Mercosur.

El mandatario paraguayo calificó el inicio de las negociaciones como “un paso histórico” que abre las puertas “de una de las economías más importantes del mundo” y que fortalece, según dijo, la proyección del Mercosur hacia Asia.

“Los japoneses son buenos amigos y son los mejores aliados que podemos tener en nuestro bloque. Les pido que podamos avanzar con ellos”, añadió Peña al dirigirse a sus homólogo de Brasil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; de Uruguay, Yamandú Orsi; Bolivia, Rodrigo Paz; Ecuador, Daniel Noboa; y Chile, José Antonio Kast, los dos últimos invitados.

Milei es el único presidente del bloque ausente en la reunión, que se celebra en Luque, en las afueras de Asunción. En la cumbre, Paraguay traspasará la presidencia pro-témpore a Uruguay.

El canciller argentino, Pablo Quirno, ocupa el lugar del presidente Milei, que se quedó en Buenos Aires para atender “temas de gestión” en la antesala de la jura este martes de su nuevo jefe de Gabinete, Diego Santilli.

Pablo Quirno llamó a avanzar hacia una mayor apertura comercial

En su discurso, Pablo Quirno llamó al bloque suramericano a abandonar una visión proteccionista frente al escenario internacional y avanzar hacia una mayor apertura comercial.

“Señores presidentes, el Mercosur debe dejar de mirar el mundo como una amenaza y asumir el papel que le corresponde”, afirmó.

Además, consideró que el bloque “puede resignarse a administrar una estructura lenta, defensiva y alejada de las necesidades” de sus ciudadanos o “recuperar su vocación original y convertirse en una plataforma de prosperidad, competencia y proyección global”.

“El Mercosur necesita una discusión más profunda sobre su funcionamiento económico. Durante demasiado tiempo, nuestra región padeció una verdadera adicción al proteccionismo”, señaló.

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Quirno se reunió con el presidente de Bolivia, Rodrigo Paz, y le transmitió su “apoyo incondicional a la democracia boliviana” tras los 50 días de conflicto social y protestas impulsadas por sectores que exigían su renuncia..

“En el marco de la Cumbre del Mercosur, mantuve un encuentro con el presidente del Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia, Rodrigo Paz. Le transmití el claro mensaje del presidente Milei: ‘El apoyo argentino a la democracia boliviana, ha sido, es y será incondicional’“, expresó Quirno a través de la red social X, donde publicó una foto junto a Paz.

La negociaciones con Japón

El Mercosur indicó en un comunicado que con este acuerdo las partes buscarán “ampliar el acceso a los mercados de bienes agrícolas y no agrícolas, la cooperación y las inversiones recíprocas, e integrar las cadenas de valor entre ambas economías”.

Durante los diálogos establecidos desde diciembre pasado, cuando se firmó el acuerdo Asociación Estratégica Mercosur-Japón, ambas partes confirmaron que, “frente a un escenario internacional inestable, cooperarán para garantizar la seguridad económica y alimentaria”, según la nota.

Esta cooperación incluye la diversificación de las cadenas de suministro en sectores estratégicos como minerales críticos, energía, tecnología y agronegocios.

El acuerdo, añadió la nota, integrará una zona de libre comercio de aproximadamente 400 millones de personas y un producto interior bruto (PIB) combinado de 7 billones de dólares.

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Japón es uno de los diez principales socios comerciales del Mercosur, con un intercambio comercial de 13.700 millones de dólares en 2025.

El 20 de diciembre pasado, los presidentes del Mercosur anunciaron, durante una cumbre en Foz de Iguazú (Brasil), el lanzamiento de las negociaciones para alcanzar un acuerdo de preferencias arancelarias con Vietnam.

Poco después, el 17 de enero, el bloque firmó con la Unión Europea (UE) un acuerdo que abrió una de las mayores zonas de libre comercio del mundo, con un mercado de más de 700 millones de consumidores y cerca de una cuarta parte del producto interno bruto (PIB) global.

Además, el Mercosur negocia acuerdos de comercio con Emiratos Árabes Unidos y Canadá, el Reino Unido, Indonesia y Malasia, y negocia una ampliación del acuerdo de preferencias arancelarias con la India.

(Con información de EFE)

FIRST ON FOX: House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman John Moolenaar is launching an investigation into pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly’s clinical trial operations in China, demanding records related to research conducted at Chinese military-affiliated hospitals and facilities in Xinjiang.

In a Tuesday letter obtained by Fox News Digital, Moolenaar, R-Mich., demanded that Eli Lilly provide detailed information about its clinical trial operations in China, including how the company ensures ethical standards, protects sensitive biotechnology and intellectual property, and veterans research conducted at hospitals linked to the People’s Liberation Army and in Xinjiang, where the Chinese government has been accused of widespread human rights abuses against Muslim Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities.

The committee says publicly available records indicate Lilly has sponsored or collaborated on more than 220 clinical studies in China since 2003, including at least 11 trials involving hospitals in Xinjiang, China, and at least 16 involving Chinese military medical centers. Several remain active today, the letter says. 

The inquiry marks an escalation in congressional scrutiny of U.S. pharmaceutical companies’ growing ties to China as lawmakers warn that clinical research conducted at Chinese military-affiliated hospitals and in Xinjiang, China, could pose national security, intellectual property and human rights risks. The committee is seeking records from Lilly as it expands its investments and research partnerships in China.

Moolenaar stressed that the committee has «no evidence that Lilly has engaged in illegal activity or wrongdoing,» but argued that conducting clinical trials in China — particularly in Xinjiang, China, and at military-affiliated hospitals, hospitals affiliated with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA), which the committee argues could gain access to valuable biotechnology research and clinical trial data generated through collaborations with U.S. companies.

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«The United States is engaged in a fierce biotechnology competition with the People’s Republic of China,» Moolenaar wrote, arguing that biotechnology has become a strategic arena in U.S.-China competition with implications for national security, economic competitiveness and the protection of Americans’ medical data.

He pointed to China’s latest five-year plan, which identifies biotechnology as a national priority and calls for expanded use of artificial intelligence across the sector.

Moolenaar said China has transformed itself into one of the world’s fastest and least expensive places to conduct early-stage human drug trials through regulatory reforms, state subsidies and rapid patient enrollment. The committee argues that speed has made China increasingly attractive for global drug development while also raising concerns about ethics, data security and intellectual property.

The committee says publicly available records indicate Lilly has sponsored or collaborated on more than 220 clinical studies in China since 2003, including at least 11 trials involving hospitals in Xinjiang and at least 16 involving Chinese military medical centers.  (iStock)

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The inquiry comes as Lilly has continued expanding its presence in China. 

Earlier in 2026, the company announced a roughly $3 billion investment to expand manufacturing and local supply in the country, bringing its total investment in China to nearly $6 billion.

Lilly also has deepened its research ties with Chinese biotechnology companies, announcing an up to $8.8 billion oncology and immunology collaboration with Innovent Biologics in February and an agreement worth up to about $3 billion with Haisco Pharmaceutical Group earlier ni June. Both partnerships are referenced in Moolenaar’s letter as examples of the company’s expanding relationships with Chinese drugmakers.

The chairman also questioned whether China’s clinical trial system adequately protects participants’ rights. He cited research suggesting many participants misunderstand the experimental nature of drug studies or mistakenly believe treatments have already been proven effective, raising concerns about whether informed consent is being properly obtained.

The letter separately raises concerns about trials conducted in Xinjiang, pointing to reports from the United Nations, the State Department and human rights organizations documenting allegations of forced medical testing, DNA collection and other abuses targeting Uyghurs. Moolenaar argued those conditions warrant heightened scrutiny over whether clinical trial participants in the region are volunteering freely.

The committee also argues that research conducted at hospitals affiliated with the People’s Liberation Army raises questions about whether sensitive biotechnology research and proprietary data developed through clinical trials could ultimately benefit China’s military biotechnology programs.

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Moolenaar gave Lilly until July 17 to provide documents detailing its due diligence procedures, inspections of clinical trial sites, agreements with Chinese companies, and safeguards for protecting sensitive data and intellectual property.

«Lilly has received the letter from the House Select Committee on China. We are reviewing the letter closely,» a company spokesperson told Fox News Digital.