Thousands march in Argentina to mark 50 years since bloody coup

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Thousands marched through Buenos Aires on Tuesday to mark 50 years since the 1976 military coup that ushered in one of Latin America’s bloodiest dictatorships.

An estimated 30,000 people were disappeared by the regime in its campaign against dissidents, including a left-wing guerrilla movement, labor activists and students, according to human rights organizations. Official figures place the number at around 8,000.

A truth commission and human rights groups attribute the majority of violence during that period to state security forces.

Human rights organizations, labor unions, student groups, social movements and political organizations called Tuesday for demonstrations across the country under the slogan “Memory, Truth and Justice,” in reference to crimes against humanity committed during the military regime.

Manuela Casares, a 36-year-old psychologist, told The Associated Press she attends the march every year, but this time decided to bring her nearly 6-year-old daughter “to teach her and pass on our history and the meaning of this day.” She said she believes it is essential to share this with her, since she did not experience those events the way her parents did.

Argentina's ultraliberal President Javier Milei has insisted that commemorations should also include victims of attacks carried out by guerrilla groups active at the time. Milei on Tuesday shared a quote attributed to Russian political activist Garry Kasparov saying that communism "is against human nature and can only be sustained through totalitarian repression.”

In line with that stance, the presidency released a video titled “Day of Remembrance for Justice and the Full Truth,” featuring two testimonies, one of a young woman who was taken as a baby during the dictatorship and regained her identity in 2017, and another from the son of an Argentine colonel kidnapped by a guerrilla group.

Carolina Merchant, the mother of Nicolás and Catalina, joined Tuesday’s protest to demand justice for members of a youth Jewish movement — the same group her children belong to today — who were disappeared during the dictatorship.

“They were kids who, like my own, were part of that movement and were taken,” she said.

Some of the victims’ bodies were later recovered, while many others remain missing, she added.

Among the groups calling for the march is the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, an organization founded in 1977 that has worked to locate children taken during the dictatorship. An estimated 500 babies born in captivity were illegally taken and adopted by military families or associates. Around 140 have since been identified.

After the return of democracy in 1983, the state took responsibility for prosecuting those responsible for the crimes but showed less commitment to locating victims’ remains. Efforts have also been hindered by the military’s refusal to provide information about their whereabouts.

Milei’s rise to power in 2023 has further complicated efforts to recover victims’ remains. As part of his austerity plan, he has downgraded the Human Rights Secretariat to a sub-secretariat, cut its budget and laid off staff. Technical teams working on archive analysis were dismissed, accused of political bias and of carrying out what Milei’s administration described as persecution of former military personnel.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

A man walks past a painting depicting Argentina's national soccer team players Lionel Messi, center, Julian Alvarez, left, and Rodrigo De Paul near a banner reading in Spanish, "Let’s defend the homeland by marching for the 30,000" referring to a number people disappeared during the military dictatorship, on the anniversary of the military coup that brought the military regime to power, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

People rally with puppets depicting members of the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo human rights group on the anniversary of the military coup that brought the military regime to power, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Demonstrators rally with a portrait of Hebe de Bonafini, a late member of the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo human rights group, on the anniversary of the military coup that brought the military regime to power, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

A demonstrator rallies with a banner of people who disappeared during Argentina's military dictatorship (1976–1983) on the anniversary of the military coup that brought the military regime to power, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

People rally with a banner reading in Spanish "Never again" on the anniversary of the military coup that brought the military regime to power, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes slipped Tuesday and gave back some of their rallies from the day before, while oil prices got back to rising as uncertainty continues about how long the war with Iran will last.

The S&P 500 fell 0.4% after yo-yoing through the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 84 points, or 0.2%, while the Nasdaq composite sank 0.8%.

Markets have been on a roller coaster since President Donald Trump raised hopes that the war with Iran could end soon when he said Monday that the United States and Iran held productive talks “regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East.” His announcement, which came just before Wall Street opened for trading, caused financial markets worldwide to reverse momentum immediately.

It calmed worries that the war may cause a long-term disruption to the oil and natural gas industry in the Persian Gulf, one big enough to send a blast of inflation to the region’s customers worldwide.

But financial market have since gotten both encouraging and discouraging signals about the war. On one side, attacks continued in the Middle East Tuesday after Iran denied having direct talks with the United States. On the other, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on X that his country is ready to “facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks” to end the Iran war.

After all that, the price for a barrel of Brent crude oil rose 4.6% to settle at $104.49 per barrel, a day after slumping more than 10%. Benchmark U.S. crude rose 4.8% to $92.35 per barrel and clawed back some of its own 10.3% plunge from the day before.

In the bond market, Treasury yields returned to rising and upped the pressure on financial markets worldwide. Higher yields make mortgages and other kinds of borrowing more expensive for households and for businesses, which slows the economy. They also hurt prices for all kinds of investments, from stocks to gold to cryptocurrencies.

Gold’s price sank again and settled at $4,402.00 per ounce, down roughly $1,000 from a high point early this month. Its price has dropped despite its reputation as a safe harbor for investors during scary times.

Treasurys paying more in interest make gold, which pays its owners nothing, look worse in comparison, and investors have lost some of the fever that drove gold prices to records earlier this year.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.39% from 4.34% late Monday and from just 3.97% before the war.

The yield on the two-year Treasury, which more closely tracks expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do with overnight interest rates, rose to 3.92% from 3.83% late Monday.

The Fed came into this year with expectations of resuming its cuts to interest rates, which would give the economy a boost. But oil prices have jumped so much and the threat of high inflation is so large that traders have nearly erased their bets for a cut to rates this year.

Instead, some are even betting on the possibility that the Fed may have to hike rates this year, according to data from CME Group. That was a nearly unthinkable scenario before the war began.

Higher interest rates would slow the economy, but they would also help keep a lid on inflation.

On Wall Street, Estee Lauder dropped 9.8% to one of the market’s sharpest losses after confirming that it’s in merger talks with Spanish cosmetics company Puig. The potential deal could put such brands as MAC, Clinique, Charlotte Tilbury and Apivita together under one company. Estee Lauder said no final decision has been made yet.

On the winning side of Wall Street was Smithfield Foods. Its stock rose 4.3% after the meat company reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 24.63 points to 6,556.37. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 84.41 to 46,124.06, and the Nasdaq composite sank 184.87 to 21,761.89.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe.

Asian stocks rose in their first chance to trade following Trump’s announcement on Monday about talks with Iran. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.8%, and South Korea’s Kospi climbed 2.7% for two of the world’s larger moves.

AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.

Michael Capolino works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The New York Stock Exchange is seen in New York, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top center, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center left, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top center, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center left, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)