Peru ⁱ/pəˈruː/ (Spanish: Perú; Quechua: Perú;Aymara: Piruw), officially the Republic of Peru (Spanish: República del Perú, pronounced: [reˈpuβlika ðel peˈɾu] ( listen)), is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.

Peruvian territory was home to ancient cultures, spanning from the Norte Chico civilization, one of the oldest in the world, to the Inca Empire, the largest state in Pre-Columbian America. The Spanish Empire conquered the region in the 16th century and established a Viceroyalty, which included most of its South American colonies. After achieving independence in 1821, Peru has undergone periods of political unrest and fiscal crisis as well as periods of stability and economic upswing.

Peru is a representative democratic republic divided into 25 regions. Its geography varies from the arid plains of the Pacific coast to the peaks of the Andes Mountains and the tropical forests of the Amazon Basin. It is a developing country with a high Human Development Index score and a poverty level around 31%. Its main economic activities include agriculture, fishing, mining, and manufacturing of products such as textiles.

Joran Andreas Petrus van der Sloot (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈjɔːrɑn vɑn dər ˈsloʊt]; born August 6, 1987) is a Dutch citizen who lived in Aruba. He has been indicted by a federal grand jury in the United States for wire fraud and extortion related to the whereabouts of Natalee Holloway, who disappeared in Aruba on May 30, 2005, and pled guilty in Peru to the murder and robbery of Stephany Tatiana Flores Ramírez, who died in the Peruvian capital Lima on May 30, 2010, exactly five years after Holloway's disappearance.

Van der Sloot was apprehended on June 3, 2010, in Chile and was deported to Peru the next day. On June 7, he confessed to causing the death of Flores Ramírez and was transferred on June 11 to Miguel Castro Castro maximum security prison in Lima. He attempted to legally retract his confession, claiming that he had been intimidated by the National Police of Peru and framed by the FBI. However, a Peruvian judge ruled on June 25, 2010, that the confession is valid.

The Holloway and Flores Ramírez cases both attracted widespread media attention. Van der Sloot continued to be the subject of international news coverage from prison, leading to controversies that resulted in the investigation and suspension of Peruvian officials.Time magazine declared Van der Sloot's arrest the top crime story of 2010.

Brandon Leray Rush (born July 7, 1985) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted in 2008 by the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers after playing for the University of Kansas Jayhawks for three seasons, including the 2007–2008 national championship team. Rush was selected as a Wooden Award All-American in 2007 and again in 2008 while a player for the Jayhawks.

Rush played high school basketball at Westport High School in Missouri and Mt. Zion Christian Academy in Durham, North Carolina. After withdrawing from the 2005 NBA Draft, Rush committed to play basketball for coach Bill Self at the University of Kansas. He started at the small forward position in each game that season. Rush led the Jayhawks in scoring (13.5 points per game), rebounding (5.9) and three point shooting percentage (47.2%). He was instrumental in the team's Big 12 Conference championship run and was elected the conference Freshman of the Year. Also, Rush is the first freshman ever to be named to the First Team All-Big 12 (Kevin Durant later did this the next year for the Texas Longhorns). He was selected as the preseason Co-Player of the Year in the Big 12, along with fellow Jayhawk Julian Wright. Rush was also selected as a preseason All-American. in 2007, he earned a position on the All-Tournament Team in the Big 12 Tournament. On April 26, 2007, Rush announced his intentions to enter the 2007 NBA Draft, but he did not sign with an agent.