Farmers snarl travel during trade protest

Peruvian farmers upset over a free trade deal with the United States blocked rail service to the famous Inca ruins at Machu Picchu and paralyzed vast swaths of the Andean country by halting traffic on key highways.

The protests stranded thousands of travelers, including about 400 people who were stuck on the train to the ancient Incan citadel, Peru’s top tourist attraction.

The Pan-American highway, the major road on the Peruvian coast, was blocked north and south of the capital, Lima, travelers and police said. Farmers nationwide snarled traffic with tree trunks, rocks and sand.

Farmers are frustrated by rising fertilizer costs, want debt relief, and say the free trade deal will flood local markets with imports of subsidized U.S. agricultural goods.