Lima - (AFP) - At least 17 people were killed in Juliaca, in southeastern Peru , Monday, in clashes between security forces and anti-President Dina Pollarte demonstrators who tried to storm the city's airport, an official source said.

"We have confirmed the death of 17 people in Puno during clashes that took place today with law enforcement forces in the vicinity of Juliaca Airport," a source in the local ombudsman's office told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Nivardo Enriquez Barrales, coordinator of the city's Ombudsman's office, told AFP earlier in the day that "so far there are 12 dead in the morgue as a result of the clashes in Juliaca."

The demonstrators are calling for the resignation of President Polarte, who was Vice President Pedro Castillo, but Parliament appointed her in his place when he dismissed him in December in response to the socialist president's attempt to dissolve the country's legislative power.

Polwarti is the sixth person to assume the presidency in five years in a country experiencing a chronic political crisis marred by accusations of corruption.

The protesters are calling for Polarti's resignation, the dissolution of parliament and immediate elections.

The authorities partially acquiesced to the demands of the demonstrators, as they decided to move the date of the elections from 2026 to April 2024.

And the Puno border region with Bolivia is the center of protests in the country, as it has been witnessing an open-ended strike since January 4.