"The democratic space is closing; we are on the way to authoritarianism," Jennie Dador of Peru's CNDDHH, a leading human rights group, warned as the death toll in 10 days of protests topped 20 and ousted President Pedro Castillo's jail term was extended.

Citing a flight risk posed by Castillo, a judicial panel of Peru’s Supreme Court of Justice on Thursday ordered the deposed president held for 18 months while prosecutors investigate charges of rebellion and conspiracy. Prior to his removal, Castillo attempted to dissolve Congress and declare an emergency government in which he would rule by decree.

Castillo denies the charges. On Thursday, his Twitter account posted a handwritten note in which Castillo sounded the alarm over a meeting held the day before his removal at the Government Palace in Lima between Boluarte and U.S. Ambassador Lisa Kenna, a former longtime CIA agent