In a recent attempted coup, opposition leader Juan Guaido tried to oust Nicolas Maduro. He urged fellow countrymen to be part of biggest march in Venezuelan history and join the military defectors he had gathered support of. It however fizzled out and Maduro declared victory over the coup and said that it will not go unpunished. He also called on the armed forces to oppose “any coup plotter”. A small group heeded to Guaido's call, but the movement failed to ignite — the military leadership ratified their support for the government, and Maduro is standing his ground despite international pressure.
“Yes, we are in combat — keep morale high in this fight to disarm any traitor, any coup plotter,” Maduro said Thursday at a televised event with the military high command, at which he was surrounded by soldiers.
“No one can be afraid — it is the hour to defend our right to peace,” Maduro added.
The 48-year-old Leopoldo Lopez, a prominent opposition leader, who was imprisoned in 2014, made a dramatic appearance alongside Guaido. Lopez, who was transferred to house arrest in 2017, has since taken refuge at the Spanish embassy. Venezuela's supreme court ordered his re-arrest.
In Washington, US President Donald Trump offered prayers at a White House service for “the people of Venezuela in their righteous struggle for freedom.” “The brutal repression of the Venezuelan people must end, and it must end soon,” he warned.
It was confirmed by opposition lawmakers and family members that two teenage protestors succumbed to injuries sustained in the anti-government protests.
Yoifre Hernandez, 14, was hit by gunfire during Wednesday's clashes in Caracas, while 16-year-old Yosner Graterol suffered a gunshot wound during unrest in the northern town of La Victoria on Tuesday, lawmakers and relatives said.
Madrid said it would not hand over Lopez to Venezuelan authorities, nor would it ask him to leave.
Tensions in Venezuela have soared since Guaido, who heads the national legislature, invoked the constitution to declare himself acting president on January 23, claiming Maduro's re-election last year was illegitimate.
Venezuela, under Maduro's regime has suffered five years of recession marked by shortages of basic necessities as well as failing public services, including water, electricity and transport.
On both Tuesday and Wednesday, security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets at stone-throwing protesters.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned Venezuela's authorities not to use deadly force against demonstrators.
