Venezuelans take to streets as uprising attempt sputters

Associated Press

CARACAS, Venezuela

Venezuelans heeded opposition leader Juan Guaido’s call to fill streets around the nation Wednesday, but security forces showed no sign of answering his cry for a widespread military uprising, instead dispersing crowds with tear gas as the political crisis threatened to deepen.

Thousands cheered Guaido in Caracas as he rolled up his sleeves and called on Venezuelans to remain out in force and prepare for a general strike, a day after his bold attempt to spark a mass military defection against President Nicolas Maduro failed to tilt the balance of power.

“It’s totally clear now the usurper has lost,” Guaido proclaimed, a declaration belied by events on the ground.

Across town at the Carlota air base near where Guaido made his plea a day earlier for a revolt, intense clashes raged between protesters and troops loyal to Maduro, making clear the standoff would drag on. There and elsewhere, state security forces launched tear gas and fired rubber bullets while bands of mostly young men armed with makeshift shields threw rocks.

“I don’t want to say it was a disaster, but it wasn’t a success,” said Marilina Carillo, who was standing in a crowd of anti-government demonstrators blowing horns and whistles.

Opposition leaders hoped Guaido’s risky move would stir a string of high-ranking defections and shake Maduro’s grip on power. But only the chief of Venezuela’s feared intelligence agency broke ranks, while most others stood steadfast. Some analysts predicted that would make Maduro more emboldened.

The dramatic events could spell even more uncertainty for Venezuela, which has been rocked by three months of political upheaval since Guaido re-energized a flagging opposition movement by declaring himself interim president, saying Maduro had usurped power.