Venezuelans clash with cops after disputed election result

FE Team | Published: July 31, 2024 00:50:58

CARACAS, July 30 (BBC): Security forces in Venezuela have fired tear gas and rubber bullets at people protesting Sunday's disputed election result.
Thousands of people descended on central Caracas on Monday evening, some walking for miles from slums on the mountains surrounding the city, towards the presidential palace.
Protests erupted in the Venezuelan capital the day after President Nicolás Maduro claimed victory.
The opposition has disputed Mr Maduro's declaration as fraudulent, saying its candidate Edmundo González won convincingly with 73.2% of the vote.
Opinion polls ahead of the election suggested a clear victory for the challenger.
Opposition parties had united behind Mr González in an attempt to unseat President Maduro after 11 years in power, amid widespread discontent over the country's economic crisis.
A heavy military and police presence was on the streets of Caracas with the aim of trying to disperse protesters and prevent them from approaching the presidential palace.
Crowds of people chanted "freedom, freedom!" and called for the government to fall. Footage showed tyres burning on highways and large numbers of people on the streets, with police on motorbikes firing tear gas.
In some areas, posters of President Maduro were ripped down and burned while tyres, cars and rubbish were also set alight.
Armed police, military and left-wing paramilitaries who are sympathetic to the government clashed with protesters and blocked off many roads around the city centre.
Venezuela's government also announced a temporary suspension of commercial air flights to and from Venezuela with Panama and the Dominican Republic starting from 20:00 local time on Wednesday.
In a speech on Venezuelan state television, Mr Maduro said it is his "obligation to tell you the truth".
"We are all under the obligation to listen the truth, to gear up with patience, calmness and strength because we are familiar with this movie and we know how to face these situations and how to defeat the violent."