On Tuesday morning Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido called on the the military to rise up and oust the Socialist Maduro regime.
Guaido appeared with activist Leopoldo Lopez who was freed from house arrest by members of the military.
Later in the morning the Maduro Regime supporters fired tear gas on the Guaido protesters.
A crowd disperses after tear gas is deployed near Venezuela's La Carlota military base.
Earlier, Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido proclaimed the end of socialist President Nicolas Maduro’s regime and called for a military uprising https://t.co/KChuhcCpbG pic.twitter.com/8MNhP73f7d
— Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) April 30, 2019
The AP reported:
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó took to the streets with activist Leopoldo Lopez and a small contingent of heavily armed soldiers early Tuesday in a bold and risky call for the military to rise up and oust socialist leader Nicolas Maduro.
“I want to tell the Venezuelan people: This is the moment to take to the streets and accompany these patriotic soldiers,” said Lopez, who had been detained since 2014 for leading anti-government protests. “Everyone should come to the streets, in peace.”
Lopez said he has been freed from house arrest by members of the military responding to an order by Guaidó, whom the U.S. and dozens of other governments recognize as Venezuela’s rightful leader.
As he spoke on a highway overpass, troops loyal to Maduro sporadically fired tear gas from inside the adjacent Carlota air base as the crowd of a few hundred civilians, some of them brandishing Venezuelan flags, scurried for cover.
The crowd was growing as people sensed what could be their strongest opportunity yet to overthrow the government after months of turmoil that has seen Maduro withstand an onslaught of protests and international pressure with the support of the top military command and allies such as Russia and Cuba.
https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1123195316591894528
