Maduro exhorts Venezuela military to fight ‘any coup’

CARACAS: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday called on the armed forces to oppose "any coup plotter" after a failed military uprising by forces supporting opposition leader Juan Guaido left four protesters dead following two days of clashes.

"Yes, we are in combat, keep morale high in this fight to disarm any traitor, any coup plotter," Maduro said at a televised event with the military high command in which he appeared surrounded by soldiers.

"No one can be afraid, it is the hour to defend our right to peace," he said at a ceremony in which, according to the government, 4,500 military personnel were present. Maduro’s call comes after an uprising on Tuesday by a group of military personnel under the leadership of Guaido, recognized by more than 50 countries as Venezuela’s interim president.

The rebel soldiers gathered at a Caracas highway with Guaido, who urged Venezuela’s armed forces to rise against Maduro. That sparked two days of protests against the government in which four people were killed, including two minors who died on Thursday.

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.

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 family members said.

Jurubith Rausseo, 27, died on Wednesday after being hit by a "bullet in the head," the non-governmental Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict said on Twitter, condemning her "murder."

Another person was killed in the northern Aragua state on Tuesday. Human rights organisations and health services reported 46 people injured in Wednesday’s clashes after dozens more were hurt on Tuesday.

UNICEF said "at least 15 children between the ages of 14 and 17" were injured in Wednesday’s violence. The government said more than 150 people were arrested on Tuesday. Guaido’s push to dislodge Maduro was unsuccessful as the military leadership ratified their support for the government, and 25 rebel soldiers sought asylum at the Brazilian embassy.

Opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez, who made a dramatic appearance alongside Guaido on Tuesday after he was freed from house arrest, took refuge at the home of the Spanish ambassador.

"We’ve come to ratify our loyalty ... to the supreme commander of the armed forces, who is our only president, President Nicolas Maduro," said Defense Minister General Vladimir Padrino at Thursday morning’s military event.

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.

Security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets at stone-throwing protesters on both Tuesday and Wednesday.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned Venezuela’s authorities not to use deadly force against demonstrators, while the US and Russia accused each other of making the crisis worse, evoking Cold War confrontations of the past.

Guaido rallied his supporters in the capital Caracas on Wednesday following the failure to spark a mass insurrection in the military the day before. "We’re going to remain in the streets until we achieve freedom for the Venezuelan people," Guaido told supporters. He said staggered industrial action would begin on Thursday, leading to a general strike.