© AVNVenezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has survived an apparent attack on his life during a military parade.
Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez confirmed the attack late Saturday, shortly after video of the incident began surfacing on social media.
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has survived an apparent attack on his life
during a military parade celebrating the 81st anniversary of the Bolivarian National Guard in the capital, Caracas.
In a televised national address late Saturday, Maduro said he was fine and
laid blame for the attack firmly at the feet of "right-wing imperial forces" who he said had hired the would-be assassins."I must inform that they have been captured - those who attempted to take my life - and they are being processed
. I won't say more, but the investigation is very advanced.
"
I tell the Venezuelan opposition that I guarantee you can live in this country peacefully. If something happens to me, you will have to face millions of campesinos and humble people making justice with their own hands."I am alive, and I can tell you that after this attempt, I am even more determined to fight for the revolution."
Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez had confirmed the attack -
involving several drones packed with explosives - at a press conference earlier Saturday, shortly after video of the incident began surfacing on social media:
"President Nicolas Maduro asked me to inform the country about what is happening and extend peace to everyone," Rodriguez said.
"When we were at the military parade 81st anniversary, at the end of the event in Bolivar Avenue in Caracas, at 5:41 p.m. there was an explosion.
"An investigation has already been launched.
Several flying objects, like drones, containing explosives were detonated close to the presidential platform and in some locations along the parade."The investigation has already produced evidence that this was an attempt against the life of President Nicolas Maduro, but he is completely unharmed."
Seven military personnel were reportedly injured in the explosion, but Maduro "has already returned to his normal job," Rodriguez said, adding: "They have failed and they will continue to fail."
Maduro's speech was cut short during the event on Saturday and soldiers were seen running before the televised transmission was cut off.
While Maduro was speaking about Venezuela's economy, the audio suddenly went. He and others on the podium suddenly looked up, startled.
The camera then panned to scores of soldiers who started running, before the transmission was cut.
Bolivian President Evo Morales later posted a message of support to the victims of the attack. Writing on Twitter, he said: "We strongly repudiate this new aggression and cowardly attack on Nicolas Maduro and the Bolivarian people.
"After the failure in this attempt to overthrow him democratically, economically, politically, and militarily, now the empire and its servants threaten his life."
Comment: Maduro has made some
additional comments on the attempted assassination:
The Venezuelan President has in turn announced that the investigation into his attempted assassination has already made significant progress: "preliminary investigation indicates that many of those responsible for the attack, the financiers and planners, live in the United States in the state of Florida."
Maduro has said that he has "no doubt" that the perpetrators include US-backed Colombian and Venezuelan terrorists, including outgoing Colombian leader Juan Manuel Santos himself, engaged in a "right-wing plot" to overthrow Maduro.
"I hope the Trump administration is willing to fight terrorist groups that commit attacks in peaceful countries on our continent, in this case Venezuela", Maduro proclaimed on national television.
Indeed, it would not be a conspiracy to suggest that the Venezuelan opposition, which is no stranger to terrorist tactics to achieve their aims of disruption, is behind this. As logically follows, it would by no means be hyperbole to suggest that the CIA and US government have a hand in this.
Evidence to support this is not only the overall track record of US Imperialism in Latin America, notorious for coup d'etats, disappearances, and support for brutal military dictatorships, but more recently, the coup attempts in Venezuela in April 2002 and two attempts at destabilization using the guarimbas in 2014 and 2017.
US Imperialism and the Venezuelan comprador bourgeoisie have proven unsuccessful at dislodging the Bolívarian Revolution from power. They've lost dozens of elections and most recently, Maduro was re-elected President, and regional and local elections saw a consolidation of wins for the PSUV and revolutionary groups. It is no wonder they are stooping to desperate tactics like this drone attempt.
Today's event also takes place just days after Maduro reached crucial new agreements with the peasant movement. Maduro wants to meet their demands for (1) security from the political assassinations of campesinos by Colombian paramilitaries, (2) more land to farm, and (3) credits and technology.
Additionally, Maduro has unleashed investigations against corrupt bureaucrats who sabotaged the state oil company. This represents a continuation of the deepening of the Bolivarian revolution amidst the food crisis caused by capitalist hoarders.
It can be safely assumed that the Bolivarian security forces will pursue the perpetrators of this assassination attempt and the popular forces of Venezuela will secure their areas in case of an escalation from nearby Colombia, which was recently made a member of NATO by the US.
UPDATES 5 AUGUST, 12:30 CETAnother update,
courtesy of RT:
Unconfirmed media reports indicated that a splinter group called 'Flannel Soldiers' claimed credit for the attack. Spain's El Mundo newspaper cited a Twitter account under a similar name which alleged "the operation was to fly drones loaded with C4," but said they were shot down by the presidential guard before reaching their target.
According to Gregory Wilpert, co-founder of Venezuelanalysis website, those who orchestrated the plot hoped that "the military would rise up against the president and would take it as an opportunity to organize a coup and overthrow the government."
The Colombian government has of course
denied any involvement. It's interesting, however, that outgoing Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos - a Nobel Peace Prize laureate despite waging a border war against Venezuela - 'predicted'
just 5 days previously that he foresees "regime change" in Caracas "in the near future."
23:30 CETUS National Security czar John 'Evil Ned Flanders' Bolton has
piped up to declare that the US govt was "not involved" in the assassination attempt against Maduro.
Bolton was apparently just letting everyone know. Because, ya know, many people were suspecting precisely that.
Which is interesting because it means that even the the US govt. knows that everyone else knows that the US govt. has a long track record of assassinating or otherwise overthrowing the democratically-elected leaders of other nations.
But America's the greatest democracy on earth, don't ya know.
UPDATE 6 AugustA
video was posted on social media by by Cesar Guardiola, a security adviser and retired military serviceman, purportedly showing the drone exploding. Maduro can be heard giving his speech in the background as the camera focuses on a drone flying in the sky. The drone is then seen to be engulfed in a fireball, followed a split second later by a loud bang. Venezuelan Minister of Communication and Information Jorge Rodriguez announced that six people had been detained in connection with the reported plot to kill Maduro.
Air supremacy used to mean the end of the war was near. However, ancient Soviet SAMs changed that game. (Ask those residents of the Hanoi hilton:
1) What they thought of those ancient SAMS?
2) What they thought of John McCain?
3) What would they do these days to avoid a level II, III, or IV Russian Sam site?
Answer to three would probably be: Avoid flying.
R.C.