Venezuela opposition leader Guaido dismisses government claim of attempted coup

Juan Guaido (Photo: IANS)


Venezuela self-proclaimed leader Juan Guaido dismissed the government claims of an attempted coup and said he would continue calls on the armed forces to abandon President Nicolas Maduro.

According to the AFP report, Venezuela opposition leader Guaido said, “It is the same story for the umpteenth time, and the press has lost count of how many times the same accusations have been repeated”.

Juan Guaido had earlier claimed that the troops had joined his campaign to oust President Nicolas Maduro and armed forces clashed at a protest outside the Carcass airbase as the country hit a new crisis point in the month of April.

He also claimed that the move was the “beginning of the end” of Maduro’s regime, and there was “no turning back”.

Thousands of opposition supporters flocked onto a highway near the base. But confusion reigned as they were met with gunfire and teargas fired by soldiers at the base.

Some of the protesters amid the confusion chanted that “Today is the day Maduro resigns.

35-year-old Guaido and the National Assembly have branded Maduro a “usurper” over his controversial re-election last year in polls widely viewed as rigged.