Venezuelan President escapes assassination plot without a scratch, blames opposition leaders.

Image: Reuters

A failed assassination attempt on the President of Venezuela, Nicholas Maduro, has left the country badly stunned. Recent reports indicate that investigators are questioning six suspects for details while, at the same time, raiding hotels and confiscating suspicious vehicles.

The Government has claimed that the leaders of the opposition conspired with assailants in Miami and Bogota; however, it was noted that there was no evidence for this allegation. Opposition leaders have spoken up against Maduro for singling out his opponents and warned people that he might use this unsuccessful ploy to suppress his critics. Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said that two drones, each packed with a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of C-4 plastic explosive, were flown toward Maduro, his wife and other top leaders as the President spoke to hundreds of troops during an event celebrating the 81st anniversary of the National Guard. One of the drones was intended to explode above the President and the other was to detonate directly in front of him.

Thankfully, one of these drones was driven off course electronically while the other crashed two blocks away into an apartment building. Reverol also added that they already have six terrorists and assassins detained and the next few hours could see more arrests. Venezuela, who is already deteriorating in this midst of an economic and humanitarian crisis, tried to endure this crisis bravely. Maduro is struggling to make sense of the hyperinflation gripping the country. While he is growing isolated, his Government is being deemed as autocratic. Although Maduro believes that he still enjoys the loyalties of his military, analysts revealed that the images broadcasted during the attack made him “appear vulnerable”. After claiming that Washington supports his political opponents, Maduro has called upon US President Donald Trump to hold the responsible terrorist group accountable.

A group calling themselves ‘Soldiers in T-shirts’ have claimed responsibility for this attack and even wrote on Twitter, “It was not successful today, but it is just a matter of time.” However, authorities haven’t been able to verify the authenticity of this message yet.

*Neha Hardikar is a Research Intern at The Kootneeti