Tens of thousands of Venezuelans took the street Wednesday to protest Maduro and demand new elections, denouncing what they deem a steady slide toward authoritarianism coupled with pressing economic woes that include triple-digit inflation, vast food shortages and a rise in violence.
Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro also held a counter rally Wednesday as opposition marchers gathered in the streets.
Throughout the day, those rallies often devolved into clashes between demonstrators and security forces - chaotic, violent scenes rent by tear gas, tossed rocks and even two reported deaths. Rights group Penal Forum said more than 500 people had been arrested.
Two people were shot dead as opponents of President Nicolas Maduro flooded the streets of Caracas and other Venezuelan cities Wednesday, battling security forces in what's been dubbed the "mother of all marches" against the embattled socialist leader.
Maduro claims that beneath a peaceful facade, the protests are little more than opposition efforts to foment a coup to end socialism in Venezuela.
VALENCIA, Venezuela (AP) - General Motors announced Thursday that it was shuttering its operations in Venezuela after authorities seized its factory in the country, a move that could draw the Trump administration into the escalating chaos engulfing the South American nation amid days of deadly protests.
Opposition leaders have called for the National Assembly's powers to be fully restored, for all the political prisoners to be freed, for a humanitarian corridor to be opened and for the stalled elections to take place.
The minister said a preliminary investigation suggests that the Vente Venezuela attack on Ramirez was planned in advance.
JULIO BORGES, President, Venezuelan National Assembly (through interpreter): They haven't done anything. Opponents of President Nicolas Maduro called on Venezuelans to take to the.
In several cities, protesters described being terrorized by militia members, some of them armed and circling the protesters on motorcycles.
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University student Ashraf Fadel said he came to denounce "the unjust American aggression against Syria". In the ongoing war in Syria, Russia has backed the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad militarily.
The protesters converged from 26 different points spread across the capital to attempt to march downtown to the Caracas office of the Ombudsman, who is responsible for investigating complaints against any public authority. He was shot in the head, they said, and three security officials said he later died in a clinic after undergoing surgery.
Wednesday's mass protest fell on a significant date for Venezuelans: On April 19, 1810, Venezuelans began their quest for independence from Spain.
It was the largest day of demonstrations so far in a series of increasingly violent protests that have seen more than 200 people arrested since moves by Maduro to tighten his grip on power heightened the country's political and economic crisis.
"There was an exchange of words, the situation got complicated and, well, they shot the guy", said eyewitness Arhiam Cano.
Another five people have been killed in the three weeks of protests sparked by a Supreme Court decision to strip the opposition-controlled Congress of its last remaining powers, a move that was later reversed amid a storm of global criticism.
It's a route tens of thousands of angry protesters have attempted a half-dozen times in the past few weeks only to find their progress blocked by light-armored vehicles and a curtain of tear gas and rubber bullets fired by riot police officers.
Normally, this would be the part where I unequivocally condemn the harsh, draconian polices of Nicolás Maduro and call for his immediate removal from office.
The current wave of marches, the most sustained protests against Maduro since 2014, has sparked regular melees.
Venezuela is in crisis, and while there is no simple solution to Venezuela's woes, the opposition argues it can fix the country's failing economy. "All these people made profiles on instagram and we started looking into what was happening". The Bank forecast 0.6 percent growth for next year on the back of projected firmer oil prices.
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