At least 16 persons have died in clashes in several Venezuelan states as well as in the capital, local media report.
According to OVCS observers, most of the victims were shot.
175 people were detained, Alfredo Romero, Executive Director of the NGO Venezuelan Penal Forum, said on Twitter. The police are dispersing protesters using tear gas and rubber bullets.
On January 23, mass protesting against president Nicolas Maduro erupted in Venezuela. Juan Guaido, the leader of the opposition National Assembly, declared himself acting president; he is seeking to hold new elections in the country.
The United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Ecuador, Paraguay and the Vatican officially acknowledged Guaido as a legitimate interim head of Venezuela while Russia, Mexico and Bolivia failed to recognize his legitimacy.
In turn, Maduro broke diplomatic relations with the United States and gave U.S. diplomatic personnel 72 hours to leave Venezuela.
“We’re not considering anything, but all options are on the table,” news agency Reuters quotes Donald Trump who was asked about sending the U.S. military into Venezuela.
(UPD) Belarus is following the ongoing developments in Venezuela with great concern, Anatol Glaz, Spokesman for the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, said on Thursday.
“We believe that it is the Venezuelan society that should handle all the issues and do it exclusively through a peaceful dialogue within the framework of the law and the Constitution. The people of Venezuela can handle emerging difficulties on their own without external interference,” state-run news agency BelTA quotes the top official as saying.
