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WORLD NEWS Thursday 29 June 2017

Venezuela: Helicopter strafes court in ‘terrorist attack’

By JOSHUA GOODMAN a radio interview. “What-
Associated Press ever it was, it all points in
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) the same direction: that
— Oscar Perez is a cop, pi- the situation in Venezuela
lot, action movie star and is unsustainable.”
dog trainer. He’s now also Little is known about Perez.
a fugitive, accused of straf- On his Instagram account,
ing two key Venezuelan he notes his job as a police
government buildings from investigator and tactical
a helicopter in a quixotic helicopter pilot and says
attempt to set off a revolt his passion is Venezuela.
against President Nicolas In 2015,
Maduro. he starred in a film called
Authorities on Wednes- “Suspended Death,” and
day conducted a nation- several photos show him in
wide manhunt for Perez a fatigues, bearing assault ri-
day after the government fles, skydiving and standing
charged that he stole the in action poses with a Ger-
police chopper and direct- man shepherd by his side.
ed grenades and gunfire Sometime Tuesday, he
against the Supreme Court posted on his Instagram
and Interior Ministry in what account a video in which
Maduro called a “terrorist he read a manifesto call-
attack.” ing for rebellion.
No one was injured, and He claimed to speak on In this June 22, 2017 photo, Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro gives a news conference in
there was no sign of dam- behalf of a coalition of ren- Caracas, Venezuela. Maduro said a helicopter fired on Venezuela’s Supreme Court in a confus-
age at the buildings. But egade members of the se- ing incident that he claimed was part of a conspiracy to destabilize his socialist government, on
Tuesday, June 27, 2017.
the episode added an- curity forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
other layer of intrigue to Eyewitness accounts say
a 3-month-old political the helicopter had hang- “We have two choices: figures dressed in fatigues for 80 people. It then flew a
crisis that has left at least ing from its side a large be judged tomorrow by and ski masks and carrying short distance to the court,
75 people dead and hun- banner referring to article our conscience and the assault rifles. which was in session, and
dreds more jailed or injured 350 of Venezuela’s con- people or begin today to The government accused dropped grenades, two
in clashes between secu- stitution, which empowers free ourselves from this cor- Perez and others in the he- of them against national
rity forces and protesters Venezuelans to disobey rupt government,” Perez licopter of firing 15 shots at guardsmen protecting the
seeking Maduro’s removal. any regime that violates said while reading from the the Interior Ministry as a re- building. q
Did Perez act alone? Are human rights. manifesto in front of four ception was taking place
other military uprisings in
the works? Or was it an Suriname:
elaborate ruse clumsily or-
chestrated by the govern- Prosecutor calls for 20-year sentence for president
ment to distract public at-
tention or justify a tougher
crackdown on the opposi- By PIETER VAN MAELE court in a summation of ev- maribo are referred to in spared execution and oth-
tion? Associated Press idence from a trial that has Suriname as the “Decem- er evidence proves Bout-
National Assembly Presi- PARAMARIBO, Suriname dragged on for years that ber killings,” and are con- erse was there.
dent Julio Borges expressed (AP) — A prosecutor on there is sufficient proof that sidered one of the most “As military leader, he was
doubts about Maduro’s Wednesday recommend- Bouterse was present when significant political events not only present during
version of events but cau- ed a 20-year prison sen- troops under his command in the country’s modern his- the summary executions,
tioned that he and the rest tence for President Desi summarily executed op- tory. he also decided the fate
of the opposition were still Bouterse for his role in the ponents of his then-military Bouterse has previously ac- of the victims,” Elgin told
analyzing what happened. December 1982 killing of dictatorship. cepted “political responsi- the three-judge panel. “He
“There are people who 15 prominent political op- The executions of union bility” for the killings but in- behaved like a judge, and
say it was a government- ponents in this South Ameri- leaders, activists and jour- sists he was not present. robbed his victims of their
staged hoax, others who can country. nalists inside a colonial fort Elgin said testimony from most valuable possession,
say it was real,” he said in Prosecutor Roy Elgin told a in the capital city of Para- a union leader who was their life.”q