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WORLD NEWS Saturday 22 april 2017

Political crisis continues to grip Venezuela capital city

JOSHUA GOODMAN test. Witnesses said masked
FABIOLA SANCHEZ looters wielding knives and
Associated Press guns descended on an
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) area known as “the little
— At least 12 people were market” filled with bakeries,
killed overnight during loot- supermarkets and butch-
ing and violence in Ven- er’s shops.
ezuela’s capital amid a “They left us with nothing,”
spiraling political crisis, au- said Manuel Martinez, who
thorities said Friday. was directing cleanup and
Most of the deaths took repairs at a destroyed gro-
place in El Valle, a work- cery store.
ing class neighborhood “What they did wasn’t be-
near Caracas’ biggest cause of hunger,” he add-
military base where oppo- ed. “It’s vandalism.”
sition leaders say a group The chaos turned deadly
of people were hit with an when looters entered a
electrical current while try- bakery protected by an
ing to steal a refrigerator electric fence and tried to
from a bakery. remove a refrigerator. The
Two days of huge protests accounts varied, but one
on the streets of Caracas opposition leader said 13
against the socialist gov- people were hit with an
ernment of President Nico- A pedestrian stands next to a refrigerator destroyed in a night of looting, in El Valle neighborhood electrical current after toss-
las Maduro spilled into a in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, April 21, 2017. At least 12 people were killed overnight following ing containers filled with
looting and violence in Venezuela’s capital amid a spiraling political crisis, authorities said Friday. water and making contact
violent Thursday night in Most of the deaths took place in El Valle, a working class neighborhood near Caracas’ biggest with the refrigerator’s pow-
several parts of the city, military base where opposition leaders say a group of people were hit with an electrical current er cord.
with residents in El Valle while trying to loot a bakery protected by an electric fence. Earlier Friday, officials re-
witnessing repetitive gun- (AP Photo/Fernando Llano) ported that one of the
fire, street barricades set Meanwhile, Foreign Minis- president who the govern- testers are demanding new dead was Mervins Guitian.
aflame and more than two ter Delcy Rodriguez point- ment recently barred from elections and denouncing The young Venezuelan
dozen businesses looted. ed the finger at the oppo- running for public office. a government they deem man was fatally shot when
Amid the confusion, moth- sition, saying armed groups Overall, at least 20 people a dictatorship responsible he was returning home late
ers and newborn children controlled by the govern- have been killed in the un- for triple-digit inflation, soar- from work Thursday and
had to be evacuated ment’s foes were respon- rest that erupted after the ing crime and widespread got caught in the middle of
from a maternity hospi- sible for the attack at the government-stacked Su- shortages of food and late-night street clashes. Vi-
tal named after the late hospital. preme Court gutted con- medical supplies. cente Paez, a local coun-
leader Hugo Chavez when “We reject and do not ac- gress of its last vestiges of The violence began Thurs- cilman, said Guitian was an
it was swamped with tear cept those irresponsible power three weeks ago day night and stretched employee of a Caracas-ar-
gas. declarations,” said Hen- — a move later reversed into Friday in El Valle, an ea city governed by an op-
The Public Ministry said the rique Capriles, a former amid a storm of interna- area historically known as position mayor but didn’t
violence left 11 people opposition candidate for tional criticism. Angry pro- a hot spot for political pro- join the protests. q
dead in El Valle, all men
between the ages of 17
and 45. Another death was Mexico: 2,020 killings in March, worst month since 2011
reported east of Caracas
in El Sucre. Six other people CHRIS SHERMAN cartel clashes in Ciudad cated, continues to be the in Chilpancingo,” he said.
were injured. MARK STEVENSON Juarez drove the national homicide leader, with 550 “Yesterday three ap-
“This was a war,” said Lili- Associated Press toll to new heights, the kill- during the first three months peared.” The leader of the
ana Altuna, whose butch- MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexi- ings pushing the 2017 total of the year. state’s leftist Democratic
er shop was ransacked by co has surpassed 2,000 ho- have been spread across Pioquinto Damian Huato, Revolution Party, Deme-
looters armed with guns micides in a month for the a number of states. Au- a business leader in the trio Saldivar, also was killed
who grabbed everything first time since the summer thorities attribute them to Guerrero state capital of Wednesday night in Chil-
in sight. of 2011 and had more kill- vicious turf battles resulting Chilpancingo, led an anti- pancingo.
Opposition leaders ac- ings in the first quarter of from breakdowns in the crime crusade until an at- “I live in my home with ar-
cused the government of 2017 than in the start of leadership of some cartels tempt was made on his life mored doors to be able to
repressing protesters with any year in at least two de- and the splintering of oth- that resulted in the death of protect my family,” Dami-
tear gas and rubber bul- cades, according to data ers into smaller gangs. his daughter-in-law in 2014. an Huato said. “How could
lets but standing idly by released Friday. The southern state of Guer- “Every now and then I go out when they could kill
as businesses were looted. Unlike 2011, when bloody rero, where Acapulco is lo- bagged bodies appear me in any moment?” q