Venezuelans Rally in Rival Protests as Crisis Intensifies

By Staff, Agencies

Thousands of opposition and pro-government supporters rallied in Venezuela on Wednesday, a day after opposition leader Juan Guaido called for the military to oust President Nicolas Maduro.

"If the regime thought we had reached maximum pressure, they cannot even imagine," Guaido told thousands of supporters in eastern Caracas. "We have to remain in the streets."

Maduro also called for his supporters to take to the streets. On Twitter, he said that foreign interference was not the way forward in Venezuela.

"It was demonstrated that interference, coups and armed confrontations are not the way for our beloved Venezuela," Maduro wrote.

"The route to settle differences will always be constitutionality and mutual respect," he added.

In the western part of Caracas, Venezuelans banged drums and carried banners that called for "freedom". On a highway close to an airbase in the east of the capital, government forces fired tear gas on protesters.

The United Nations [UN] said it was "worried" by reports of security forces using "excessive" force against demonstrators.

"In light of the mass protests planned for today, we call on all sides to show maximum restraint and on the authorities to respect the right to peaceful assembly. We also warn against the use of language inciting people to violence," it said in a statement.

Maduro supporters marched wearing red, and the party's leaders said Wednesday's results were a result for the government.

"Yesterday, hate and improvisation prevailed; nobody knows who is leading today," Diosdado Cabello, president of the National Constituent Assembly, said during the march.

"[On our side] we are celebrating a victory, and we are celebrating with the working class."