A year ago today, #Venezuela awoke to shocking developments.
Opposition leader Juan Guaido was outside La Carlota military base in Caracas with a group of soldiers. He was joined by Leopoldo Lopez, who'd been freed from house arrest overnight.
A coup was underway.
Opposition leader Juan Guaido was outside La Carlota military base in Caracas with a group of soldiers. He was joined by Leopoldo Lopez, who'd been freed from house arrest overnight.
A coup was underway.
Lopez, who'd been in custody since 2014, tweeted pictures from the scene and said that "the definitive phase" in the struggle against the Maduro gov't was at hand.
The men waited outside the base throughout the morning, though it was not clear for what.
The men waited outside the base throughout the morning, though it was not clear for what.
Before long, residents eager to show their support for the opposition joined Guaido, Lopez and the small group of soldiers. So did gov't supporters, and a firefight erupted.
Hours passed, and it became clear that whatever it was Lopez and Guaido were waiting for had not come.
A crowd now in the hundreds gathered near the Plaza Francia. It began to move west, towards the section of #Caracas that houses gov't offices.
A crowd now in the hundreds gathered near the Plaza Francia. It began to move west, towards the section of #Caracas that houses gov't offices.
Pro-government gunmen (a "colectivo armado") operating out of the Ministry of Transportation building opened fire on the crowd of demonstrators as it passed by the building:
A group of police officers responded, and fired back at the gunmen.
The scene was a rare display of two government institutions (the colectivo and the police) in conflict, and added to the chaos of the day:
The scene was a rare display of two government institutions (the colectivo and the police) in conflict, and added to the chaos of the day:
The march was eventually dispersed by National Guard soldiers who prevented the protesters from making it into the western part of #Caracas.
Lopez and his family fled into the Chilean embassy, and #Venezuelans were left wondering what had just happened.
Lopez and his family fled into the Chilean embassy, and #Venezuelans were left wondering what had just happened.
In the days that followed, consensus grew that April 30 was a half-cooked coup, and that key players got cold feet at the last minute and didn't deliver on their agreements with the opposition.
@ElPitazoTV has a great summary of that analysis here: elpitazo.net/politica/clave…
@ElPitazoTV has a great summary of that analysis here: elpitazo.net/politica/clave…
April 30 2019 was, at the time, the latest in a series of dramatic twists that year in Venezuela.
If you're interested in reading in more detail what happened that day in #Venezuela, head over to the overview that I wrote for @bellingcat:
bellingcat.com/news/americas/…
If you're interested in reading in more detail what happened that day in #Venezuela, head over to the overview that I wrote for @bellingcat:
bellingcat.com/news/americas/…
