CARACAS, Venezuela >> Investigators hunting for assailants behind a failed attempt to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro with explosives-laden drones have raided hotels and seized vehicles while grilling six suspects for details of the plot.

Venezuela’s socialist government alleged Sunday that the detained suspects conspired with others in Miami and the capital of neighboring Colombia, though they offered no specific evidence. Opposition leaders criticized Maduro for broadly singling out his political opponents, and they warned that he might use the attack to further suppress his critics.

The attack came as Venezuela is reeling from an economic and humanitarian crisis and Maduro has grown increasingly isolated. Foreign nations, including the United States, are slapping economic sanctions on a growing list of high-ranking Venezuelan officials and decrying his government as an autocratic regime.

Maduro and his allies called the attack direct proof that an international plot to overthrow his socialist administration exists, while also saying that the military’s response shows he still has the loyalty of Venezuela’s soldiers.

But analysts said the images broadcast live on television when the attack struck during a Maduro speech Saturday evening made him appear vulnerable.

“Seeing trained soldiers fleeing in apparent panic and disarray before an explosion strongly contrasts with the idea of monolithic control and loyalty of security forces that Maduro prides himself on,” the New York-based Torino Capital investment firm said.

Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, appearing on state television Sunday, said the attackers were trying to wipe out Venezuela’s entire top leadership along with Maduro.

Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said two drones, each packed with 2.2 pounds of C-4 plastic explosive, were flown toward Maduro, his wife and other top leaders as the president spoke to hundreds of troops during an event celebrating the 81st anniversary of the National Guard. One of the drones was intended to explode above Maduro and the other was to detonate directly in front of him, Reverol said.

The military managed to knock one of the drones off course electronically and the other craft crashed into an apartment building two blocks away, Reverol said.

“We have six terrorists and assassins detained,” he said. “In the next hours there could be more arrests.”

Reverol said two of those arrested had previous run-ins with the government, although he did not give their names. He said one took part in 2014 anti-governments protests that rocked Venezuela’s as it descended deeper into an economic crisis that is now worse than the Great Depression. The other had a warrant out for his arrest for participating in an attack on a military barracks, the interior minister said.

Investigators continued searching the blackened apartment building near the speech site, and authorities said officers also raided six hotels, where some of the suspects were arrested and “film” evidence was collected. Officials gave no details.

Two witnesses who live in nearby apartment buildings said they saw a drone hovering over a residential street Saturday evening and then heard an explosion.

One witness showed The Associated Press cellphone video of a drone crashing into a building. He said the drone fell to the ground and exploded, igniting a fire in an apartment.

Another witness, Mairum Gonzalez, described running in panic to her fifth-floor balcony, where she heard the second explosion and saw smoke rising.

“It was so strong the building shook,” she said. “It terrified me.”

In an address to the nation later Saturday night, a visibly shaken Maduro blamed the attack on the “far right,” and he called on U.S. President Donald Trump to hold the “terrorist group” accountable.

Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, said: “If the government of Venezuela has hard information that they want to present to us that would show a potential violation of U.S. criminal law, we’ll take a serious look at it.”

The Broad Front, a coalition of opposition groups in Venezuela, accused the government of making an allegation without proof.

“It’s evident that the initial reaction of the government isn’t aimed at attempting to clarify what happened but rather to take advantage of the situation and irresponsibly and sweepingly attack the ‘opposition,’” the group said in a statement.

A little-known group calling itself Soldiers in T-shirts claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it planned to fly two drones loaded with explosives at the president but soldiers shot them down. The authenticity of the message could not be independently verified, and the organization did not respond to a message from the AP.

“It was not successful today, but it is just a matter of time,” the group said in a tweet.

Venezuela’s government routinely accuses opposition activists of plotting to attack and overthrow Maduro. The former bus driver has moved steadily to consolidate power as the nation struggles to reverse hyperinflation that the International Monetary Fund projects could top 1 million percent by year’s end.

Last year, amid deadly, near-daily protests, rogue police officer Oscar Perez flew a stolen helicopter over the capital and launched grenades at several government buildings. Perez and several comrades were killed in a gunbattle with police after more than six months at large.

Maduro said the attack left him convinced of the military’s support and undeterred in carrying forward the socialist revolution begun by the late Hugo Chavez.

“Venezuela will continue on the democratic, independent and socialist path,” Maduro said.

Analysts believe Maduro still holds the military’s support, but also said the attack was an embarrassment for a government that prides itself on control and invincibility.

“We continue to hold as our scenario one in which Maduro remains in power for coming years,” Torino Capital said in its analysis. “However, given the regime’s unpopularity and the depth of the country’s economic crisis, we believe it is important to monitor events that can become catalysts for broader protest movements leading to regime change.”

Associated Press writer Scott Smith reported this story in Caracas and AP writer Christine Armario reported from Miami.</s>President Nicolas Maduro has accused two opposition legislators of having roles in the drone attack that Venezuelan officials have called an assassination attempt on the leader.

President Nicolas Maduro has accused two opposition legislators of having roles in the drone attack that Venezuelan officials have called an assassination attempt on the leader.

The head of Venezuela’s pro-government constitutional assembly said he would have the body take up a proposal on Wednesday to strip the politicians of their immunity from prosecution.

During a national television broadcast on Tuesday night, Mr Maduro said statements from some of the six suspects already arrested in the weekend attack pointed to key financiers and others, including Julio Borges, one of the country’s most prominent opposition leaders who is a poltician but is living in exile in Colombia.

“Several of the declarations indicated Julio Borges. The investigations point to him,” Mr Maduro said, though he provided no details on Mr Borges’ alleged role.

Mr Borges did not immediately comment on Mr Maduro’s accusation.

The president also named opposition politician Juan Requesens, who was seen in a video widely circulating on social media being arrested by Venezuela’s political police force.

Critics of Mr Maduro’s socialist government had said immediately after the attack that they feared the unpopular leader would use the incident as an excuse to round up opposition politicians as he seeks to dampen spreading discontent over Venezuela’s devastating economic collapse.

In the attack, two drones armed with explosives detonated near Mr Maduro as he spoke outdoors during a military celebration on Saturday evening.

Images on live television showed Mr Maduro and his wife looking up at the sky at one blast and then hundreds of soldiers scrambling.

Prosecutors have arrested six people who face charges of treason, attempted murder and terrorism.

As elected politicians, Mr Borges and Mr Requesens enjoy immunity from prosecution under Venezuelan law.

But Diosdado Cabello, the powerful socialist party leader and president of the National Constitutional Assembly, said in a tweet that he planned to introduce legislation stripping politicians of this protection.

The events come as Venezuela’s economy continues to haemorrhage and thousands flee to neighbouring nations seeking food and medical care.

Mr Maduro has grown increasingly isolated, with the United States and other foreign powers slapping economic sanctions on a growing list of high-ranking Venezuelan officials and criticising his government as an autocratic regime.

The International Monetary Fund projects inflation could top one million percent by year’s end.

Mr Maduro spoke for two hours from the Miraflores Presidential Palace in a presentation using polished videos showing suspects and images of the drones exploding.

One video included a purported confession by one handcuffed suspect, whose face was blurred out.

Mr Maduro also held up military hats worn by soldiers with holes in them from debris the explosion. Several soldiers seated in the audience had white bandages on their heads, apparently injured in the assassination attempt.

The president also displayed wanted posters with names and pictures of other suspects who he said are living in the United States and Colombia.

Mr Maduro said he would provide evidence to officials in both countries and ask for their cooperation handing over suspects who helped orchestrate and finance the attack.

“I want to explain to the government of the United States and the government of Colombia in detail all the evidence that leads us to accomplices and direct responsible living in the state of Florida,” Mr Maduro said.

“I trust in the good faith of Donald Trump.”</s>The 'masterminds' of the alleged drone assassination attempt on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maudro have been identified, authorities said, as Brazil temporarily closed its border to people from the crisis-hit nation.

Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab told a news conference that several suspects were in custody, including two people 'caught in the act' piloting one of the drones from a car close to the scene.

He called Saturday's drone attack, in which seven soldiers were wounded, 'an attempted massacre', and Maduro has already pointed fingers at political enemies in Colombia and the United States.

The incident took place on Saturday during a parade marking the 81st anniversary of the National Guard, in the capital Caracas.

Video footage from the event shows Maduro standing flanked by military chiefs and his wife when suddenly explosions are heard.

Soldiers can be seen seen scattering away from the stage, before the broadcast was cut.

Yesterday, Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said six people have been arrested over the alleged assassination attempt, claiming two drones had been used, each carrying a kilogram (2.2lbs) of C4 explosive.

No drones could be seen in the broadcast of the event, which was cut moments after the soldiers were seen scattering away from where Maduro was standing flanked by military chiefs and his wife.

Maduro and his allies insist it was a drone assassination bid, despite no evidence being provided to prove this.

The socialist leader's critics have said they feared the Venezuelan government would use the attack to step up repression of the opposition and dissidents.

Shortly before midnight last night, Maduro renewed his accusation against his Colombian counterpart, President Juan Manuel Santos, promising to release proof 'in the next few hours.'

The allegation has worsened already fraught ties between Caracas and Bogota. Santos, who hands over power to elected successor Ivan Duque on Tuesday, has categorically denied it.

International experts have expressed similar concerns in the wake of the incident, saying it is giving the President an opportunity to distract the population from the economic crisis.

'It's the [former President Hugo] Chavez and Maduro playbook – to blame others for their problems, whether it's food shortages, inflation, medicine shortages, diseases such as polio [reappearing], which was eradicated nearly 40 years ago,' Jason Marczak, director of the Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center, told Fox News.

'Colombia is increasingly seen as a scapegoat for Maduro for the problems he faces in Venezuela, problems he created in his own country,' Marczak said.

'There has been a ramp-up in Colombia's attention to the crisis in Venezuela and trying to facilitate some type of international response...to put pressure on Venezuela.'

A live broadcast of Saturday's incident on Venezuelan state television showed Maduro interrupted in mid-speech by an explosion and looking up in confusion.

Dozens of soldiers on parade are then seen breaking ranks and running away in panic.

Maduro and his government said the president had been targeted by two flying drones carrying explosives. But details of the incident remain unclear, with conflicting information coming from various sources.

The Maduro administration said Colombia had collaborated on the attack with the 'ultra far-right' Venezuelan opposition, and it was financed by unnamed figures in the US state of Florida.

No evidence was given to support the allegations. Thousands of exiled Venezuelans live in Colombia and in Florida.

On the first working day after the Maduro incident, Brazil briefly closed its northern border to Venezuelans on Monday - while allowing other nationalities entry.

It is not thought to be related to Maduro's alleged assassination attempt, as Brazil has been struggling to contain mass migration from Venezuela for some time.

The Supreme Court overturned a lower court decision that had suspended the entry of more Venezuelans until other immigrants from the country were transferred elsewhere in Brazil.

'It is not justified to take the easy path to 'close the doors' because of difficulties in hosting refugees,' Supreme Court justice Rosa Weber said in her ruling issued shortly before midnight.

The border had remained open to Brazilians and other nationalities, as well as to Venezuelans seeking to return to their home country.

It's a main crossing point for tens of thousands of Venezuelan migrants, an influx that has increased dramatically over the past two years.

An estimated 500 Venezuelans cross the land border into Brazil each day.

Maduro, a former bus driver who took over the reins from his mentor Hugo Chavez upon the latter's death to cancer in 2013, has been ruling in increasingly autocratic fashion with military support.

He controls almost all the country's institutions, and has used the supreme court, electoral authorities and a new super-legislative body, the Constitutional Assembly, to sideline the opposition-run parliament, the National Assembly.

Although he won a new six-year term in controversial snap elections boycotted by the opposition, Maduro remains widely reviled for presiding over a collapsing economy.

Inflation this year is projected to reach as high as one million percent, according to the International Monetary Fund. Oil exports - a vital money-earner for a country sitting atop the world's largest crude reserves - have declined sharply.

Venezuela's currency, the bolivar, is practically worthless and food and medicine are extremely scarce, prompting hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans to flee abroad.

The country is largely isolated internationally and is subject to US sanctions that greatly degrade Caracas's capacity to raise credit.

Maduro regularly accuses the 'imperialist' United States of plotting coups against him and waging 'economic war' on Venezuela.</s>Washington, Aug 6 (IANS) US National Security Advisor John Bolton has said there was no US government involvement in the recent assassination plot against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Bolton told “Fox News Sunday” that “I can say unequivocally there was no US government involvement in this at all”.

Bolton on Sunday said he had spoken to the US charge d’affaires in Caracas and was told that “Americans are accounted for”, Xinhua news agency reported.

Maduro escaped unharmed from an attempted attack of explosive drones on Saturday night during his speech to commemorate the 81st anniversary of the country’s National Guard.

Later, Maduro called the attack as an assassination attempt, and blamed it on the far-right factions in Venezuela, the Colombian government and conspirators in the US.

In an apparent response, Bolton said “if the government of Venezuela has hard information that they want to present to us that would show a potential violation of US criminal law, we’ll take a serious look at it.”

After Maduro’s re-election, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning US individuals or entities within the United States from purchasing any debt owed to the Venezuelan government.

The US State Department on May 23 announced expulsion of two senior Venezuelan diplomats in the US in retaliation of Caracas’ earlier expulsion of two US diplomats.</s>CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accuses prominent opposition leader in exile of links to drone attack.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>CARACAS, Venezuela — Investigators hunting for assailants behind a failed attempt to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro with explosives-laden drones have raided hotels and seized vehicles while grilling six suspects for details of the plot.

Venezuela’s socialist government alleged Sunday that the detained suspects conspired with others in Miami and the capital of neighbouring Colombia, though they offered no specific evidence. Opposition leaders criticized Maduro for broadly singling out his political opponents, and they warned that he might use the attack to further suppress his critics.

The attack came as Venezuela is reeling from an economic and humanitarian crisis and Maduro has grown increasingly isolated. Foreign nations, including the United States, are slapping economic sanctions on a growing list of high-ranking Venezuelan officials and decrying his government as an autocratic regime.

Maduro and his allies called the attack direct proof that an international plot to overthrow his socialist administration exists, while also saying that the military’s response shows he still has the loyalty of Venezuela’s soldiers.

But analysts said the images broadcast live on television when the attack struck during a Maduro speech Saturday evening made him appear vulnerable.

“Seeing trained soldiers fleeing in apparent panic and disarray before an explosion strongly contrasts with the idea of monolithic control and loyalty of security forces that Maduro prides himself on,” the New York-based Torino Capital investment firm said.

Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, appearing on state television Sunday, said the attackers were trying to wipe out Venezuela’s entire top leadership along with Maduro.

Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said two drones, each packed with a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of C-4 plastic explosive, were flown toward Maduro, his wife and other top leaders as the president spoke to hundreds of troops during an event celebrating the 81st anniversary of the National Guard. One of the drones was intended to explode above Maduro and the other was to detonate directly in front of him, Reverol said.

The military managed to knock one of the drones off course electronically and the other craft crashed into an apartment building two blocks away, Reverol said.

“We have six terrorists and assassins detained,” he said. “In the next hours there could be more arrests.”

Reverol said two of those arrested had previous run-ins with the government, although he did not give their names. He said one took part in 2014 anti-governments protests that rocked Venezuela’s as it descended deeper into an economic crisis that is now worse than the Great Depression. The other had a warrant out for his arrest for participating in an attack on a military barracks, the interior minister said.

Investigators continued searching the blackened apartment building near the speech site, and authorities said officers also raided six hotels, where some of the suspects were arrested and “film” evidence was collected. Officials gave no details.

Two witnesses who live in nearby apartment buildings said they saw a drone hovering over a residential street Saturday evening and then heard an explosion.

One witness showed The Associated Press cellphone video of a drone crashing into a building. He said the drone fell to the ground and exploded, igniting a fire in an apartment.

Another witness, Mairum Gonzalez, described running in panic to her fifth-floor balcony, where she heard the second explosion and saw smoke rising.

“It was so strong the building shook,” she said. “It terrified me.”

In an address to the nation later Saturday night, a visibly shaken Maduro blamed the attack on the “far right,” and he called on U.S. President Donald Trump to hold the “terrorist group” accountable.

Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, said: “If the government of Venezuela has hard information that they want to present to us that would show a potential violation of U.S. criminal law, we’ll take a serious look at it.”

The Broad Front, a coalition of opposition groups in Venezuela, accused the government of making an allegation without proof.

“It’s evident that the initial reaction of the government isn’t aimed at attempting to clarify what happened but rather to take advantage of the situation and irresponsibly and sweepingly attack the ‘opposition,”‘ the group said in a statement.

A little-known group calling itself Soldiers in T-shirts claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it planned to fly two drones loaded with explosives at the president but soldiers shot them down. The authenticity of the message could not be independently verified, and the organization did not respond to a message from the AP.
• Venezuela’s former chief prosecutor wants President Nicolas Maduro investigated for crimes against humanity

“It was not successful today, but it is just a matter of time,” the group said in a tweet.

Venezuela’s government routinely accuses opposition activists of plotting to attack and overthrow Maduro. The former bus driver has moved steadily to consolidate power as the nation struggles to reverse hyperinflation that the International Monetary Fund projects could top 1 million per cent by year’s end.

Last year, amid deadly, near-daily protests, rogue police officer Oscar Perez flew a stolen helicopter over the capital and launched grenades at several government buildings. Perez and several comrades were killed in a gunbattle with police after more than six months at large.

Maduro said the attack left him convinced of the military’s support and undeterred in carrying forward the socialist revolution begun by the late Hugo Chavez.

“Venezuela will continue on the democratic, independent and socialist path,” Maduro said.

Analysts believe Maduro still holds the military’s support, but also said the attack was an embarrassment for a government that prides itself on control and invincibility.

“We continue to hold as our scenario one in which Maduro remains in power for coming years,” Torino Capital said in its analysis. “However, given the regime’s unpopularity and the depth of the country’s economic crisis, we believe it is important to monitor events that can become catalysts for broader protest movements leading to regime change.”

Associated Press writer Scott Smith reported this story in Caracas and AP writer Christine Armario reported from Miami.</s>President Nicolás Maduro survived a reported attack over the weekend — the latest of several recent plots against his government which is unpopular because of hyperinflation and food shortages.

In Venezuela, President Nicolas Maduro survived an apparent assassination attempt this weekend. It reportedly involved drones packed with explosives. Now, Maduro's government is deeply unpopular because of hyperinflation and food shortages. Reporter John Otis has more.

JOHN OTIS, BYLINE: Maduro was addressing National Guard troops at an outdoor ceremony in Caracas on Saturday when the attack occurred. State television captured the moment.

OTIS: Maduro's speech is interrupted by an explosion. Then sirens sound, and hundreds of troops can be seen running for cover. Bodyguards hustled Maduro to safety, but seven Venezuelan troops were injured. Hours later, Maduro again took to the airwaves.

OTIS: "This was a plot to kill me. Today, they tried to assassinate me," he said. On Sunday, Interior Minister Nestor Reverol provided more details.

OTIS: He said the attack was carried out by two commercial drones of the type used for filmmaking. Each was armed with explosives. Reverol said that one of the drones malfunctioned and hit an apartment building. The other, he said, was disabled by government signal-jamming technology and crashed. The government blamed far-right Venezuelans and neighboring Colombia, which has been fiercely critical of Maduro's increasingly authoritarian regime. Colombia denied involvement. Meanwhile, two shadowy groups claiming to be made up of Venezuelan military men took credit for Saturday's attack. Harold Trinkunas, a Venezuela expert at Stanford University, says this is a more likely explanation. He points out that Venezuela's military counterintelligence has stymied several larger coup plots.

HAROLD TRINKUNAS: So these kind of small uprisings that's we've seen in Venezuela or these attacks that can be mounted by just a few individuals, you know, flying drones are the kinds of things that you'd expect to see in a country where it's very hard to organize any other kind of resistance to the government.

OTIS: So far, the government says six people have been arrested. For NPR News, I'm John Otis.</s>BOGOTA/CARACAS (Reuters) - A former Venezuelan municipal police chief and anti-government activist says he helped organize an operation to launch armed drones over a military rally on Saturday that President Nicolas Maduro has called an assassination attempt.

In an interview, Salvatore Lucchese, a Venezuelan activist who was previously imprisoned for his role in past protests, told Reuters he orchestrated the attack with a loose association of anti-Maduro militants known generally in Venezuela as the “resistance.”

The “resistance” referred to by Lucchese is a diffuse collection of street activists, student organizers and former military officers. It has little formal structure, but is known in the country mostly for organizing protests in recent years in which demonstrators have clashed with police and soldiers.

Reuters could not independently verify Lucchese’s claims about the attack, in which drones flew over the rally in central Caracas. Explosives aboard the drones detonated, injuring seven military officers and sending attendees scurrying for cover.

Lucchese described the incident as part of a sustained, armed effort against Maduro. He declined to describe his precise role in the operation, in the broader resistance or identify others involved, citing the need to protect their identity.

“We had an objective and in the moment we were not able to materialize it 100 percent,” Lucchese said in an interview in Bogota, where he is traveling because of activities with other opposition figures. “The armed struggle will continue.”

Venezuela’s Information Ministry did not reply to a request for comment.

Earlier this year, Lucchese parted ways with Popular Will, a prominent opposition party, saying he disagreed with its continued dialogue with Maduro’s administration. The government is widely criticized for authoritarian tactics, human rights abuses and economic policies that have led to recession and malnutrition across the formerly prosperous Andean nation.

Juan Guaido, one of Popular Will’s national leaders, said Lucchese was expelled for “differences with the party and the national leadership” but did not elaborate further.

Guaido also told Reuters Popular Will rejects the use of violence, a position echoed by other mainstream opposition parties in the wake of the attack.

Maduro, who was chosen by late leftist President Hugo Chavez as the Socialist Party candidate to succeed him in 2013, often says Venezuela’s problems are the result of an “economic war” by enemies abroad, including the United States. He blamed the drone attack on right-wing opposition figures and foreign enablers, specifically citing the government of neighboring Colombia.

In a televised broadcast on Tuesday night, Maduro mentioned Lucchese and linked him to Colombia’s new right-wing president Ivan Duque.

“A former police boss of the Venezuelan right has been claiming responsibility for leading the attack. Today he was a special guest at the swearing-in of Colombia’s incoming president,” said Maduro.

Venezuela’s opposition said that lawmaker Juan Requesens and his sister Rafaela Requesens, a student leader, were arrested in their Caracas apartment on Tuesday night, following Maduro’s vow vowed to crack down on adversaries following the drone attack.

The Information Ministry did not respond to a request for comment on those alleged arrests either. Venezuelan authorities over the weekend arrested six people, including one suspect who had been detained for protests in 2014 and another wanted for involvement in a 2017 military base attack. The government said the drones carried plastic explosives detonated remotely.

Saturday’s blasts, which shook television footage from the rally and rattled nearby buildings, differed from previous suggestions by Maduro’s government of pending attacks against it. Maduro and top aides have spoken of foiled assassination and coup plots in the past, but provided little evidence for them.

Now, it remains unclear exactly how organized or equipped armed opponents may be.

A little-known group called the National Movement of Soldiers in T-Shirts over the weekend also claimed responsibility for the drone attack. It, too, describes itself as part of the “resistance.”

Lucchese declined to say whether he is associated with Soldiers in T-Shirts. A member of the group, who declined to be identified by name, in an exchange with Reuters via a messaging platform declined to comment on Lucchese.

The 52-year-old activist first drew attention after being jailed for ten months starting in 2014 for refusing to break up anti-Maduro protests. As police chief of the municipality of San Diego, in central Carabobo state, he disobeyed Interior Ministry orders to clear demonstrators, Lucchese said.

His account of the arrest and jail sentence is supported by a ruling on his conviction published by Venezuela’s Supreme Court at the time.

The government released Lucchese at the end of his sentence in February 2015, according to Lucchese and local media reports. Reuters could not find government documentation of his release.

Lucchese told Reuters he left Venezuela for an undisclosed location last August, after learning the government sought his arrest once more, this time for treason and inciting military rebellion. The warrant was widely reported by Venezuelan media in recent months, but Reuters was unable to review a copy of it.

Lucchese said he now resides abroad and continues to work with other anti-Maduro activists, stressing that armed resistance is the only way to topple Maduro. “No dictator leaves power peacefully,” he told Reuters.</s>CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - President Nicolas Maduro went on television Tuesday night to accuse one of Venezuela's most prominent opposition leaders of being linked to a weekend assassination attempt using drones.

Maduro said statements by several of the six suspects already arrested pointed to involvement by Julio Borges, an opposition leader living in exile in Colombia.

"Several of the declarations indicated Julio Borges. The investigations point to him," Maduro said, though he provided no details on Borges' alleged role.

Critics of Maduro's socialist government had said immediately following Saturday evening's attack that they feared the unpopular leader would use the incident as an excuse to round up opposition politicians amid widespread unrest over Venezuela's devastating economic collapse.

In the attack, two drones armed with explosives detonated near Maduro as he spoke outdoors during a military celebration. Images on live television showed Maduro and his wife looking up at the sky at one blast and then hundreds of soldiers scrambling.

Prosecutors have arrested six people who face charges of treason, attempted murder and terrorism.

The president also named opposition lawmaker Juan Requesens, seen in a video widely circulating on social media being arrested by Venezuela's political police force.

As elected lawmakers, Borges and Requesens enjoy immunity from prosecution under Venezuelan law. But Diosdado Cabello, the powerful socialist party leader and president of the National Constitutional Assembly, said in a tweet Tuesday that he plans to introduce legislation stripping lawmakers of this protection.

Maduro spoke for two hours from the Miraflores Presidential Palace in a presentation using polished videos showing suspects and images of the drones exploding.

He held up military hats worn by soldiers with holes in them from debris the explosion. Several soldiers seated in the audience had white bandages on their heads, apparently injured in the assassination attempt.

Maduro said he will provide the evidence to officials in the United States and Colombia and ask for their cooperation handing over suspects who helped orchestrate and finance the attack.

"I want to explain to the government of the United States and the government of Colombia in detail all the evidence that leads us to accomplices and direct responsible living in the state of Florida," Maduro said. "I trust in the good faith of Donald Trump."

In this photo provided by the Miraflores Presidential Palace, President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a event marking the 81st anniversary of the National Guard, in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, August 4, 2019. Venezuela's government says several explosions heard at a military event were an attempted attack on President Maduro. Information Minister Jorge Rodriguez said in a live broadcast that several drone-like devices with explosives detonated near the president. He said Maduro is safe and unharmed but that seven people were injured. (Miraflores Presidential Palace via AP)</s>Caracas: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Monday renewed his accusation against his Colombian counterpart, blaming him for what Caracas has called a drone “assassination” attempt on the Socialist leader over the weekend.

 In a video posted on Twitter shortly before midnight, the 55-year-old said police and the military had captured some of the conspirators and were now hunting the masterminds.

 “There is sufficient evidence of the participation of the outgoing Colombian government of president Juan Manuel Santos,” he added, promising to release proof “in the next few hours.”

 The allegation has worsened already fraught ties between Caracas and Bogota. Santos, who handed over power to elected successor Ivan Duque on Tuesday, has categorically denied it.

 A live broadcast of Saturday’s incident on Venezuelan state television showed Maduro interrupted in mid-speech by an explosion and looking up in confusion.

 Dozens of soldiers on parade are then seen breaking ranks and running away in panic.

 Maduro and his government said the president had been targeted by two flying drones carrying explosives. But details of the incident remain unclear, with conflicting information coming from various sources.

 The Maduro administration said Colombia had collaborated on the attack with the “ultra far-right” Venezuelan opposition, and it was financed by unnamed figures in the US state of Florida. No evidence was given to support the allegations. Thousands of exiled Venezuelans live in Colombia and in Florida.

 Maduro had been expected to address his supporters — most of them workers — who marched through Caracas in what would have been his first public appearance since Saturday’s incident. But he failed to show. The communications ministry did not explain his absence. — AFP
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro says that he has "hard evidence" that the Colombian government planned and executed an attempted assassination attack on him on Saturday, and that he will release it later in the day.