Venezuela has seen a day of tumult and protests as the country's opposition leader Juan Guaido began what he described as the "final phase" of his plan to take wrest control of the Venezuelan government from president Nicolas Maduro.
The day of unrest began on Tuesday with Mr Guaido appearing in a video surrounded by troops who he said had put their weight behind the opposition leader's claim to leadership — a claim that Mr Guaido would make repeatedly throughout the day at several locations in Caracas.
As the day progressed, Mr Maduro described the effort to remove him from office as a "coup" dreamed up in Washington, and claimed that he had been assured of "total loyalty" to his cause by military leaders in the country. In a later interview, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo indicated that Mr Maduro was prepared to flee the country on Tuesday morning, but had been talked out of doing so by Russian officials.
But, as images and videos of violence broadcast around the world from Caracas, several officials in countries around the world weighed in on the events, including John Bolton, the national security adviser in the White House. Mr Bolton told reporters at the White House that no options had been taken off the table for the United States, including military action, even though a peaceful transfer of power was preferable.
During those remarks, Mr Bolton suggested that the Cuban government and military was propping up thee Maduro regime. Later, in a tweet, Mr Bolton tagged several senior aides to Mr Maduro to tell them "your time is up."
"This is your last chance," Mr Bolton wrote. "Accept Interim President Guaido's amnesty, protect the Constitution, and remove Maduro, and we will take you off our sanctions list. Stay with Maduro, and go down with the ship."
Back in Venezuela, Mr Guaido called for Venezuelans and the military to back him to end Mr Maduro's "usurpation", declaring: "The moment is now."
There is some expectation that demonstrations — which included reports of gunfire, and military vehicles driving into crowds of demonstrators — would last through the night and into Wednesday.
Welcome to The Independent's live coverage of what could prove a hugely significant day in Venezuela.
Opposition leader Juan Guaido has declared he has begun the "final phase" of his plan to oust president Nicolas Maduro, calling on his country's people and the military to back him to end Maduro's "usurpation."
We'll bring you the latest updates as this situation develops.
Here's the key information we know so far about the apparent coup attempt underway in Venezuela:
Venezuela’s Guaido says troops have joined him in 'final phase' of ending Maduro presidency
'The moment is now,' declares opposition leader as he appears in video surrounded by armed men in military uniformJuan Guaido's call for an uprising came in a video shot at a Caracas air base showing him surrounded by men in military inform and accompanied by opposition activist Leopoldo Lopez, who has been under house since 2014.
In the three-minute video shot early on Tuesday, Guaido said soldiers who took to the streets would be acting to protect Venezuela's constitution.
"The moment is now," he said. "The national armed forces have taken the correct decision, and they are counting on the support of the Venezuelan people."
However, Guaido's call for support from the military suggests he does not at this stage have the full support of his country's troops.
Venezuela's government has depicted the attempted uprising as a small coup attempt by military "traitors" working with right-wing opponents.
The country's defence minister said "normality" had been reported at military bases across the country.
Information minister Jorge Rodriguez, meanwhile, tweeted: "We inform the people of Venezuela at the moment we are confronting and deactivating a reduced group of military traitors who are positioning themselves in the Distribuidor Altamira [neighbourhood] to promote a coup d'etat against the constitution and the peace of the Republic.
"To this intent is added the putschist and murderous ultra right which announced its violent agenda months ago. We call on the people to maintain maximum alert so, together the glorious National Armed Bolivarian forces defeat the intent to mount a coup and preserve the peace. We will win."
Tear gas has been fired on a road near La Carlota air force base, where Juan Guaido gathered with some 70 men in military uniform, according Reuters.
US senator Marco Rubio, a Republican, has urged Venezuelans to take to the streets in support of Juan Guaido, who has been backed by Donald Trump's government:
Today's dramatic developments come ahead of protests against the Maduro presidency planned take place tomorrow.
Juan Guaido has said the protests would be "the largest march in Venezuela's history" and part of the "definitive phase" of his effort to take office in order to call fresh elections.
In January Guaido, who is the leader of Venezuela's opposition-controlled National Assembly, declared himself Venezuela's interim president and said Maduro's re-election in 2018 was illegitimate.
Around 50 countries including the United States have recognized Guaido as Venezuela's interim president, but Maduro clung on the power since.
Guaido has been traveling outside the capital, Caracas, more and more in recent weeks to try to put pressure on him to step down.
Maduro calls Guaido a US-backed puppet who seeks to oust him in a coup. The government has arrested his top aide, stripped Guaido of his parliamentary immunity and opened multiple probes. It has also barred him from leaving the country, a ban Guaido openly violated earlier this year.
Last week, Guaido said his congressional ally - opposition politician Gilber Caro - had been detained, and that 11 members of his team had been summoned to appear before Venezuela's Sebin intelligence agency.
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido has taken to the streets with a small contingent of heavily-armed soldiers and opposition activist Leopoldo Lopez, who has been freed by the military.
"This is the moment of all Venezuelans, those in uniform and those who aren't," said Lopez in his first public appearance since being detained in 2014 for leading anti-government protests. "Everyone should come to the streets, in peace."
Venezuela's socialist party leader, Diosdado Cabello, has called on government supporters to amass at the presidential palace to defend Nicolas Maduro from what he says is a small uprising of traitorous military soldiers backed by the US
Cabello downplayed the significance of the rebellion, saying Caracas was calm and that the Carlota air base near where the rebellious soldiers are gathered had not been infiltrated.
The father of freed Venezuelan opposition activist Leopoldo Lopez says he is expecting a military and public response following the release of his son in Caracas.
"We are going to see a national call to people and the military to end the usurpation and, well, I hope that the usurpation government will end today," Leopoldo Lopez, Sr, told Associated Press in phone interview from the United States.
His son had been under house arrest for leading an anti-government push in 2014 but has today been freed by the military.
His father, who lives in Spain and has become a prominent voice of the Venezuelan opposition in exile, said that the military were obeying a presidential pardon issued by Juan Guaido, who is leading the opposition against the government of Nicolas Maduro.
The elder Lopez, who is running for a seat in the European Parliament at the end of May, said he couldn't comment on whether today's developments had been coordinated with the United States or other countries that have backed Guaido.
Venezuela's government has insisted it is firmly in country despite Juan Guaido's claims to have secured military support for a coup.
Defense minister Vladimir Padrino said armed forces remained "firmly in defence of the national constitution and legitimate authorities," and that all military units across Venezuela "report normality" in their barracks and bases.
"We reject this coup movement, which aims to fill the country with violence," he added.
Spain's acting government has called for a bloodless and peaceful transition to a democratic presidential election in Venezuela.
Government spokeswoman Isabel Celaa said Madrid was following closely developments in Caracas, where the opposition has called for Venezuelans to take to the streets to oust Nicolas Maduro from power.
"We hope with all of our strength that there is no bloodshed. We support a peaceful democratic process in Venezuela. We support the immediate holding of an election for a new president," Celaa during a routine press briefing this afternoon.
Spain has recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela but has not cut ties with Maduro's government.
More than 177,000 Spaniards live in Venezuela, and Spain has become a destination for thousands of Venezuelans escaping the political and economic crisis in recent years.
Celaa said Guaido has "legitimacy to lead democratic transition in Venezuela" and "represents the alternative".
She added acting Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez, who is currently weighing up a government in his own country, was closely monitoring events.
A US-based Venezuelan TV channel has broadcast footage of what it says is troops joining in support of Juan Guaido.
The footage appears to show a crowd applauding armed soldiers as they step over a wall to join them.
Opposition activist Leopoldo Lopez escaped house arrest with the help of guards from Venezuela's intelligence service, according to reports:
US-based channel TV Venezuela Noticias has tweeted footage showing soldiers and guns set up on a bridge in Caracas. There are also boxes of bananas, suggesting the troops are anticipating being stationed there for the long haul:
Guaido supporters in Caracas are attempting to convince solders at La Carlota military base to join them - and are being tear-gassed in response, according to Bloomberg reporter Andy Rosati:
US president Donald Trump has been informed of developments in Caracas and is "monitoring the ongoing situation", White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has said.
Trump's administration has lent support to Juan Guaido, who the president recognised as Venezuela's interim president in January.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has discussed the ongoing military uprising in Venezuela with his top security body, according to the Kremlin.
Russian news agencies quoted spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying that Putin had raised the current developments in Venezuela during his scheduled meeting with the Security Council.
Peskov said that the meeting "paid significant attention to the news reports about a coup attempt in that country." He did not elaborate further.
US national security adviser John Bolton has backed Juan Guaido's call for support for an uprising to oust Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro.
In a tweet addressed to Venezuela's defence minister, he said that FANB - the country's armed forces - "should stand by the National Assembly", of which Guaido is the leader:
Thanks for reading along as we watched the situation in Venezuela
