Venezuela death toll at 100; 132,000 soldiers to guard July 30 election
CARACAS, Venezuela — The death toll in Venezuela’s anti-government protests hit 100 Friday, as the public prosecutor confirmed three more people had died.
Demonstrators have been clashing with police and the national guard since April in protests against the government of Socialist President Nicolas Maduro amid the country’s worst-ever economic crisis.
The violence could escalate further, with thousands of soldiers set to guard voting stations at a contentious vote July 30 to elect the members of a body that will be tasked with rewriting the country’s constitution.
A coalition of opposition parties attempted to stop the government’s planned election of a 545-member constituent assembly by staging a 24-hour general strike Thursday.
The opposition has also called for voters to boycott the election.
Maduro's government plans to rewrite the constitution to assure a majority for the Socialists, who have ruled the country since 1999.
The armed forces plan to deploy 132,000 soldiers on election day to guard 14,515 voting stations across the country.
Venezuelans voted overwhelmingly against Maduro’s planned constitutional changes in a nonbinding referendum on Sunday.
Of the 7.1 million voters who cast ballots, 98.4 percent opposed Maduro’s plans. The turnout represented about one-third of the country's electorate.
President Donald Trump has threatened to impose sanctions on the crisis-ridden country if Maduro goes ahead with the planned constitutional changes.
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