Venezuelans clash with police after disputed election result

Security forces in Venezuela have fired tear gas and rubber bullets at people protesting Sunday?s disputed election result.

Thousands of people descended on central Caracas on Monday evening, some walking for miles from slums on the mountains surrounding the city, towards the presidential palace.

Protests erupted in the Venezuelan capital the day after President Nicol?s Maduro claimed victory.

The opposition has disputed Mr Maduro’s declaration as fraudulent, saying that after reviewing 73.2% of the voting tallies, it was clear that its candidate, Edmundo Gonz?lez, had won convincingly.

Opinion polls ahead of the election suggested a clear victory for the challenger.

Opposition parties had united behind Mr Gonz?lez in an attempt to unseat President Maduro after 11 years in power, amid widespread discontent over the country’s economic crisis.

A heavy military and police presence was on the streets of Caracas with the aim of trying to disperse protesters and prevent them from approaching the presidential palace.

Crowds of people chanted ?freedom, freedom!? and called for the government to fall.

Footage showed tyres burning on highways and large numbers of people on the streets, with police on motorbikes firing tear gas.

In some areas, posters of President Maduro were ripped down and burned while tyres, cars and rubbish were also set alight.

Armed police, military and left-wing paramilitaries who are sympathetic to the government clashed with protesters and blocked off many roads around the city centre.

Venezuela’s government also announced a temporary suspension of commercial air flights to and from Venezuela with Panama and the Dominican Republic starting from 20:00 local time on Wednesday.

In a speech on Venezuelan state television, Mr Maduro said it is his “obligation to tell you the truth”.

“We are all under the obligation to listen the truth, to gear up with patience, calmness and strength because we are familiar with this movie and we know how to face these situations and how to defeat the violent.?

The BBC spoke to a number of people who attended one protest in a densely-populated area known as La Lucha, meaning ?the fight?.

Paola Sarzalejo, 41, said the vote was ?terrible, fraud. We won with 70%, but they did the same thing to us again. They took the elections from us again.

?We want a better future for our youth, for our country.”

Her father Miguel, 64, agreed, saying: ?He lost the elections, he has no right to be there right now.?

He added: ?We want a better future for the youth because if not they will leave the country. One where they can work well and earn well. We have a rich country and he is destroying everything.

?If the youth all leave, only old people will be left in Venezuela, only senior citizens.? (BBC)