VALENCIA, Venezuela (AP) — The masked gunmen emerged from a group of several dozen motorcycle-mounted government loyalists who were attempting to dismantle a barricade in La Isabelica, a working-class district of Valencia that has been a center of unrest since nationwide protests broke out last month.

The barricades’ defenders had been hurling rocks, sticks and other objects at the attackers, who included perhaps a dozen armed men, witnesses told The Associated Press.

Recommended Stories

Venezuelan government reasserts control over Caracas after Maduro arrest

In Venezuela, the colectivos’ threat to Juan Guaido is growing

Venezuela’s street barricades a deadly protest