CARACAS: Two leading Venezuelan opposition figures were wounded in anti-government protests Monday, as demonstrators vowed to intensify pressure on President Nicolas Maduro and against his plans to hold a constitutional assembly.
Henrique Capriles, a former opposition presidential candidate, said he and his team were beaten by National Guard troops as they left a rally that had been broken up by tear gas.
"They cornered us, they beat us... They robbed us all. They took my team's watches, radios, gas masks. When I asked them 'What's wrong with you?' their reaction was to give me a blow to the face. Did they want to kill us?" he told reporters.
Separately, lawmaker Carlos Paparoni was wounded when he was struck on the head by a tear gas canister.
Protesters wearing masks and helmets hurled stones and fuel bombs at riot police as they tried to march downtown along a major highway in Caracas toward the government ombudsman's office.
Police, who were blocking the road, responded by firing tear gas, water cannon and buckshot.
According to the opposition 257 people were wounded in Monday's protests, the first since a weekend announcement of stepped-up pressure on Maduro.
The MUD opposition alliance has not given details of what such increased pressure will involve. But Capriles has said they are considering strikes or long-term street sitdowns.
Capriles said demonstrators on Tuesday would march to the Ministry of Interior, in the heart of Caracas, to reject government "repression."
Supporters of Maduro marched in another part of the capital.
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