Six people were detained Sunday after drone explosions were reported at Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s outdoor rally on Saturday, according to Venezuelan authorities.
“These terrorist acts represent a slap in the face to the expressed desire of the president of the Republic, Nicolas Maduro, for national reconciliation and dialogue,” Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said in a statement read on state television, Yahoo News reported.
Reverol said the suspects launched two drones that were carrying explosives. He said one drone was successfully “diverted” by security forces, while the other fell on its own and hit an apartment building.
Although the suspects were not named, Reverol said in a statement that one had an outstanding warrant for involvement in a 2017 attack on a military base that killed two people, and another was detained during anti-Maduro protests in 2014.
Yahoo reported that critics of Maduro warned that the socialist leader could use the incident to target his adversaries.
Maduro’s rally, which was held in Caracas, was meant to celebrate the National Guard.
Maduro was startled by the explosions, and state coverage of the speech showed soldiers rushing to cover him. Footage also showed soldiers running after a second blast.
Maduro later said the attack, which caused injury to seven soldiers, was an assassination attempt.
[John Bolton: US government played no part in drone attack against Venezuela’s Maduro]
