The Venezuelan military suppressed an attack on an army base by anti-government soldiers and civilians near the city of Valencia early on Monday, Reuters reported. Two attackers were killed in the operation, one wounded and seven captured, reported AP. However, Reuters put the number of captured attackers at eight, quoting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Another 10 attackers escaped.

In a televised address, Maduro, who won a controversial referendum on July 31, condemned the attackers as “mercenaries”. “We know where they are headed and all of our military and police force is deployed.” He said he would seek maximum punishment for the “terrorists”. “Those who escaped are being actively searched for, and we are going to capture them.”

Maduro claimed that 20 men had entered the military base at night, and managed to reach the base’s weapons depot before an alarm sounded. He said 10 of the intruders escaped carrying ammunition with them. Those left behind fought the soldiers until 8 am, when all of them had been killed or captured, the president said. “Today, we had to defeat terrorism with bullets,” Maduro claimed.

Former Venezuelan National Guard captain Juan Carlos Caguaripano apparently led the attack. A Youtube video showed a man who identified himself as Caguaripano, calling for the immediate formation of a transitional government in the country. “This is not a coup d’etat. This is a civic and military action to re-establish constitutional order. But more than that, it is to save the country from total destruction.”

Crisis in Venezuela

Venezuela is facing a crisis, as several countries including the US have criticised it for its most recent election, which sough to establish a Constituent Assembly to give more power to Maduro’s government. Though the government won the vote, the company that conducted voting had said the referendum was fixed.