Bolivian police have arrested General Juan José Zúñiga, the leader of an attempted coup.
This happened just hours after soldiers stormed the presidential palace in La Paz, with hundreds of troops and armoured vehicles gathering in Murillo Square, where many important government buildings are located.
One armoured vehicle tried to break down the entrance to the presidential palace. The soldiers later left the city.
Gen. Zúñiga, who led the coup, said he wanted to “restructure democracy” and that he respected President Luis Arce “for now,” but there would be a change in government. He was arrested moments after telling reporters that the military acted at the president’s request.
Gen. Zúñiga, appointed as the Bolivian Army commander in 2022, was removed from his role on Tuesday after making controversial comments about former President Evo Morales.
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In dramatic footage from inside the presidential palace, President Arce was seen confronting Gen. Zúñiga, ordering him to stand down. Loud bangs could be heard as they spoke, surrounded by aides, journalists, and armoured police officers.
Earlier, President Arce condemned the coup attempt, and called on the public to support democracy, stating, “We cannot allow once again coup attempts to take Bolivian lives.”
Pro-democracy demonstrators took to the streets in support of the government. President Arce announced new military commanders, confirming Gen. Zúñiga’s dismissal after criticizing Mr. Morales.
Mr. Morales also condemned the coup attempt and called for criminal charges against Gen. Zúñiga and his “accomplices.”
The public prosecutor’s office has started a criminal investigation, and Vice-Admiral Juan Arnez Salvador, head of the Bolivian Navy, has also been arrested.
The exact reasons behind Gen. Zúñiga’s coup attempt remain unclear. On Monday, he vowed to arrest Mr. Morales if he ran for office again, despite the former president being barred from doing so.
Mr. Morales was forced out of office in 2019 by military chiefs who accused him of trying to manipulate the presidential election result, leading to his exile in Mexico.
After troops took over Murillo Square, Gen. Zúñiga accused an “elite” of taking over the country and destroying it. Just before his arrest, he claimed that President Arce instructed him to deploy armored vehicles to boost his popularity. He was then quickly arrested and taken away.
Opposition senator Andrea Barrientos suggested that an economic and judicial crisis led Mr. Arce to launch a “self-coup.” Bolivia is currently facing significant economic challenges, including a shortage of US dollars.
“The government has a lot of questions to answer to the people of Bolivia, and they need to explain this situation very well,” Ms Barrientos added. “We will say that we need a deep investigation about this situation,” Ms. Barrientos said.
