Troops quell rebel revolt

SOLDIERS battled for three hours yesterday against a small band of anti-government fighters who snuck onto a Venezuelan army base, apparently intent on inciting an uprising, President Nicolas Maduro said.

Troops killed two of the intruders, wounded another and captured seven, but 10 others got away, the embattled leader announced in his weekly broadcast on state television.

The incident happened at the Paramacay base in the central city of Valencia. Nearby residents said they heard bursts of gunfire about 4.30am.