Venezuelan protest strife adds two deaths

CARACAS, Venezuela — A day that began with largely peaceful protests against Venezuela’s socialist government took a violent turn Monday as fierce clashes between state security and demonstrators killed at least two people.

Thousands of protesters hauled folding chairs, beach umbrellas and coolers onto main roads across Venezuela Monday for a 12- hour “sit- in against the dictatorship,” the latest in a month and a half of street demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro that have left dozens dead.

Protests in Caracas remained mostly tranquil, but outside the capital demonstrators clashed with police and national guardsmen. In the western state of Tachira near Venezuela’s border with Colombia, two men were reported dead in separate demonstrations: Luis Alviarez, 18, and Diego Hernandez, 33.

Elsewhere in Tachira, demonstrators threw rocks and set an armored truck on fire. Several buildings were set ablaze, and dozens of people were injured.

In the central state of Carabobo, three officers were shot, including one left in critical condition after being struck in the head, authorities said. In Lara, a vehicle ran over three protesters.

The violence added to mounting bloodshed as Venezuela’s opposition vows to step up near- daily demonstrations and as Maduro shows no intention of conceding to opposition demands. More than three- dozen people have been killed, hundreds injured and as many as 2,000 detained in nearly seven weeks of protests.

Opposition leaders demand immediate presidential elections. Polls show the majority of Venezuelans want Maduro gone as violent crime soars and the country falls into economic ruin.

The European Union is also calling for Venezuelan elections. EU foreign ministers said Monday that “violence and the use of force will not resolve the crisis in the country.”