VENEZUELA GOVERNMENT SAYS IT THWARTED PLOT SEEKING TO KILL MADURO

Caracas, Venezuela — Venezuelan officials said Wednesday they foiled a plot to overthrow the government that included assassinating President Nicolás Maduro and his closest political allies. Maduro spokesman Jorge Rodríguez said on state television that a network of mostly retired police officers and soldiers planned to bomb a key government building, seize a Caracas air base and loot Venezuela’s central bank. He also said the plotters wanted to edge opposition leader Juan Guaidó from Venezuela’s political landscape. The government has claimed various plots over the years, generally offering little or no evidence to back its claims.