Ruptly
"A joint operation by the Police and the Armed Forces of Bolivia to clear blockades in the town of San Julian in the department of Santa Cruz left at least two police officers injured by gunfire and dozens injured amid clashes with protesters who had closed a strategic route for the country's supply on Saturday. Footage shows riot officers, military personnel, and civilians from the Union Juvenil Crucenista (UJC) clashing with mobilised residents blocking the highway in San Julian, amidst tear gas, burning tyres, and motorcycles. Security forces intervened from the early hours of the morning to restore traffic on the key highway connecting Santa Cruz with Beni and western Bolivia. The Minister of Productive Development, Oscar Mario Justiniano Pinto, justified the intervention by stating that San Julian is a 'critical route' to ensure the supply of food, fuel, medicine, and oxygen between Santa Cruz, El Alto, and La Paz. "That is why a determination was made based on the critical evaluations that are currently available regarding supply […] and that is why a joint action between the Police and the Army has determined to enter this area," he commented. Justiniano warned that "radical groups, with purely political interests, have continued to persist," despite the government opening dialogue with different sectors in recent weeks to bring the blockades to an end. He also stated that the operation aims to 'recover the area', restore transitability, and allow the population of San Julian to resume transporting goods. The clashes occur amid protests and blockades that have affected different regions of Bolivia for the last five weeks. The mobilisations, demanding the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz, have left at least ten dead, 37 injured, and more than a hundred people prosecuted, according to the Ombudsman's Office. Seven people have reportedly died due to the inability or delay in accessing medical care because of the blockades, according to reports. "
Go to News Site
Daily Mail UK 
The Mirror 
BuzzFeed News 
GB News 
