AP Photo
A woman with her mouth covered stands before a line of National Bolivarian Police preventing protesters from reaching the national intelligence agency in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014. Her sign reads in Spanish "Freedom of expression. It's yours. Defend it." As newspapers have been beset for years by currency controls that make it difficult to import supplies, the situation has turned critical as reserves of newsprint have fallen to an all-time low, according to Venezuelan Press Block, which represents the nation's broadsheets. (AP Photo/Alejandro Cegarra)
"I've had enough," said angry Maduro, who has held a wobbly grip on power since he replaced late-President Hugo Chavez last year. "You can accuse me of what you want, I am obliged to defend democracy and the peace of the people."
Two days later and the protests have turned violent. When the whole thing started, there were simply a few hundred protesters - mostly students - in cities around the country. Those students called for others to join them today when the country celebrates 'Youth Day', a holiday that commemorates students who participated in the struggle for Venezuelan Independence in the 19th century.
Now people are out in the streets by the thousands. The word in the Twitterverse is that helicopters fly overhead as armed motorists supporting the government ride through the streets.
"I am in Caracas and there are fallen students in the streets and the media isn't saying anything," says one Twitter user.
Reuters is reporting one protester dead. National Assembly head Diosdado Cabello, an ally of Maduro's, said that the deceased was a government supporter.
"He's a comrade assassinated by the right-wing fascist hordes," he said in a speech.
Maduro has called the protesters "a Nazi-fascist" current.
Careful with the picture below, it's not for the faint of heart.
AP Photo A student shot in the head is carried by other protesters inside a Police vehicle in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2014. Thousands of Venezuelans opposed to President Nicolas Maduro took to the streets in Caracas in a show of force following two weeks of sometimes violent anti-government protests that have swept across the country. (AP Photo/Alejandro Cegarra)