CNN
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Armed groups have seized a military post in central Bolivia and are holding more than 200 people hostage.
Bolivia’s military said on Friday that “irregular armed groups” had kidnapped soldiers and seized weapons and ammunition from a base near the central Bolivian city of Cochabamba. Bolivia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that more than 200 military personnel were taken hostage in the incident.
Bolivia’s President Luis Arce said the armed group was “aligned” with former President Evo Morales, but offered no evidence for the claim. CNN has reached out to Morales’ team for comment.
The military called on the group to leave the barracks “immediately and peacefully”, stressing that such actions would be “considered as treason against the state.”
The incident is the latest escalation of unrest in the South American country, where Mr Morales and Mr Arce are clashing ahead of elections in 2025.
In recent weeks, Morales’ supporters have blocked major highways across the country, including in Cochabamba, in reaction to the government’s disclosure of human trafficking charges against him. The blockade, which Bolivian police said involved “violent armed groups,” has caused food and fuel shortages in some cities.
Mr. Morales and the government have also traded accusations over an exchange in Cochabamba over the weekend.
Bolivian government minister Eduardo del Castillo claimed that the person in the car carrying Morales fired at police as he tried to evade a checkpoint set up to stop drug trafficking. The former president denies the charges and accuses the government of trying to orchestrate his assassination by shooting at his car.
CNN has reached out to the Bolivian government for further information about the events at the military base.
