CARACAS: At least eight people have been killed, 137 wounded and more than 100 detained in the protests shaking Venezuela, officials said Friday, confirming a jump in the death toll.
Four of the victims died in Caracas, three from gunshot wounds during a massive anti-government student and opposition protest on February 12 that led to clashes between protesters, security forces and illegal pro-government Chavista militias, Attorney General Luisa Ortega said.
"There are a total of 137 people injured and eight deaths," she said on her radio show, noting that some of the deaths took place during incidents parallel to the protests.
Among the injured, 100 are civilians and the rest are from the security forces.
In the north-central state of Carabobo, a young beauty queen was shot in the head during opposition protests and a prosecutor died after crashing his car while trying to evade a roadblock set up by protesters.
Ortega also said a student was run over in the northeastern state of Sucre while protesting against the government, while a worker was shot from a building in north-central Lara while clearing debris from a street.
She said the deaths and other violence is being investigated and that there were currently 104 detainees, including 80 who are due to face prosecutors later Friday and another 24 in custody.
Investigators were also examining the case of a young man allegedly "raped with a gun" after being arrested in Carabobo's capital, Valencia.
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