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Troops That Defied Maduro Have Fled Venezuela

Associated Press

   MIAMI - For seven nerve-wracking months, they slept through the day in
   cramped quarters on cold floors, while spending their nights in prayer,
   keeping fit with dumbbells made from water jugs and peering through the
   diplomatic compound's curtains for fear of surveillance.

   But on Monday, 16 national guardsmen who shocked Venezuela and the
   world alike by revolting against President Nicolas Maduro were safely
   out of the country, having successfully fled the Panamanian embassy in
   Caracas that had been their makeshift home since April.

   The Associated Press spoke exclusively to the group's leaders, who
   provided the first detailed account of what led them to plot with
   Maduro's opponents in an uprising that laid bare fraying support for
   the socialist leader within the armed forces.

   Due to security concerns, lieutenant colonels Illich Sanchez and Rafael
   Soto wouldn't reveal exactly when or how they left Venezuela. They only
   said they journeyed in small groups as part of a clandestine "military
   operation" that counted with the support of dozens of low-ranking
   troops and their commanders.

   "We left Venezuela but our fight to restore Venezuela's democracy will
   continue,'' said Sanchez in a phone interview from an undisclosed
   location.

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