(Photo : Photo by Luis ROBAYO / AFP) (Photo by LUIS ROBAYO/AFP via Getty Images)
Authorities arrested the suspect who held Argentine Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner at gunpoint in an alleged failed assassination attempt. Several lawmakers were quick to denounce the incident and called for an immediate response.
Authorities have arrested the suspect in a failed assassination attempt of Argentine Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner after the man held the official at gunpoint in Buenos Aires on Thursday.
A video of the incident showed the vice president outside of her home smiling as she walked by a crowd of people. The suspect then surges forward, pointing a gun at Kircher's face, and apparently attempting to take a shot. No bullets were fired and the two-time former president flinched backward, unharmed.
Failed Assassination Attempt
Officials quickly took the attacker into custody after a few seconds of confusion and panic. Telam, Argentina's official news agency, identified the suspect as a Brazilian national, later updating his name to Fernando Andre Sabag Montiel.
In a statement, the Argentine Ministry of Security confirmed that the weapon used in the incident was a .380 firearm that had bullets inside. On Thursday evening, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez said in a televised address that Kirchner was alive for some reason that they could not confirm at the time, as per CNN.
The president called the assassination attempt an attack on the country's democracy, saying that they must eradicate hate and violence from the media and political discourse. Fernandez declared Friday a national holiday for the country to rally together in support of Kirchner.
In a statement, former Argentine President Mauricio Macri also renounced the attack on Kirchner on Thursday, calling for an "immediate and profound clarification by the justice system and the security forces."
According to Axios, the incident comes as Kirchner has become embroiled in a corruption case and supporters have been rallying outside her home since prosecutors last week requested a 12-year sentence.
Violence and Democracy
Argentine Economy Minister Sergio Massa posted on Twitter that when hate and violence prevail over the debate of ideas, they are able to destroy societies and generate situations such as the failed assassination attempt on Kirchner.
Security Minister Anibal Fernandez provided details about the incident but noted that he was careful in providing information during the ongoing investigation of the incident. The unverified video of the attack showed the suspect's pistol almost touching the vice president's face.
Several ministers in the president's government have issued a news release saying that they "energetically condemn the attempted homicide" of Kirchner. The release read, "What happened tonight is of extreme gravity and threatens democracy, institutions, and the rule of law."
The incident comes as tensions have been running high in the upper-class Recoleta neighborhood since the weekend, at the time when the vice president's supporters clashed with police in the streets surrounding her apartment amid an effort by law enforcement to clear the area, USA Today reported.
During his address, President Fernandez said, "We can disagree, we can have deep disagreements, but hate speech cannot take place because it breeds violence and there is no chance of violence coexisting with democracy."
Another video of the incident seems to show people in the crowd trying to block Kirchner from the suspected gunman when the weapon was pointed at her face. Police also said that a weapon was found a few meters from the scene after the suspect was arrested.
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