Bolivia’s former leader Evo Morales said on Sunday his vehicle was hit by gunfire captured in a video, reflecting how political tensions between him and the Andean nation’s current president Luis Arce have turned violent.
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Arce in comments on social media called for an “immediate and thorough investigation” of the incident and condemned any use of violence in politics.
Morales posted a video on Facebook taken on Sunday morning from inside a moving car, showing him sitting in the front passenger seat and at least two bullet holes in the windscreen.
A statement from a Morales-aligned bloc of the socialist MAS political party, itself split in half with loyalties divided between Morales and Arce, said that his convoy was ambushed near a military barracks by two vehicles with heavily armed men dressed in black.
Video shared with Reuters showed a frantic chase, during which Morales switched cars and his driver was injured.
Reuters could not independently verify the contents of the video or the claims made by Morales and his allies.
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The incident took place at a time when Bolivia has already been gripped by tensions. Morales supporters have blocked key motorways for two weeks, impeding delivery of food and fuel around the country, and clashed with security forces trying to clear the obstacles. Arce’s government on Saturday accused Morales of “destabilising” the country and trying to “interrupt democratic order”.
In a radio interview after the incident, Morales said two vehicles intercepted him on the road and fired upon his car, saying a bullet passed “centimetres” from his head. The MAS statement said a bullet hit the arm of the second vehicle’s driver and another grazed his head.