Venezuelan military officers, blaming President Hugo Chavez for the deaths of at least 10 people in an anti-Chavez protest that was broken up with violence, forced him to resign yesterday and ushered in a transition government led by a civilian business chief.
The dramatic events in the world's fourth-biggest oil exporter sent shock waves through oil and debt markets and ended the turbulent three-year rule of one of the most colorful and controversial leaders on the international scene.
"The country is entering a new stage," said Pedro Carmona, the president of Venezuela's leading business association Fedecamaras, who was named to head a transition government to lead the country to new elections. He pledged to maintain a democratic, pluralist system and the rule of law.
Chavez, a 47-year-old firebrand and former paratrooper, resigned early yesterday under pressure from senior armed forces officers who had lost patience with his confrontational leadership style and left-wing populist politics.
The final straw was the killing on Thursday by suspected pro-Chavez gunmen of at least 10 people in violence that erupted during a huge protest march in downtown Caracas calling for the resignation of the president.
The final toll was expected to rise as bodies were still being picked up from the streets of Caracas overnight, officials said.
The streets were quiet yesterday as citizens digested the events of the night and the day before.
In the first world reaction to the ouster, the US and EU presidents called for democracy to be maintained in Latin America's fourth-biggest economy.
"We are following very closely what's happening. Our interests are in democracy and democratic institutions," a US State Department official, traveling with Secretary of State Colin Powell in the Middle East, said.
Chavez was placed in military custody to await possible trial and senior officers from all branches of the military -- Army, Navy, Air Force and National Guard -- announced the formation of a transition government led by Carmona.
"We are going to start the process of transition straight away today," General Luis Camacho Kairuz, who had served as vice-minister for security under Chavez, said.
He and Carmona pledged that those responsible for what they called Thursday's "terrible cri-mes," in which more than 100 people were injured, would be brought to justice.
The military move against Chavez followed scenes of bloody and chaotic violence in Caracas on Thursday in which rooftop snipers opened fire against tens of thousands of anti-Chavez protesters, sending panic-stricken people diving for cover.
Chavez, wearing a camouflage uniform and a red paratrooper's beret, left the Mira-flores presidential palace early yesterday and was driven away in a black government car to armed forces headquarters in Caracas, witnesses said.
A small group of aides and supporters applauded as Chavez left, accompanied by two ministers. But he arrived head bowed and grim-faced at Fuerte Tiuna military headquarters.
"The president was asked to resign from his post and he accepted," outgoing armed forces chief General Lucas Rincon told a news conference broadcast live on national television.
"Have faith in your armed forces," Rincon said. He appealed to the Venezuelan people to stay calm and avoid violence.
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