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US ambassador targeted in Venezuela veggie attack

"They were pounding on the cars, including pounding on the ambassador's car while they were driving. There was no one stopping them."

Brian Penn, US Embassy spokesman

The US ambassador to Venezuela has grown used to facing protests and shouts of "Yankee go home!," but supporters of President Hugo Chavez appeared to cross the line when they pelted his car with eggs and tomatoes, then chased after his convoy on motorcycles.

The incident on Friday drew a strong response from Washington, which summoned Venezuela's ambassador and warned him of "severe diplomatic consequence" if anything similar should happen again.

US Embassy spokesman Brian Penn said Venezuelan police escorts did nothing to intervene as a car carrying Ambassador William Brownfield was pounded, kicked and pelted. No one was hurt.

"We were under attack by these motorcyclists throwing fruits and vegetables," Penn said. "They were pounding on the cars, including pounding on the ambassador's car while they were driving. There was no one stopping them."

It was the third time in three weeks that Brownfield has been met by protesters; other times, demonstrators have burned tires and torched an American flag.

Emotions have run high among Chavez's supporters as the Venezuelan leader has accused the US of plotting against him and US officials have denied it while accusing him of stifling democracy.

The latest protest began when Brownfield visited a baseball stadium in a poor neighborhood to hand out bats and other donated equipment for a youth league.

He often holds public events to donate to charities and meet community leaders -- even in Chavez strongholds.

This time, a Chavez supporter who described himself as an official of the mayor's office walked up and said people in the area wanted Brownfield to leave, Penn said. The ambassador stayed and finished the event, while a few dozen people outside chanted, "Go home! Go home!"

Penn said the barrage of tomatoes, eggs, onions and other items began when the convoy pulled out and drove through an adjacent market.

The US Embassy released a video taken from inside a convoy car, its windows splattered with broken eggs, showing motorcyclists racing up to the four-car convoy and then dropping back.

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