Footage posted on Evo Morales’ social media account shows shots being fired at his car.
A video published on former Bolivian President Evo Morales’ Facebook page on Sunday suggests he survived an assassination attempt. Reports indicate the politician was unharmed in the attack, though his driver is said to have been injured.
A four-minute video taken from inside Morales’ vehicle starts with him sitting in the front seat next to his driver and talking on the phone. Later, the clip reveals visible bullet holes in the vehicle’s windscreen. The driver appears to have blood on his head but is apparently still capable of driving. The rear windshield is nearly shattered by the bullets.
According to Morales himself, roughly 14 shots were fired at the car.
The caption explains the former president was about to begin his usual Sunday routine when his vehicle was intercepted by two cars in the central Bolivian town of Shinahota early in the morning. Four hooded individuals dressed in black emerged from the cars and opened fire on the ex-president’s vehicle, it claims.
Another video was published on the politician’s Facebook page shortly after the post about the incident. It showed him sitting and delivering a speech using a microphone. Morales appeared visibly unharmed in the footage.
Bolivian authorities have not yet commented on the incident.
Morales served as the South American nation’s president between 2006 and 2019 for three consecutive terms. In 2019, he was ousted in a coup that brought the government of Senator Jeanine Anez to power. Anez is currently serving a prison sentence for crimes committed by her regime during its deadly crackdown on mass protests following the power shift.
Since 2020, Bolivia has been led by President Luis Arce, a former ally of Morales. The two have recently disagreed over the future of their political force, the Movement for Socialism. However, the former president condemned a coup attempt against Arce in June.
Morales is believed to have faced another assassination attempt during his first presidential term in 2009. At that time, Bolivian media reported about security services neutralizing what was called a “terrorist group” plotting to kill the then-leader and his vice president. Three members of the group were killed and two more arrested. They were identified as Romanian, Hungarian, Irish, Bolivian and Colombian nationals.