Venezuelan government rejects tear gas attack on TV station

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
The Venezuelan government on Sunday condemned a tear gas attack last week at the studios of an opposition-aligned TV station. Information Minister Jesse Chacon said President Hugo Chavez's government "categorically rejects" violent acts such as Thursday's incident, when two people on a motorcycle threw the tear gas canister at the Caracas television station Globovision. According to Reporters Without Borders, a radical pro-Chavez group known as "La Piedrita," or "The Little Stone," has claimed responsibility. The canister detonated on the roof of the Globovision building, which was evacuated after the gas wafted down an air duct. The Paris-based media watchdog urged a quick and thorough probe to discourage further attacks. Chavez has often clashed with Globovision, but Chacon said Sunday that any protests should be peaceful and not interfere with the work of the station's employees. Chacon also called for a swift investigation.