{{Unreferenced, date=September 2021 1960

On 24 June 1960 there was an assassination attempt against

Venezuelan Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

President

Rómulo Betancourt Rómulo Ernesto Betancourt Bello (22 February 1908 – 28 September 1981; ), known as "The Father of Venezuelan Democracy", was the president of Venezuela, serving from 1945 to 1948 and again from 1959 to 1964, as well as leader of Acción De ...

, ordered by the Dominican dictator

Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina ( , ; 24 October 189130 May 1961), nicknamed ''El Jefe'' (, "The Chief" or "The Boss"), was a Dominican dictator who ruled the Dominican Republic from February 1930 until his assassination in May 1961. He ser ...

Background

Betancourt had denounced the dictatorship of the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

Rafael Trujillo Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina ( , ; 24 October 189130 May 1961), nicknamed ''El Jefe'' (, "The Chief" or "The Boss"), was a Dominican dictator who ruled the Dominican Republic from February 1930 until his assassination in May 1961. He ser ...

. In turn, Trujillo had developed an obsessive personal hatred of Betancourt and supported many plots by Venezuelan exiles to overthrow him. The Venezuelan government took its case against Trujillo to the

Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS; es, Organización de los Estados Americanos, pt, Organização dos Estados Americanos, french: Organisation des États américains; ''OEA'') is an international organization that was founded on 30 April ...

, turning to diplomacy first over armed response to resolve the political conflict. This infuriated Trujillo, who ordered his foreign agents to assassinate Betancourt in

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

Attempt

After multiple failed attempts stopped by Trujillo's allies against his wishes. On 24 June 1960, an incendiary

car bomb A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles. Car bombs can be roughly divided ...

placed in a parked vehicle was detonated as Betancourt's presidential car drove by Paseo Los Próceres, one of the main avenues of

. Betancourt was badly burned in the assassination attempt, the driver was severely injured and his head of security was killed.

Reactions

The assassination attempt shocked the country. Betancourt walked out of the hospital in front of photographers, with both burned hands wrapped in bandages. Photos of a wounded but living Betancourt were distributed around the world as proof he survived. The incident elevated him in the eyes of the public opinion and helped to destroy one of his most stern Caribbean enemies at the same time.

Background

Attempt

Reactions

See also