Uprising Ends In Nicaragua

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31277, 25 January 1967, Page 13

Uprising Ends In Nicaragua

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

MANAGUA (Nicaragua), Jan. 24. A bloody uprising ended tonight after anti-Government forces agreed to release 89 North Americans held as hostages in a hotel converted into a small fortress.

National guardsmen with tanks had surrounded the hotel where the rebels retreated in the final phase of the 24-hour rebellion.

At least 21 people were killed, including three National Guardsmen, in the battle which followed a political opposition rally yesterday afternoon. More than 100 people were unofficially reported wounded. The fighting put a cloud over the Presidential elections scheduled for next month.

The candidacy of General Anastasio Somoza, son of the late dictator whose family has ruled the country for more than 30 years, generated intense opposition. The campaign has been marked by frequent clashes between supporters of Somoza, who heads the Liberal Party ticket, and followers of Fernando Aguero of the Conservative Party.

At the rally and demonstration yesterday, Aguero called for a general strike to “demand electoral guarantees” for the voting on February

5. The Opposition had also tried to get the elections postponed.

According to United States Embassy sources, the Opposition leaders agreed to release the North Americans if the anti-Government forces in the hotel were permitted to leave freely. The sources said the Government agreed to the proposal. Embassy sources also said they had received a telephoned threat that the North Americans would be shot if any harm came to the rebels.