BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Hundreds of thousands of Argentines gathered in Buenos Aires on Friday to show solidarity with Argentina’s vice president after she survived an assassination attempt.
A man with a pistol tried to open fire on Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner on Thursday but was unsuccessful as the gun did not detonate.
Authorities have yet to establish the assailant’s motive.
A crowd of supporters of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner invaded the Plaza de Mayo on Friday evening, near the Pink House, the seat of Argentine executive power, to express their solidarity. Unions and activists were also on site.
Leaders and political allies from Latin America, the United States and Pope Francis denounced the attack.
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, the country’s presidency from 2007 to 2015, is a controversial political figure. She faces a 12-year prison sentence and possible life exclusion from the public service in a case concerning public contracts awarded in the early 2000s.
(Report David Alire Garcia, Lucila Sigal and Miguel Lo Bianco; French version Camille Raynaud)