Machurucuto Incident

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Machurucuto Incident


caption
date=May 8, 1967 - May 11, 1967
place=Machurucuto, 70 Miles East of Caracas, Venezuela
result=Victory for the Republic of Venezuela
combatant1=ns trained by Cuba
combatant2=.
strength1=12
strength2=200-300?
casualties1=10 Dead
2 Captured
casualties2=unknownThe Machurucuto Incident was a battle between Venezuelan Army and National Guard troops and Cuban trained guerillas. Some Venezuelans remember the event as the Invasion of Machurucuto. On May 10, 1967 a dozen guerrillas landed in Venezuela at the beach of Machurucuto. The Army of Venezuela and the National Guard engaged them on the night of May 10th and the battle lasted until May 11th. Two men were captured and the rest were killed in battle. The guerrillas had completed paramilitary training in Cuba to train Venezuelan guerrillas in the Venezuelan Andes. [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,840892-1,00.html "Time" "Magazine" Article]

Landing

On May 8th twelve guerrillas arrived off the coast of Machurucuto in two rafts. While preparing to land one of the rafts capsized drowning one guerrilla. The rest disembarked on the coast and abandoned their rafts.

Battle

A fisherman spotted the two rafts and notified the armed forces. They discovered and engaged the guerrillas on the evening of May 10th and the battle lasted until the morning of May 11th. In the fighting ten guerrillas were killed and two captured; any Venezuelan casualties are unknown.

Aftermath

Soon after, the government of Venezuela held a press conference denouncing Cuban aggression against the Republic of Venezuela and showing the two captured Cubans, Manuel Gil Castellanos, and Pedro Cabrera Torres.

Notes

External links

* [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,840892-1,00.html "Time" Magazine's Article "Castro's Targets"]
* [http://www.notitarde.com/tangente/tangente5.html Machurucuto: historia de una invasión La intervención cubana en Venezuela] es icon
* [http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/guerrilla/machurucuto.htm Desembarco cubano en Machurucuto, 1967] es icon