Argentine VP avoids 'assassination attempt'

Argentine Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was threatened by a man with a gun outside her home in Buenos Aires on Thursday.

The man emerged from a crowd as Fernandez, 69, was greeting hundreds of supporters outside her house. The vice president is currently embroiled in a corruption probe. The incident comes amid rising social and political tension in Argentina.

What happened in the attempted shooting?

Television footage showed the suspect pointing a gun at Fernandez's head from close range without firing. No shots were fired and the vice president was unharmed.

President Alberto Fernandez said the gun had been loaded with five bullets.

"A man pointed a firearm at her head and pulled the trigger. Cristina is still alive because, for some reason yet to be confirmed, the gun ... did not fire," he said in a televised address.

"This is the most serious event we have gone through since Argentina returned to democracy [in 1983]," he said.

Economy Minister Sergio Massa called the incident an "attempted assassination."

Massa expressed his solidarity with the vice president, writing on Twitter, "When hate and violence prevail over the debate of ideas, they destroy societies and generate situations like today's: an assassination attempt."

According to police, the man was arrested and "a weapon was found a few meters from the scene."

Security Minister Anibal Fernandez said the authorities would now analyze fingerprints for more information.

Local media have reported that the suspect is a 35-year-old Brazilian man.

How did leaders in the Western hemisphere respond?

On Twitter, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote that the US "strongly condemns" the assassination attempt made against Kirchner.

Argentina's opposition leader, and former president, Mauricio Macri tweeted his "absolute repudiation of the attack suffered by Cristina Kirchner, who fortunately was not injured," while his party, Together for Change, called for a full investigation.

Fellow left-wing leaders around South America also tweeted their support.

"We send our solidarity to Vice President Cristina Kirchner in the face of the attack against her life," Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, a close ally, tweeted. "We strenuously reject this act that sought to destabilize the peace of the brotherly Argentine people. The great homeland is with you, comrade!" 

The presidents of Bolivia and Chile also came out in support, with the latter saying, "The assassination attempt... deserves the repudiation and condemnation of the entire continent." 

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, former Brazilian president and favorite to win the upcoming elections, called the attacker "a fascist criminal who does not know how to respect differences and diversity."

What have other world leaders said?

Pope Francis, the former archbishop of Buenos Aires, sent a telegram to Kirchner expressing his solidarity and prayers that "social harmony and respect for democratic values will always prevail," the Vatican said.

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez tweeted "unequivocal condemnation" of the attempt on Kirchner's life. He added, "Hatred and violence will never defeat democracy."

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was "shocked" at the news and expressed his solidarity with the Vice President, according to a spokesman.

"The Secretary-General was shocked at this news," UN spokesman Eri Kaneko said. "He condemns this violence. And he expresses his solidarity with the Vice President, the government and the people of Argentina."

Who is Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner?

Fernandez served as president of Argentina for two terms between 2007 and 2015.

She has been a divisive political figure, currently accused of corruption in awarding public works contracts in the southern region of Patagonia.

Prosecutors have accused the vice president of defrauding the state and scheming to divert public funds while president. They have asked for a lifetime ban from politics for the former president and a 12-year prison sentence.

Fernandez has denied the charges. The verdict is expected at the end of the year.

ar, ab, ss/rt (Reuters, AFP)