Fabián Urbina, a 17-year-old student, was shot and killed on Monday during a protest in Caracas by members of the Venezuelan National Guard, Venezuelan officials said. Photo courtesy Fabián Urbina/Instagram

June 20 (UPI) -- Venezuela's Interior Ministry said National Guard troops fatally shot a 17-year-old protester during an anti-government demonstration.

Venezuelan Interior and Justice Minister Gen. Nestor Reverol said National Guard troops -- through "misuse and disproportionate use of force" -- killed Fabián Urbina and injured at least seven other protesters during an opposition demonstration in Caracas' Altamira neighborhood on Monday.


Fabián, the youngest of three, was a student who lived in the Aragua state whose mother has cancer, El Pitazo reported. Venezuela's Public Ministry said it has deployed a prosecutor to investigate Fabián's death.

The protest in which Fabián participated was advancing toward the National Electoral Council headquarters in Altamira along a highway. Images of the protest show a National Guard officer pointing what appears to be a handgun at protesters.

Venezuela's Constitution prohibits the government from using weapons or toxic substances, such as tear gas, to repel peaceful protesters.

Venezuela has gone through more than two months of protests in which more than 70 people have died.

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"Our heartfelt condolences to the family of Fabián Urbina, another youth murdered for wanting a better country, and another shattered family. Rest in peace," Ramón Muchacho, the mayor of Caracas' Chacao municipality, said in a statement.

Though there have been some demonstrations in support of President Nicolas Maduro's regime, most are anti-government demonstrations decrying the country's economic collapse under Maduro's government and what the opposition says is the deterioration of democracy and the violent repression of peaceful protesters at the hands of Venezuelan security forces.

The Venezuelan government and the opposition accuse one another of being responsible for the chaos.

Jose Manuel Olivares, a Venezuelan parliament opposition member, said Fabián was shot in his chest.

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"His weapon was a dream! And the Bolivarian National Guard and Maduro killed him," Manuel Olivares said in a statement.