The Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó took to the streets with activist Leopoldo López and a small contingent of heavily armed soldiers early on Tuesday in a call for the military to rise up and oust the socialist leader, Nicolás Maduro. Events started when Guaidó appeared in an early morning video surrounded by heavily armed soldiers backed by armoured vehicles. Guaidó said soldiers who had taken to the streets were protecting Venezuela’s constitution. Information minister Jorge Rodríguez said on Twitter that Maduro’s government was confronting a small ‘coup attempt’ led by military ‘traitors’ backed by rightwing opponents