NPR

'They Wanted To Kill Us All': Nicaragua Reels After Bloody Church Siege

Human rights groups say nearly 300 people have died since demonstrations over a now-rescinded pension change in April. Protests turned deadly Friday as student protesters took refuge in a church.

Nicaragua saw another weekend of deadly violence, as forces in support of President Daniel Ortega besieged student protesters in a church and attempted to assert control over several areas outside the capital.

Students have been at the center of anti-government demonstrations since they began April 18. What started as a "protest against now-rescinded changes in public pensions" became "a full-fledged call to end the authoritarian rule,". The government has responded with brutal force.

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