Argentina Vice-President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner escapes assassination as attacker’s gun jams

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11:16, 2 September 2022

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. Argentina's Vice-President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has avoided assassination after a gunman's weapon jammed as he aimed at her.

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Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was greeting supporters outside her home when a man emerged from the crowd and pointed a handgun in her face, the BBC reports.

President Alberto Fernandez said the gun was loaded with five bullets but failed to fire when the gunman triggered it.

Fernández de Kirchner is involved in a corruption trial and was returning from court. She denies the charges.

Police said the gunman, who local media identified as a 35-year-old Brazilian man, has been taken into custody. They are attempting to establish a motive for the attack.

Addressing the nation late on Thursday night, President Fernandez said: "Cristina remains alive because, for a reason not yet technically confirmed, the gun, which contained five bullets, did not fire."

He went on to condemn the attacker and said the attempt on de Kirchner's life was one of the "most serious" incidents since the country returned to democracy in 1983.

"We can disagree, we can have deep disagreements, but hate speech cannot take place because it breeds violence and there is no chance of violence coexisting with democracy," the BBC quoted President Fernandez as saying.