THOUSANDS of people rallied in Venezuela on Wednesday against foreign intervention as regional governments stepped back from a confrontation.

Up to 10,000 demonstrators from both sides of the country’s political divide marched to the Miraflores presidential palace in the capital Caracas, where they were addressed by President Nicolas Maduro.

They were protesting against attempts by Organisation of American States (OAS) secretary-general Luis Almagro to invoke the bloc’s Democratic Charter against Venezuela.