02:15Colombia: Branson hopes Venezuela concert will persuade military to let aid in
Virgin founder and billionaire Sir Richard Branson said he hoped the Venezuela Aid Live concert would persuade Venezuelan soldiers to stop blocking the country's borders and let international aid in, before the concert began in Cucuta on Friday.
The concert, which was announced by Branson last week, aims to raise US$100 million (€88.2 million) to go towards supplying aid and medical assistance for Venezuelans still in the country.
"What we're hoping is that the authorities in Venezuela will see this wonderful peaceful concert, literally hundreds of thousands of people turning up, many, many of them are Venezuelans, and that the soldiers will do the right thing and let much-needed medical help [in]," he said, in front of a crowd of hundreds of thousands of concert-goers at the Colombian side of the barricaded Tienditas International Bridge.
Venezuela's Maduro government has organised a three-day festival in response to the concert, entitled 'Hands off Venezuela,' which will take place just 300 metres (984 ft) away on the other side of the bridge.
02:15Virgin founder and billionaire Sir Richard Branson said he hoped the Venezuela Aid Live concert would persuade Venezuelan soldiers to stop blocking the country's borders and let international aid in, before the concert began in Cucuta on Friday.
The concert, which was announced by Branson last week, aims to raise US$100 million (€88.2 million) to go towards supplying aid and medical assistance for Venezuelans still in the country.
"What we're hoping is that the authorities in Venezuela will see this wonderful peaceful concert, literally hundreds of thousands of people turning up, many, many of them are Venezuelans, and that the soldiers will do the right thing and let much-needed medical help [in]," he said, in front of a crowd of hundreds of thousands of concert-goers at the Colombian side of the barricaded Tienditas International Bridge.
Venezuela's Maduro government has organised a three-day festival in response to the concert, entitled 'Hands off Venezuela,' which will take place just 300 metres (984 ft) away on the other side of the bridge.