Supporters of Bolivia's ex-president Evo Morales stormed a barracks in central Chapare province and took around 20 soldiers hostage, military sources said Friday, marking a dramatic escalation in their standoff with the state.
The hostage situation comes nearly three weeks after backers of Morales -- the country's first Indigenous leader -- began blocking roads to prevent his arrest on what he calls trumped-up rape charges aimed at thwarting his political comeback.
