Guerrilla Killed, Official Wounded in Peruvian Violence

A leftist guerrilla was shot dead, a government official was wounded and two public buildings were bombed Wednesday in the latest wave of violence in Peru’s capital.

Police said a Health Ministry official was in critical condition after he was shot in the chest and abdomen by two men on his doorstep in a middle-class Lima suburb.

His attackers, who police believe were members of the Maoist Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) guerrilla group, fled.

They added that a young guerrilla, believed to be a member of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, was shot and killed by police in an exchange of fire after the bombing of the Provincial Electoral Board headquarters.

Leftist guerrillas also hurled sticks of dynamite at the town hall of Chorillos, a seaside Lima suburb, shattering windows and the door but causing no injuries, police said.

The explosion at the electoral board came a day after it declared government candidate Jorge del Castillo winner of last month’s controversial election for mayor of Lima. Opposition parties are appealing the result.

Eyewitnesses said four guerrillas armed with machine guns and automatic rifles opened fire on the electoral board headquarters at dawn and guards inside the building returned fire.