The Bolivian government denies the attempt to assassinate Evo Morales

The Bolivian government has rejected claims by former President Evo Morales that it ordered a targeted attack on him.

Morales says his car came under sustained gunfire in the Cochabamba region on Sunday evening, in what he condemned as an attempt on his life.

But Bolivian Interior Minister Eduardo del Castillo said the former president’s convoy had fled an anti-drug patrol, with his security team firing at police and running over an officer.

Evo Morales is locked in a power struggle with President Luis Arce over who should be the Movement for Socialism (Mas) party’s candidate in next year’s elections.