Two U.S. Embassy Personnel Injured in Venezuela

Two employees of the U.S. embassy in Venezuela were injured in an "incident" early Tuesday, the State Department said, as local media in Caracas reported the pair had been shot.

"Medical staff inform us that their injuries are not life-threatening," State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters, adding that the incident did not take place at the U.S. embassy compound, but "off-site".

The Venezuelan media identified the two men as Roberto Ezequiel Rosas and Paul Marwin, and said they were military attaches at the embassy, but the State Department would not confirm those reports.

The two men were wounded by gunfire after a dispute as they left a night club, the Venezuelan media reported.

Venezuela has the highest murder rate in South America with 54 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. In the first quarter of 2013 alone, there were 3,400 murders, according to government statistics.

The United States and Venezuela, which have long had strained relations, have had no ambassadors since 2010.