Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is trying to win over his voters with the help of a superhero. His name is SuperMoustache. He looks similar to Maduro and he was last seen fighting Trump. Palki Sharma tells you which other leaders have had a stint as an animated character.

Gravitas: Venezuela's President gets his very own superhero, SuperMoustache

A close aide of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been extradited from Cape Verde to the United States. He's been charged with money laundering prompting fury from the President who called extradition a kidnapping on national television.

Aide of Venezuelan President extradited to US on charges of money laundering

The Joe Biden administration is granting temporary protected status to Venezuelan migrants living in the United States and is also working to coordinate international pressure against President Nicolas Maduro to hold free and fair elections.

US grants temporary protection to Venezuelan refugees

The <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/biden-in-no-rush-to-lift-venezuela-sanctions-seeks-serious-steps-by-maduro-366912">Biden</a> administration is set to allow thousands of Venezuelans to seek refuge in its borders in a significant policy shift from The Trump era.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/santa-gives-food-to-poor-hit-by-pandemic-and-recession-in-venezuela-351425/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

According to a US official, temporary protected status is being offered to people who fled have political repression and economic chaos in Venezuela.&nbsp;

A senior Biden government official said that over 300,000 individuals are estimated to be eligible. The temporary protected status is being offered to people who fled political repression and economic chaos.

The Venezuelans who being considered are all already in the US will now not be deported till at least 2022, according to the officials.

Former President Donald Trump despite backing a push to topple far-left Venezuelan leader <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-secretary-of-state-talks-with-venezuelas-guaido-to-increase-pressure-on-president-maduro-367548">Nicolas Maduro</a> had denied Venezuelans protected status.&nbsp;

On taking office in January, President Biden immediately set about reversing what he said were Trump's inhumane border policies.

According to the UN, 34 per cent of the 5.4 million Venezuelans who fled the country since 2015 are in Colombia, which has no diplomatic relations with its neighbour.

The Colombian government announced on Monday that it was giving protected status to almost one million undocumented migrants from the neighbouring country.

The Biden administration is set to allow thousands of Venezuelans to seek refuge in its borders in a significant policy shift from The Trump era. Watch: According to a US official, temporary protected status is being offered to people who fled have political repression and economic chaos in Venezuela.

The Biden administration is set to allow thousands of Venezuelans to seek refuge in its borders in a significant policy shift from The Trump era. Watch: According to a US official, temporary protected status is being offered to people who fled have political repression and economic chaos in Venezuela. A senior Biden government official said that over 300,000 individuals are estimated to be eligible. The temporary protected status is being offered to people who fled political repression and economic chaos. The Venezuelans who being considered are all already in the US will now not be deported till at least 2022, according to the officials. Former President Donald Trump despite backing a push to topple far-left Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro had denied Venezuelans protected status. On taking office in January, President Biden immediately set about reversing what he said were Trump's inhumane border policies. According to the UN, 34 per cent of the 5.4 million Venezuelans who fled the country since 2015 are in Colombia, which has no diplomatic relations with its neighbour. The Colombian government announced on Monday that it was giving protected status to almost one million undocumented migrants from the neighbouring country.

Biden administration to allow temporary refuge to thousands of Venezuelans

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday spoke with Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido&nbsp;to increase "multilateral pressure" against President Nicolas Maduro for a "peaceful, democratic transition" of power.&nbsp;

The United States considers Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela and Maduro's reelection win in 2018 was deemed fraudulent.&nbsp;

Watch |

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/santa-gives-food-to-poor-hit-by-pandemic-and-recession-in-venezuela-351425/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

"Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Venezuelan Interim President Juan Guaido today. Secretary Blinken stressed the importance of a return to democracy in Venezuela through free and fair elections," state department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

It said that the secretary of state called for "efforts to work with likeminded allies", including the European Union and Lima Group to "increase multilateral pressure" on Maduro for a "peaceful, democratic transition".&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/biden-in-no-rush-to-lift-venezuela-sanctions-seeks-serious-steps-by-maduro-366912">Biden in no rush to lift Venezuela sanctions, seeks 'serious steps' by Maduro</a>

The relations between the countries were stained during the tenure of former president Donald Trump, who imposed severe sanctions on Venezuela and its state oil company in a bid to oust Maduro from power.&nbsp;

The statement by the US secretary of state's office also added that Washington will work with its allies for a political solution to the crisis and to push humanitarian assistance in the South American country.&nbsp;

Guaido declared himself as the country's leader in 2019 and his legitimacy has been accepted by over 50 countries, including the US.&nbsp;

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday spoke with Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido to increase "multilateral pressure" against President Nicolas Maduro for a "peaceful, democratic transition" of power.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday spoke with Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido to increase "multilateral pressure" against President Nicolas Maduro for a "peaceful, democratic transition" of power. The United States considers Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela and Maduro's reelection win in 2018 was deemed fraudulent. Watch | "Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Venezuelan Interim President Juan Guaido today. Secretary Blinken stressed the importance of a return to democracy in Venezuela through free and fair elections," state department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement. It said that the secretary of state called for "efforts to work with likeminded allies", including the European Union and Lima Group to "increase multilateral pressure" on Maduro for a "peaceful, democratic transition". Also read | Biden in no rush to lift Venezuela sanctions, seeks 'serious steps' by Maduro The relations between the countries were stained during the tenure of former president Donald Trump, who imposed severe sanctions on Venezuela and its state oil company in a bid to oust Maduro from power. The statement by the US secretary of state's office also added that Washington will work with its allies for a political solution to the crisis and to push humanitarian assistance in the South American country. Guaido declared himself as the country's leader in 2019 and his legitimacy has been accepted by over 50 countries, including the US.

US Secretary of State talks with Venezuela's Guaido to increase 'pressure' on President Maduro

Venezuela opposition has concluded a popular consultation to reject the results of the recent parliamentary elections in which president Nicolas Maduro allies immerged victorious. Opposition accuses Maduros of rigging parliamentary polls.

Venezuela opposition holds vote to reject Nicolas Maduro's rule

Venezuela`s opposition, led by Juan Guaido, on Saturday concluded a "popular consultation" to repudiate President Nicolas Maduro`s government after boycotting a congressional vote last Sunday.

The consultation started virtually on Monday and ended with in-person participation. With 87% of responses reviewed, the opposition said just under 6.5 million people participated. Of those, over 3 million voted in person, and 2.4 million online.

Close to 845,000 Venezuelans abroad took part, the opposition reported.

The effort was aimed at helping the opposition demonstrate a broad rejection of Maduro, but it does not offer a clear path toward a change of government.

The legislative elections returned Maduro`s allies to congress despite an economy in ruins, aggressive U.S. sanctions that stifle the OPEC nation`s oil exports and the migration of some 5 million citizens. The Maduro government said 5.2 million Venezuelans voted in the election.

Congress was the last state institution not in the hands of the ruling Socialist Party.

The idea of a popular consultation was proposed in August by Guaido, who is recognized by dozens of countries as Venezuela`s legitimate president following Maduro`s disputed 2018 re-election.

Opposition leaders and most Western nations said the election was stacked in favor of Maduro, who has been widely criticized for his human rights record and for undermining democracy to stay in power.

On Thursday, Maduro said that "no internet consultation has constitutional status... No one could think that an internet consultation has legal value."

Blanca Marmol, a former supreme court magistrate who helped organize the popular consultation, told a news conference, "This is, I want to emphasize, the last resource we have in the constitution."

Organizers on Saturday reported incidents in 11 of Venezuela`s 24 states, with police and ruling party supporters removing some opposition sites for the informal vote.

Marco Blanco, a 54-year-old taxi driver in the western Caracas neighborhood of Catia, said he was unaware of the vote.

"I heard something about a query, I don`t know what it is for," he said. "I have listened, but very vague. Almost nothing." 
&nbsp;

Venezuela`s opposition, led by Juan Guaido, on Saturday concluded a "popular consultation" to repudiate President Nicolas Maduro`s government after boycotting a congressional vote last Sunday.

Venezuela`s opposition, led by Juan Guaido, on Saturday concluded a "popular consultation" to repudiate President Nicolas Maduro`s government after boycotting a congressional vote last Sunday. The consultation started virtually on Monday and ended with in-person participation. With 87% of responses reviewed, the opposition said just under 6.5 million people participated. Of those, over 3 million voted in person, and 2.4 million online. Close to 845,000 Venezuelans abroad took part, the opposition reported. The effort was aimed at helping the opposition demonstrate a broad rejection of Maduro, but it does not offer a clear path toward a change of government. The legislative elections returned Maduro`s allies to congress despite an economy in ruins, aggressive U.S. sanctions that stifle the OPEC nation`s oil exports and the migration of some 5 million citizens. The Maduro government said 5.2 million Venezuelans voted in the election. Congress was the last state institution not in the hands of the ruling Socialist Party. The idea of a popular consultation was proposed in August by Guaido, who is recognized by dozens of countries as Venezuela`s legitimate president following Maduro`s disputed 2018 re-election. Opposition leaders and most Western nations said the election was stacked in favor of Maduro, who has been widely criticized for his human rights record and for undermining democracy to stay in power. On Thursday, Maduro said that "no internet consultation has constitutional status... No one could think that an internet consultation has legal value." Blanca Marmol, a former supreme court magistrate who helped organize the popular consultation, told a news conference, "This is, I want to emphasize, the last resource we have in the constitution." Organizers on Saturday reported incidents in 11 of Venezuela`s 24 states, with police and ruling party supporters removing some opposition sites for the informal vote. Marco Blanco, a 54-year-old taxi driver in the western Caracas neighborhood of Catia, said he was unaware of the vote. "I heard something about a query, I don`t know what it is for," he said. "I have listened, but very vague. Almost nothing."

Venezuela's opposition concludes 'popular consultation' to reject Maduro

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro won total control over the country's legislature. Maduro's party claimed almost 68% of the vote, in an election which was mostly boycotted by the opposition.

Venezuelan President Maduro secures a landslide victory in legislative election

News Alert: Venezuelan President Maduro wins legislative election

Venezuelans head to the polls on Sunday (December 6) in parliamentary elections that will see the ruling Socialist Party and its allies run virtually uncontested.

President Nicolas Maduro’s camp is poised to gain control of the National Assembly, the only institution not yet in its hands, while opposition leader Juan Guaido earlier led the boycott of the polls.

"I know that we are going to have a great triumph. I know it!" a confident Maduro told an election rally this week.

"We are going to solve the problems we have with the new National Assembly. The opposition, the extremist right, has no plan for the country," added the Venezuelan president, whose 30-year-old son is running for a seat.

Recognised for more than a year as interim president by dozens of countries -- including his chief backer, the United States -- Guaido has dismissed the December 6 polls as "a fraud" designed to strengthen Maduro's grip on power.

"It would be difficult to call that process an election," the 37-year-old opposition leader said.

The poll boycott leaves the way open for Maduro's United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) to win a majority in the National Assembly, the only institution still in opposition hands.

Guaido and the mainstream opposition parties have instead organised an alternative five-day referendum next week to garner popular support for a plan to prolong the current Assembly.

Guaido is speaker of the Assembly, a position from which he proclaimed himself interim president in January 2019. However, his popularity has dropped dramatically since then.

Without the Assembly, Guaido would lose formal legitimacy, leaving governments that have backed him - not least Biden's incoming administration - in a difficult position.

Meanwhile, Guaido hopes the new US president, Joe Biden, will ratify existing US sanctions and fine-tune a more effective Maduro policy with the European Union and other Latin American countries.

Outgoing US President Donald Trump's sanctions strategy included a veiled threat of military force to topple Maduro, a hope that the most radical Venezuelans clung to, later blaming Guaido when it did not materialise.

Guaido distanced himself from any further talk of military intervention.

(with inputs)

Venezuelans head to the polls on Sunday (December 6) in parliamentary elections that will see the ruling Socialist Party and its allies run virtually uncontested.

Venezuelans head to the polls on Sunday (December 6) in parliamentary elections that will see the ruling Socialist Party and its allies run virtually uncontested. President Nicolas Maduro’s camp is poised to gain control of the National Assembly, the only institution not yet in its hands, while opposition leader Juan Guaido earlier led the boycott of the polls. "I know that we are going to have a great triumph. I know it!" a confident Maduro told an election rally this week. "We are going to solve the problems we have with the new National Assembly. The opposition, the extremist right, has no plan for the country," added the Venezuelan president, whose 30-year-old son is running for a seat. Recognised for more than a year as interim president by dozens of countries -- including his chief backer, the United States -- Guaido has dismissed the December 6 polls as "a fraud" designed to strengthen Maduro's grip on power. "It would be difficult to call that process an election," the 37-year-old opposition leader said. The poll boycott leaves the way open for Maduro's United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) to win a majority in the National Assembly, the only institution still in opposition hands. Guaido and the mainstream opposition parties have instead organised an alternative five-day referendum next week to garner popular support for a plan to prolong the current Assembly. Guaido is speaker of the Assembly, a position from which he proclaimed himself interim president in January 2019. However, his popularity has dropped dramatically since then. Without the Assembly, Guaido would lose formal legitimacy, leaving governments that have backed him - not least Biden's incoming administration - in a difficult position. Meanwhile, Guaido hopes the new US president, Joe Biden, will ratify existing US sanctions and fine-tune a more effective Maduro policy with the European Union and other Latin American countries. Outgoing US President Donald Trump's sanctions strategy included a veiled threat of military force to topple Maduro, a hope that the most radical Venezuelans clung to, later blaming Guaido when it did not materialise. Guaido distanced himself from any further talk of military intervention. (with inputs)

Venezuela goes to polls as Maduro eyes victory

GÜIRIA, Venezuela — The host of a popular radio show, “The People’s Combat,” had always diligently praised Venezuela’s governing Socialist Party, even as millions sank into penury under its rule. But when acute gasoline shortages paralyzed his remote fishing town this summer, he strayed from the party line.

On his show, the host, lifelong Socialist José Carmelo Bislick, accused local party chiefs of siphoning fuel, leaving most people queuing for days outside empty gasoline stations.

Just weeks later, on Aug. 17, four masked, armed men burst into Bislick’s house and told him he had “run the red light,” before beating him in front of his family and hauling him away into the night. He was found dead with gunshot wounds hours later, dressed in his favorite Che Guevara T-shirt.

Those responsible for Bislick’s death remain at large in the town of 30,000, where everyone knew of him, and of his lifelong dedication to Venezuela’s Socialist revolution. The Socialist mayor never spoke of the crime or visited the family, who said the killing had been politically motivated.

“Is denouncing wrongdoing so wicked that it should cost the life of a man who only wanted social well-being?” asked Bislick’s sister, Rosmery Bislick.

His death appears to be part of a wave of repression against leftist activists alienated by President Nicolás Maduro, who seems intent on consolidating power in parliamentary elections in December. The vote, boycotted by the opposition as a sham, could bring what used to be one of Latin America’s most established democracies to the verge of being a one-party state.

After having crushed the political parties opposed to his version of socialism, Maduro’s critics say he has trained the state’s security apparatus on disillusioned ideological allies, repeating the path taken by leftist autocrats from the Soviet Union to Cuba.

Maduro’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

“Whoever makes any criticism is lumped with the opposition, the right, called a traitor,” said Ares Di Fazio, a former urban guerrilla and leader of the far-left Tupamaros Party, which was dismantled by the government in August after having voiced discontent.

Longtime government supporters who in recent months flooded the streets of provincial towns to denounce the collapse of public services have been suppressed by security forces. Public employees who denounce corruption are charged with sabotage.

Members of the ruling electoral alliance who decided to run as independents are disqualified. Those who persevere are harassed by the police or charged with spurious crimes.

The repression is partly an outcome of Maduro’s decision to abandon the wealth redistribution policies of his late predecessor, Hugo Chávez, in favor of what amounts to crony capitalism to survive U.S. sanctions. The change effectively legalized Venezuela’s sprawling black market economy and condoned the pervasive corruption, creating a new economic order that benefited the military and business elites loyal to Maduro.

The result has been a jarring chasm between the official rhetoric, which blames the national collapse on sanctions, and the extravagant lives flaunted by the government’s cronies in supermarkets stocked with expensive imports and luxury car showrooms.

“For some, there’s blockade; for others — boutiques,” said Oswaldo Rivero, a prominent Venezuelan left-wing activist and national television host, who had for years stoked attacks on the opposition on his program.

Those who question this “are turned into sawdust,” said Rivero, who is now being called a traitor and threatened on social media for speaking out against corruption.

For the past two decades, leftist parties represented by activists like Rivero had helped Chávez, and then Maduro, stay in power.

The parties, some dating to Cold War-era insurrections, campaigned for Maduro’s candidates, attended government rallies and sometimes harassed opposition protesters. Their message of radical change resonated in Venezuelan shanty towns and rural outposts fed up with ingrained inequality.

But these allies grew increasingly disillusioned with Maduro’s authoritarianism and corruption. This year, for the first time, they decided to field their own congressional candidates.

Maduro responded swiftly.

Courts in August installed Maduro’s loyalists at the top of the Tupamaros and three other dissident parties.

The police arrested the head of the Tupamaros party, José Pinto, on unproved murder charges, harassed the leaders the Communist Party and briefly detained a veteran leftist, Rafael Uzcátegui, 73, on accusations he had visited a brothel. All defendants have called the cases political persecution.

Uzcátegui claims that 37 members of his party, Fatherland for All, have been detained for campaigning against the government in the upcoming elections. Four of them merely sprayed on a public wall the words “Dignified Salary Now,” a plea to raise Venezuela’s minimum monthly salary, which is the equivalent of $2 in local currency.

“The government no longer fears the right,” Uzcátegui said. They fear the left, he said, “because they know we’re telling people the truth.”

A Communist Party activist, Isabel Granado, 32, decided to run for congress against the government in December, because she said it no longer represented the poor.

Two years ago, she and two dozen small farmers from her town of El Vigía, in the Andean foothills, decided to take over a plot of land, which she said the authorities had declared idle since 2010. They called their farming group “The Powerful Hand of God” and began cultivating crops to feed their families.

The government had long endorsed such takeovers to win rural support and attempt to reduce inequality.

Suddenly, on Sept. 24, Granado said a black-clad special operations police squad burst into her home, threw her 9-year-old daughter to the floor and threatened to beat the activist in front of the child if she didn’t come with them. She was taken to a police station and accused of illegal land occupation and livestock rustling, a charge that Granado denied.

She was released the next day for lack of evidence but was detained again two days later, this time by military commandos. Granado said in her time in custody she was handcuffed, threatened with phony drug charges and told she would be executed.

It was not an idle threat in a country where U.N. investigators have implicated Maduro’s special operations police, known as FAES, in thousands of extrajudicial executions in poor neighborhoods in recent years.

“I was truly terrified, because apart from being a social activist, I’m also a mother,” Granado said. “The only thing I could think of were my children.”

Granado said that the timing, the brutality and the arbitrary nature of her detentions pointed to a desire by local authorities to deter her from running for congress. She said she lives in constant fear, frequently changing safe houses.

But she said she would carry on her campaign.

“The people’s support for us is what hurts them the most,” she said, referring to the government.

After a tense calm brought by the pandemic, the popular discontent with Maduro’s government erupted in more than 1,000 flash protests in September.

Unlike the previous waves of unrest, the latest were concentrated in the poor rural states, which have long formed the ruling party’s base. The protesters, many of them longtime government supporters, demanded food, fuel and electricity rather than political change, according to interviews in four affected towns.

Maduro responded to discontent in the socialist heartland with the same repression applied to opponents. More than 200 protesters were detained in the September protests, and one person was shot dead by police, according to the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, a nonprofit group tracking the disturbances.

“What they are doing smells to us a lot like dictatorship,” said Edito Hidalgo, a veteran Tupamaro activist who led a protest in the western town of Urachiche in September. “They have the power and they won’t let it go.”

Urachiche, a close-knit farming community, had overwhelmingly voted for Socialist candidates since Chávez was first sworn in, in 1999, promising to govern for the people.

“This is a revolutionary town,” said Hidalgo, who proudly recounted Che Guevara’s visit to Urachiche in 1962.

After enduring Venezuela’s worsening economic conditions for seven years, the town finally raised its voice in September. Thousands of residents peacefully marched to the town hall singing the national anthem to give the mayor a proposal for improving food and fuel supplies.

A band appeared from the multitude with traditional instruments — miniature guitars and maracas — capping the rally with an impromptu concert, Hidalgo said.

“Then everyone went to their homes without throwing a single rock,” he said.

A few days later, the FAES police pulled up outside Hidalgo’s house, looking for him. Alerted by his wife, he fled and spent two weeks in hiding, while security forces harassed his neighborhood.

“They had decided they must get rid of Edito Hidalgo because he’s preaching the Revolution to the people,” he said.

Polls show the Socialist Party is now supported by just 1 in 10 Venezuelans.

Back in Güiria, the family of Bislick, the dead radio host, are still waiting for justice.

After the armed men abducted Bislick, his family ran to the police station — their car, like most in town, was out of gas.

Instead of immediately undertaking a search, the officers spent two hours taking down their details, said his family. In despair, the family then ran to the ruling party’s office, where Bislick had worked for two decades, to seek spare fuel to help the search. They were denied.

A neighbor eventually discovered Bislick’s body in the bushes.

Bislick’s denunciations of corruption had grown so popular that residents blasted his program in the streets from their car speakers during blackouts, said his radio colleague, José Alberto Frontén.

“We were giving it hard on the program and we knew our punches were landing where they should,” Frontén said. “But we never saw that hit coming to us.”

GÜIRIA, Venezuela — The host of a popular radio show, “The People’s Combat,” had always diligently praised Venezuela’s governing Socialist Party, even as millions sank into penury under its rule.

GÜIRIA, Venezuela — The host of a popular radio show, “The People’s Combat,” had always diligently praised Venezuela’s governing Socialist Party, even as millions sank into penury under its rule. But when acute gasoline shortages paralyzed his remote fishing town this summer, he strayed from the party line. On his show, the host, lifelong Socialist José Carmelo Bislick, accused local party chiefs of siphoning fuel, leaving most people queuing for days outside empty gasoline stations. Just weeks later, on Aug. 17, four masked, armed men burst into Bislick’s house and told him he had “run the red light,” before beating him in front of his family and hauling him away into the night. He was found dead with gunshot wounds hours later, dressed in his favorite Che Guevara T-shirt. Those responsible for Bislick’s death remain at large in the town of 30,000, where everyone knew of him, and of his lifelong dedication to Venezuela’s Socialist revolution. The Socialist mayor never spoke of the crime or visited the family, who said the killing had been politically motivated. “Is denouncing wrongdoing so wicked that it should cost the life of a man who only wanted social well-being?” asked Bislick’s sister, Rosmery Bislick. His death appears to be part of a wave of repression against leftist activists alienated by President Nicolás Maduro, who seems intent on consolidating power in parliamentary elections in December. The vote, boycotted by the opposition as a sham, could bring what used to be one of Latin America’s most established democracies to the verge of being a one-party state. After having crushed the political parties opposed to his version of socialism, Maduro’s critics say he has trained the state’s security apparatus on disillusioned ideological allies, repeating the path taken by leftist autocrats from the Soviet Union to Cuba. Maduro’s office did not respond to a request for comment. “Whoever makes any criticism is lumped with the opposition, the right, called a traitor,” said Ares Di Fazio, a former urban guerrilla and leader of the far-left Tupamaros Party, which was dismantled by the government in August after having voiced discontent. Longtime government supporters who in recent months flooded the streets of provincial towns to denounce the collapse of public services have been suppressed by security forces. Public employees who denounce corruption are charged with sabotage. Members of the ruling electoral alliance who decided to run as independents are disqualified. Those who persevere are harassed by the police or charged with spurious crimes. The repression is partly an outcome of Maduro’s decision to abandon the wealth redistribution policies of his late predecessor, Hugo Chávez, in favor of what amounts to crony capitalism to survive U.S. sanctions. The change effectively legalized Venezuela’s sprawling black market economy and condoned the pervasive corruption, creating a new economic order that benefited the military and business elites loyal to Maduro. The result has been a jarring chasm between the official rhetoric, which blames the national collapse on sanctions, and the extravagant lives flaunted by the government’s cronies in supermarkets stocked with expensive imports and luxury car showrooms. “For some, there’s blockade; for others — boutiques,” said Oswaldo Rivero, a prominent Venezuelan left-wing activist and national television host, who had for years stoked attacks on the opposition on his program. Those who question this “are turned into sawdust,” said Rivero, who is now being called a traitor and threatened on social media for speaking out against corruption. For the past two decades, leftist parties represented by activists like Rivero had helped Chávez, and then Maduro, stay in power. The parties, some dating to Cold War-era insurrections, campaigned for Maduro’s candidates, attended government rallies and sometimes harassed opposition protesters. Their message of radical change resonated in Venezuelan shanty towns and rural outposts fed up with ingrained inequality. But these allies grew increasingly disillusioned with Maduro’s authoritarianism and corruption. This year, for the first time, they decided to field their own congressional candidates. Maduro responded swiftly. Courts in August installed Maduro’s loyalists at the top of the Tupamaros and three other dissident parties. The police arrested the head of the Tupamaros party, José Pinto, on unproved murder charges, harassed the leaders the Communist Party and briefly detained a veteran leftist, Rafael Uzcátegui, 73, on accusations he had visited a brothel. All defendants have called the cases political persecution. Uzcátegui claims that 37 members of his party, Fatherland for All, have been detained for campaigning against the government in the upcoming elections. Four of them merely sprayed on a public wall the words “Dignified Salary Now,” a plea to raise Venezuela’s minimum monthly salary, which is the equivalent of $2 in local currency. “The government no longer fears the right,” Uzcátegui said. They fear the left, he said, “because they know we’re telling people the truth.” A Communist Party activist, Isabel Granado, 32, decided to run for congress against the government in December, because she said it no longer represented the poor. Two years ago, she and two dozen small farmers from her town of El Vigía, in the Andean foothills, decided to take over a plot of land, which she said the authorities had declared idle since 2010. They called their farming group “The Powerful Hand of God” and began cultivating crops to feed their families. The government had long endorsed such takeovers to win rural support and attempt to reduce inequality. Suddenly, on Sept. 24, Granado said a black-clad special operations police squad burst into her home, threw her 9-year-old daughter to the floor and threatened to beat the activist in front of the child if she didn’t come with them. She was taken to a police station and accused of illegal land occupation and livestock rustling, a charge that Granado denied. She was released the next day for lack of evidence but was detained again two days later, this time by military commandos. Granado said in her time in custody she was handcuffed, threatened with phony drug charges and told she would be executed. It was not an idle threat in a country where U.N. investigators have implicated Maduro’s special operations police, known as FAES, in thousands of extrajudicial executions in poor neighborhoods in recent years. “I was truly terrified, because apart from being a social activist, I’m also a mother,” Granado said. “The only thing I could think of were my children.” Granado said that the timing, the brutality and the arbitrary nature of her detentions pointed to a desire by local authorities to deter her from running for congress. She said she lives in constant fear, frequently changing safe houses. But she said she would carry on her campaign. “The people’s support for us is what hurts them the most,” she said, referring to the government. After a tense calm brought by the pandemic, the popular discontent with Maduro’s government erupted in more than 1,000 flash protests in September. Unlike the previous waves of unrest, the latest were concentrated in the poor rural states, which have long formed the ruling party’s base. The protesters, many of them longtime government supporters, demanded food, fuel and electricity rather than political change, according to interviews in four affected towns. Maduro responded to discontent in the socialist heartland with the same repression applied to opponents. More than 200 protesters were detained in the September protests, and one person was shot dead by police, according to the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, a nonprofit group tracking the disturbances. “What they are doing smells to us a lot like dictatorship,” said Edito Hidalgo, a veteran Tupamaro activist who led a protest in the western town of Urachiche in September. “They have the power and they won’t let it go.” Urachiche, a close-knit farming community, had overwhelmingly voted for Socialist candidates since Chávez was first sworn in, in 1999, promising to govern for the people. “This is a revolutionary town,” said Hidalgo, who proudly recounted Che Guevara’s visit to Urachiche in 1962. After enduring Venezuela’s worsening economic conditions for seven years, the town finally raised its voice in September. Thousands of residents peacefully marched to the town hall singing the national anthem to give the mayor a proposal for improving food and fuel supplies. A band appeared from the multitude with traditional instruments — miniature guitars and maracas — capping the rally with an impromptu concert, Hidalgo said. “Then everyone went to their homes without throwing a single rock,” he said. A few days later, the FAES police pulled up outside Hidalgo’s house, looking for him. Alerted by his wife, he fled and spent two weeks in hiding, while security forces harassed his neighborhood. “They had decided they must get rid of Edito Hidalgo because he’s preaching the Revolution to the people,” he said. Polls show the Socialist Party is now supported by just 1 in 10 Venezuelans. Back in Güiria, the family of Bislick, the dead radio host, are still waiting for justice. After the armed men abducted Bislick, his family ran to the police station — their car, like most in town, was out of gas. Instead of immediately undertaking a search, the officers spent two hours taking down their details, said his family. In despair, the family then ran to the ruling party’s office, where Bislick had worked for two decades, to seek spare fuel to help the search. They were denied. A neighbor eventually discovered Bislick’s body in the bushes. Bislick’s denunciations of corruption had grown so popular that residents blasted his program in the streets from their car speakers during blackouts, said his radio colleague, José Alberto Frontén. “We were giving it hard on the program and we knew our punches were landing where they should,” Frontén said. “But we never saw that hit coming to us.”

They championed Venezuela's revolution. They are now its latest victims.

Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López fled the country Saturday after spending the past six years in jail, house arrest and diplomatic asylum, his political party said.

López, 49, is heading to an undisclosed international destination after leaving the Spanish Embassy in Caracas, according to his political party and Spain’s Foreign Ministry. He had sought refuge at the Spanish ambassador’s residence after leading a failed military uprising against the government in April 2019.

A charismatic, U.S.-educated former mayor with a piercing glare, López has for years been one of the most radical opponents of Venezuela’s authoritarian president, Nicolas Maduro, whom he sought to overthrow through street protests and increasingly desperate palace plots. His maximalist tactics, however, have backfired, leaving the opposition dismantled and increasingly irrelevant to the struggles facing Venezuelans amid one the deepest economic recessions in modern history.

López came nearest his goal in early 2019, when his protégé, Juan Guaidó, a young lawmaker, declared himself the country’s interim president, citing Maduro’s fraudulent reelection. The United States and most European and Latin American countries swiftly backed him, cutting the government off from the global economy.

Maduro, however, has weathered the challenge and used his control over security forces to gradually suppress the opposition and terrorize its supporters. As Venezuela’s political crisis escalated, sanctions by the Trump administration to aid Guaidó’s bid for power plunged an already rapidly shrinking Venezuelan economy and its people into a full-scale humanitarian crisis.

López now becomes the latest opposition leader to leave for exile, leaving Guaidó increasingly isolated. Guaidó’s term as the speaker of parliament, on which he has based his claim to the country’s leadership, expires in January, threatening to leave the opposition without its last base of support.

López’s party, Popular Will, said its departed leader has pledged his unconditional support for Guaidó and will continue fighting against Maduro, who has resorted to torture, extrajudicial killings and legal persecution to maintain his grip on power.

“Like other Venezuelans, Leopoldo López is not fully free as long as there’s a dictatorship that violates human rights of the people,” his party said in a statement Saturday.

Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López fled the country Saturday after spending the past six years in jail, house arrest and diplomatic asylum, his political party said.

Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López fled the country Saturday after spending the past six years in jail, house arrest and diplomatic asylum, his political party said. López, 49, is heading to an undisclosed international destination after leaving the Spanish Embassy in Caracas, according to his political party and Spain’s Foreign Ministry. He had sought refuge at the Spanish ambassador’s residence after leading a failed military uprising against the government in April 2019. A charismatic, U.S.-educated former mayor with a piercing glare, López has for years been one of the most radical opponents of Venezuela’s authoritarian president, Nicolas Maduro, whom he sought to overthrow through street protests and increasingly desperate palace plots. His maximalist tactics, however, have backfired, leaving the opposition dismantled and increasingly irrelevant to the struggles facing Venezuelans amid one the deepest economic recessions in modern history. López came nearest his goal in early 2019, when his protégé, Juan Guaidó, a young lawmaker, declared himself the country’s interim president, citing Maduro’s fraudulent reelection. The United States and most European and Latin American countries swiftly backed him, cutting the government off from the global economy. Maduro, however, has weathered the challenge and used his control over security forces to gradually suppress the opposition and terrorize its supporters. As Venezuela’s political crisis escalated, sanctions by the Trump administration to aid Guaidó’s bid for power plunged an already rapidly shrinking Venezuelan economy and its people into a full-scale humanitarian crisis. López now becomes the latest opposition leader to leave for exile, leaving Guaidó increasingly isolated. Guaidó’s term as the speaker of parliament, on which he has based his claim to the country’s leadership, expires in January, threatening to leave the opposition without its last base of support. López’s party, Popular Will, said its departed leader has pledged his unconditional support for Guaidó and will continue fighting against Maduro, who has resorted to torture, extrajudicial killings and legal persecution to maintain his grip on power. “Like other Venezuelans, Leopoldo López is not fully free as long as there’s a dictatorship that violates human rights of the people,” his party said in a statement Saturday.

Venezuela opposition figure, long confined, flees country

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Sunday his son will join trials of Sputnik V, the coronavirus vaccine which was met with caution when Russia announced it was the world's first to be approved.

An initial batch of the vaccine arrived in Venezuela on Friday, the government announced, and 2,000 residents will participate in the trials.

"In this clinical trial phase, my son, Nicolas Ernesto Maduro Guerra, told me of his decision to be vaccinated with the Russian vaccine, to join the trial. I think it is very good," the socialist leader said in a speech on state television network VTV.

Maduro's sister is also a volunteer for the clinical trials.

Maduro Guerra, 30, is also a politician and a member of his father's governing United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV).

Named "Sputnik V" after the historic Soviet-era satellite, the vaccine was met with skepticism from the global medical community.

Russia in August declared itself the first country to approve a coronavirus vaccine, although it is still undergoing large-scale clinical trials after promising results.

The drug is currently in Phase 3, the human testing state, and according to Moscow, more than 40,000 volunteers have been inoculated during the process.

"When the entire scientific, clinical and testing phase is closed, voluntary vaccination will come... As soon as we start mass vaccination, I am going to be the first one to get it," Maduro said.

Russia has been one of Maduro's main backers in the face of international pressure led by Washington, which seeks to displace him from power because it considers his reelection to have been fraudulent.

The US, as well as some 50 other countries, recognize Maduro's opponent, National Assembly speaker Juan Guaido, as Venezuela's interim president.

Guaido slammed the decision to participate in the Russian trials, saying, "They use our people as guinea pigs."

According to official figures, as of Saturday, Venezuela has registered 77,646 cases of Covid-19 out of the entire 30 million population, and 649 deaths. These numbers are disputed by the country's opposition and international organizations such as Human Rights Watch.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Sunday his son will join trials of Sputnik V, the coronavirus vaccine which was met with caution when Russia announced it was the world's first to be approved.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Sunday his son will join trials of Sputnik V, the coronavirus vaccine which was met with caution when Russia announced it was the world's first to be approved. An initial batch of the vaccine arrived in Venezuela on Friday, the government announced, and 2,000 residents will participate in the trials. "In this clinical trial phase, my son, Nicolas Ernesto Maduro Guerra, told me of his decision to be vaccinated with the Russian vaccine, to join the trial. I think it is very good," the socialist leader said in a speech on state television network VTV. Maduro's sister is also a volunteer for the clinical trials. Maduro Guerra, 30, is also a politician and a member of his father's governing United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV). Named "Sputnik V" after the historic Soviet-era satellite, the vaccine was met with skepticism from the global medical community. Russia in August declared itself the first country to approve a coronavirus vaccine, although it is still undergoing large-scale clinical trials after promising results. The drug is currently in Phase 3, the human testing state, and according to Moscow, more than 40,000 volunteers have been inoculated during the process. "When the entire scientific, clinical and testing phase is closed, voluntary vaccination will come... As soon as we start mass vaccination, I am going to be the first one to get it," Maduro said. Russia has been one of Maduro's main backers in the face of international pressure led by Washington, which seeks to displace him from power because it considers his reelection to have been fraudulent. The US, as well as some 50 other countries, recognize Maduro's opponent, National Assembly speaker Juan Guaido, as Venezuela's interim president. Guaido slammed the decision to participate in the Russian trials, saying, "They use our people as guinea pigs." According to official figures, as of Saturday, Venezuela has registered 77,646 cases of Covid-19 out of the entire 30 million population, and 649 deaths. These numbers are disputed by the country's opposition and international organizations such as Human Rights Watch.

Venezuela's Maduro says son to join virus vaccine trial

Venezuela government has said that the US spy, who was captured while spying on the largest refining complex in the country, will be charged with "terrorism.”

Venezuela is going through a severe fuel shortage crisis.

Earlier on September 12, President Maduro had said a man was arrested in the north-west state of Falcon where he was spying on the Amuay and Cardon oil refineries.

Maduro said the man was a US marine who had previously served "at CIA bases in Iraq."

Venezuela's Attorney General Tarek William Saab announced on Monday that "All the Venezuelan citizens are going to be charged with the crimes of treason, terrorism, illicit traffic of weapons and association (to commit crimes), while the US citizen is going to be charged with terrorism, illicit traffic of weapons and association,".

Last month two former US soldiers, Luke Alexander Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, were sentenced to 20 years in prison in Venezuela on charges including terrorism, after a failed bid to invade the Caribbean country last May.

Just hours before Friday's announcement, the Venezuelan government said it was establishing an "emergency plan" intended to regulate "fuel distribution" in light of severe gasoline shortages in the country, where people wait in lines stretching miles to fuel up their vehicles.

(With inputs from AFP)

Venezuela government has said that the US spy, who was captured while spying on the largest refining complex in the country, will be charged with "terrorism.” Venezuela is going through a severe fuel shortage crisis.

Venezuela government has said that the US spy, who was captured while spying on the largest refining complex in the country, will be charged with "terrorism.” Venezuela is going through a severe fuel shortage crisis. Earlier on September 12, President Maduro had said a man was arrested in the north-west state of Falcon where he was spying on the Amuay and Cardon oil refineries. Maduro said the man was a US marine who had previously served "at CIA bases in Iraq." Venezuela's Attorney General Tarek William Saab announced on Monday that "All the Venezuelan citizens are going to be charged with the crimes of treason, terrorism, illicit traffic of weapons and association (to commit crimes), while the US citizen is going to be charged with terrorism, illicit traffic of weapons and association,". Last month two former US soldiers, Luke Alexander Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, were sentenced to 20 years in prison in Venezuela on charges including terrorism, after a failed bid to invade the Caribbean country last May. Just hours before Friday's announcement, the Venezuelan government said it was establishing an "emergency plan" intended to regulate "fuel distribution" in light of severe gasoline shortages in the country, where people wait in lines stretching miles to fuel up their vehicles. (With inputs from AFP)

US 'spy' captured near an oil refinery, to be charged with terrorism: Venezuela

President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday&nbsp;invoked India's independence hero Mahatma&nbsp;Gandhi&nbsp;to explain the pardon of more than 100 opposition lawmakers and associates of opposition leader Juan Guaido.

Venezuela's announcement of the pardons on Monday came a day after Maduro claimed to be supporting measures to bring "reconciliation" and "dialogue" to the deeply polarized South American country ahead of December legislative elections.

The opposition figures, including more than 20 legislators who had been accused of conspiring against Maduro, were pardoned as the country heads toward parliamentary elections in December.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/venezuelan-president-nicolas-maduro-accuses-united-states-of-plotting-coup-297298">Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accuses United States of plotting coup</a>

Maduro said the pardons were a path towards peace.

Those pardoned via a presidential decree include legislator Freddy Guevara, who sought asylum in the Chilean diplomatic residence, as well as Roberto Marrero, who had served as chief of staff to opposition leader and congress chief Juan Guaido.

Many of those mentioned participated in a failed 2019 rebellion that sought to persuade the military to drop their backing for Maduro but ultimately failed to sway top commanders. Some of those pardoned are imprisoned, while others have sought diplomatic asylum or are in exile.

Opposition leaders say Maduro's 2018 re-election was fraudulent, and have recognised Guaido as the legitimate president. More than 50 other countries, including the United States, followed suit.

US dismisses pardoning

The United States on Tuesday downplayed&nbsp;Maduro's pardon warning not to be fooled by the "token" measures.

"Neither the Venezuelan people nor international community will be fooled by these token &amp; transparent acts," tweeted Michael Kozak, the acting assistant secretary of the Western Hemisphere division at the US State Department.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

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Let's not forget that Maduro continues to arbitrarily detain 100's of political prisoners. Neither the Venezuelan people nor international community will be fooled by these token &amp; transparent acts. Democracy can only prevail when all conditions for free &amp; fair elections are met.
— Michael G. Kozak (@WHAAsstSecty) <a href="https://twitter.com/WHAAsstSecty/status/1300863347592757249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Kozak emphasized: "Let's not forget that Maduro continues to arbitrarily detain 100's of political prisoners."

Guaido and leading opposition figures have already vowed to boycott those polls over a lack of transparency.

In January 2019, National Assembly speaker Guaido challenged Maduro's authority by declaring himself acting president, quickly receiving the backing of more than 50 countries including the United States.

US President Donald Trump has been a staunch Guaido ally, and has increased pressure on the leftist Maduro regime with a series of sanctions.

Washington has also accused Maduro of "narcoterrorism" and placed a $15 million bounty on his head.

President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday invoked India's independence hero Mahatma Gandhi to explain the pardon of more than 100 opposition lawmakers and associates of opposition leader Juan Guaido.

President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday invoked India's independence hero Mahatma Gandhi to explain the pardon of more than 100 opposition lawmakers and associates of opposition leader Juan Guaido. Venezuela's announcement of the pardons on Monday came a day after Maduro claimed to be supporting measures to bring "reconciliation" and "dialogue" to the deeply polarized South American country ahead of December legislative elections. The opposition figures, including more than 20 legislators who had been accused of conspiring against Maduro, were pardoned as the country heads toward parliamentary elections in December. Also read: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accuses United States of plotting coup Maduro said the pardons were a path towards peace. Those pardoned via a presidential decree include legislator Freddy Guevara, who sought asylum in the Chilean diplomatic residence, as well as Roberto Marrero, who had served as chief of staff to opposition leader and congress chief Juan Guaido. Many of those mentioned participated in a failed 2019 rebellion that sought to persuade the military to drop their backing for Maduro but ultimately failed to sway top commanders. Some of those pardoned are imprisoned, while others have sought diplomatic asylum or are in exile. Opposition leaders say Maduro's 2018 re-election was fraudulent, and have recognised Guaido as the legitimate president. More than 50 other countries, including the United States, followed suit. US dismisses pardoning The United States on Tuesday downplayed Maduro's pardon warning not to be fooled by the "token" measures. "Neither the Venezuelan people nor international community will be fooled by these token & transparent acts," tweeted Michael Kozak, the acting assistant secretary of the Western Hemisphere division at the US State Department. Let's not forget that Maduro continues to arbitrarily detain 100's of political prisoners. Neither the Venezuelan people nor international community will be fooled by these token & transparent acts. Democracy can only prevail when all conditions for free & fair elections are met. — Michael G. Kozak (@WHAAsstSecty) September 1, 2020 × Kozak emphasized: "Let's not forget that Maduro continues to arbitrarily detain 100's of political prisoners." Guaido and leading opposition figures have already vowed to boycott those polls over a lack of transparency. In January 2019, National Assembly speaker Guaido challenged Maduro's authority by declaring himself acting president, quickly receiving the backing of more than 50 countries including the United States. US President Donald Trump has been a staunch Guaido ally, and has increased pressure on the leftist Maduro regime with a series of sanctions. Washington has also accused Maduro of "narcoterrorism" and placed a $15 million bounty on his head.

Venezuela's Maduro invokes Gandhi after pardoning opposition politicians

A Venezuelan court has sentenced two former United States Army Special Forces soldiers to 20 years in prison for their part in a failed beach attack aimed at overthrowing President Nicolas Maduro.

Ex-Americans jailed over failed 'invasion': Behind bars in Venezuela

Britain has recognised Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as the country's president, the English High Court ruled on Thursday, in a case over whether Guaido or Nicolas Maduro should control $1 billion of its gold stored in London.

UK court recognises Juan Guaido as Venezuela president

US President Donald Trump has said he would consider meeting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and indicated that he is not entirely confident in the country's opposition leader, according to an interview published Sunday.

US President Donald Trump has said he would consider meeting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and indicated that he is not entirely confident in the country's opposition leader, according to an interview published Sunday. A power struggle has been raging in Venezuela since Juan Guaido declared himself acting president in January 2019 in a bid to oust Maduro, who had started a second term following elections boycotted by the opposition and internationally dismissed as fraudulent. Nearly 60 countries -- including the United States -- recognized Guaido, but China and Russia backed Maduro -- whose regime has been hit by sanctions from Washington. But despite tensions, Trump told news site Axios he would be open to a meeting. "I would maybe think about that... Maduro would like to meet. And I'm never opposed to meetings -- you know, rarely opposed to meetings," the president said. "I always say, you lose very little with meetings. But at this moment, I've turned them down." Ties between Washington and Maduro's socialist government had frayed even further in May when Venezuela detained 52 alleged mercenaries, including two retired members of the US military, accusing them of orchestrating a maritime "invasion" with US support. Washington denied any involvement. But despite his government's consistent backing of the opposition leader, Axios said that during the interview, Trump "indicated he doesn't have much confidence in Guaido." The president said he was "firmly against what's going on in Venezuela," but -- referring to the recognition of Guaido -- added: "I was OK with it... I don't think it was very meaningful one way or the other." The interview came as the White House was handling the fallout from explosive claims in a book by Trump's former national security advisor John Bolton, who was a key player on many diplomatic fronts. According to excerpts published by Axios, Bolton wrote that Trump "thought Guaido was 'weak,' as opposed to Maduro, who was 'strong.'" The president also called Guaido "the Beto O'Rourke of Venezuela," according to the Bolton excerpt, referring to the Democratic presidential candidate who dropped out early in the race and was repeatedly mocked by Trump. During the Axios interview, Trump slammed Bolton as a "nutjob" who may be the "dumbest human being on Earth" over his backing of the Iraq War.

Trump says would consider meeting Venezuela's Maduro: Report

Venezuela has charged two former US soldiers with terrorism and conspiracy over an alleged coup attempt earlier this week.

Luke Denman and Airan Berry have been accused of leading a failed incursion aimed at capturing Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro. The US&nbsp;Army has confirmed that both men were former members of the green berets. If found guilty, they could be sent to prison for up to 30 years.

Three charges have been levelled against the two men -- Terrorism, conspiracy and illicit trafficking of weapons. Venezuela has also requested an international arrest warrant for the top boss of silvercorp,&nbsp;a&nbsp;private security firm behind the attack. Silvercorp's chief Jordan Goudreau has admitted to planning the coup attempt at the behest of Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Gaido.

Gaido on his part has denied any involvement in the operation. Maduro claims the attack was a joint conspiracy by the US government and Juan Gaido who is recognised by Washington as the legitimate president of Venezuela.

Donald Trump has flat-out rejected these charges and that too in typical Trump fashion. The president said that if he wanted to attack Venezuela, he wouldn't make a secret of it. Instead of sending a small group of men, Trump said he would have sent the US army for a proper invasion.

Venezuela has charged two former US soldiers with terrorism and conspiracy over an alleged coup attempt earlier this week. Luke Denman and Airan Berry have been accused of leading a failed incursion aimed at capturing Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro.

Venezuela has charged two former US soldiers with terrorism and conspiracy over an alleged coup attempt earlier this week. Luke Denman and Airan Berry have been accused of leading a failed incursion aimed at capturing Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro. The US Army has confirmed that both men were former members of the green berets. If found guilty, they could be sent to prison for up to 30 years. Three charges have been levelled against the two men -- Terrorism, conspiracy and illicit trafficking of weapons. Venezuela has also requested an international arrest warrant for the top boss of silvercorp, a private security firm behind the attack. Silvercorp's chief Jordan Goudreau has admitted to planning the coup attempt at the behest of Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Gaido. Gaido on his part has denied any involvement in the operation. Maduro claims the attack was a joint conspiracy by the US government and Juan Gaido who is recognised by Washington as the legitimate president of Venezuela. Donald Trump has flat-out rejected these charges and that too in typical Trump fashion. The president said that if he wanted to attack Venezuela, he wouldn't make a secret of it. Instead of sending a small group of men, Trump said he would have sent the US army for a proper invasion.

Venezuela charges two former US soldiers allegedly involved in incursion

Luke Alexander Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, have been charged with "terrorism" and "conspiracy" by&nbsp;Venezuela on Friday. The two soldiers were&nbsp;among 17 people captured by the Venezuelan military.

The military claims the group of 17&nbsp;were attempting an invasion&nbsp;to topple President Nicolas Maduro&nbsp;in the early hours of Sunday morning.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/whistleblower-complaint-draws-attention-to-trump-administrations-flawed-covid-19-response-297366">Also read:&nbsp;Whistleblower complaint draws attention to Trump's flawed COVID-19 response</a>

Attorney-General Tarek William Saab&nbsp;briefed the media that the two ex-soldiers could be looking at 25-30 years in prison as hey have been charged with&nbsp;terrorism, conspiracy, illicit trafficking of weapons of war and (criminal) association.

Venezuela has requested an international arrest warrant to capture the mastermind of this force, Jordan Goudreau, who is a former US army medic. It is alleged that he&nbsp;trained the mercenary force.&nbsp;Eight attackers were reportedly killed in the attempted incursion.

President Maduro had earlier accused his American counterpart Donald Trump to be the direct head of this invasion. To which, Donald Trump had replied, "If I wanted to go into Venezuela I wouldn't make a secret about it. I'd go in and they would do nothing about it. They would roll over. I wouldn't send a small little group. No, no, no. It would be called an army. It would be called an invasion." (as told to Fox News)

The US army confirmed they were former members of the Green Berets,&nbsp;deployed to Iraq.&nbsp;Mike Pompeo,&nbsp;Secretary of State, assured that the US government will use every possible tool to get the soldiers safely back to the States.

Venezuela Attorney General has also accused Juan Guaido, opposition leader, to be behind this inavsion. He has also accused Juan&nbsp;accused Guaido of signing a US$212 million (S$300 million) contract with "hired mercenaries" using funds seized by the United States from the state oil company PDVSA.

(With inputs from AFP)

Luke Alexander Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, have been charged with "terrorism" and "conspiracy" by Venezuela on Friday. The two soldiers were among 17 people captured by the Venezuelan military.

Luke Alexander Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, have been charged with "terrorism" and "conspiracy" by Venezuela on Friday. The two soldiers were among 17 people captured by the Venezuelan military. The military claims the group of 17 were attempting an invasion to topple President Nicolas Maduro in the early hours of Sunday morning. Also read: Whistleblower complaint draws attention to Trump's flawed COVID-19 response Attorney-General Tarek William Saab briefed the media that the two ex-soldiers could be looking at 25-30 years in prison as hey have been charged with terrorism, conspiracy, illicit trafficking of weapons of war and (criminal) association. Venezuela has requested an international arrest warrant to capture the mastermind of this force, Jordan Goudreau, who is a former US army medic. It is alleged that he trained the mercenary force. Eight attackers were reportedly killed in the attempted incursion. President Maduro had earlier accused his American counterpart Donald Trump to be the direct head of this invasion. To which, Donald Trump had replied, "If I wanted to go into Venezuela I wouldn't make a secret about it. I'd go in and they would do nothing about it. They would roll over. I wouldn't send a small little group. No, no, no. It would be called an army. It would be called an invasion." (as told to Fox News) The US army confirmed they were former members of the Green Berets, deployed to Iraq. Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State, assured that the US government will use every possible tool to get the soldiers safely back to the States. Venezuela Attorney General has also accused Juan Guaido, opposition leader, to be behind this inavsion. He has also accused Juan accused Guaido of signing a US$212 million (S$300 million) contract with "hired mercenaries" using funds seized by the United States from the state oil company PDVSA. (With inputs from AFP)

Venezuela charges two former US soldiers with terrorism and conspiracy

Did the United States develop a plan to capture the Venezuelan President? Nicolas Maduro is now moving the ICJ against Donald Trump - after the capture of an alleged US mercenary. Watch WION's ground report from Venezuela.

Nicolas Maduro blames Donald Trump for incursion | WION Ground Report

Did the United States develop a plan to capture the Venezuelan President? Nicolas Maduro is now moving the ICJ against Donald Trump - after the capture of an alleged US mercenary. WION's Palki Sharma gets the story.

Gravitas: Did the U.S. plan a coup in Venezuela?

Venezuelan state television broadcast on Wednesday (May 6) a video of captured American Luke Denman, in which he said he was instructed to seize control of Caracas' airport and bring in a plane to fly President Nicolas Maduro to the United States.

Venezuela state TV airs confession video of alleged American mercenary

There is high drama in South America. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused the United States of plotting a coup.

American arrested in Venezuela, Luke Denman, said: "To me, Venezuelans in Colombia, train them and come with them to Venezuela to Caracas and a secure airport here."

This video is playing on television screens across the world. This is American citizen Luke Denman. He is currently in Venezuelan custody.

What for? For trying to stage a coup.

It's a plot straight out of a Hollywood movie. The story begins sometime last week.

On May 4, Venezuela had news for the world. Nothing to do with the pandemic. Venezuela said it had foiled a maritime incursion. Mercenaries had tried to enter the country through the sea.

Their speedboats were intercepted by the Venezuelan military. Venezuela said 8 attackers were killed on the coast of La Guaira.

This is some 30 kilometres from the capital city of Caracas.

President Nicolas Maduro, said: "The main objective was to kill the Venezuelan president, a terrorist attack in the middle of a pandemic."

&nbsp;It did not take long for President Nicolas Maduro to cry coup. It was all planned in the White House, he said.

On May 6, 2020, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said: "Donald Trump, Mike Pompeo were directly behind this."

Later, Venezuelan authorities arrested 13 people. Among them were two Americans.

&nbsp;Luke Denman and Airan Berry, Venezuela said the duo played a key role in the plot.

Adding-- they were working with Jordan Goudreau-- an American military veteran who runs a security company in Florida.

Maduro furnished proof, he said: "Here's his license as part of silvercorp. Here's the passport of the other American mercenary who was a member of Donald Trump's security, they claim. Berry, Airan was born May 15, 1978, in Texas, United States. His identification as a member of the silvercorp company. "

&nbsp;

Goudreau has reportedly admitted to organising the invasion. He also admitted to working with Denman and Berry.

US President Donald Trump was quick to deny involvement. He said: "I just got information [referring to two US Citizens detained in Venezuela. Nothing to do with our government but I just got information on that. &nbsp;It has nothing to do with our government."

Back in Caracas, opposition leader and self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido rubbished the alleged incursion. Maduro is trying to divert attention from real issues, he said: "They want to sow confusion, they want to sow a state of apparent commotion to hide what's going on in Venezuela."

The United States has been tight-lipped on this supposed botched coup.

&nbsp;Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called it a consular matter. He said: "We want to get every American back. If the Maduro regime decides to hold them, we'll use every tool that we have available to try and get them back. It's our responsibility to do so."

Venezuela meanwhile is beating its chest. It's latest so-called proof against the trump administration is this confession video where Luke Denman said: "My responsibility to silvercorp are written into a contract or described in a contract signed by Jordan Goudreau, Juan Rendon and Juan Guaido."

The 34-year-old Denman claims that the plan was to secure a Caracas airport so that Maduro could be sent to the United States.

This edited video is Maduro's best ammo against the trump administration. He is now lodging a case at the International Court of Justice.

The culprits are the US government and President Donald Trump.

There is high drama in South America. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused the United States of plotting a coup. American arrested in Venezuela, Luke Denman, said: "To me, Venezuelans in Colombia, train them and come with them to Venezuela to Caracas and a secure airport here.

There is high drama in South America. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused the United States of plotting a coup. American arrested in Venezuela, Luke Denman, said: "To me, Venezuelans in Colombia, train them and come with them to Venezuela to Caracas and a secure airport here." This video is playing on television screens across the world. This is American citizen Luke Denman. He is currently in Venezuelan custody. What for? For trying to stage a coup. It's a plot straight out of a Hollywood movie. The story begins sometime last week. On May 4, Venezuela had news for the world. Nothing to do with the pandemic. Venezuela said it had foiled a maritime incursion. Mercenaries had tried to enter the country through the sea. Their speedboats were intercepted by the Venezuelan military. Venezuela said 8 attackers were killed on the coast of La Guaira. This is some 30 kilometres from the capital city of Caracas. President Nicolas Maduro, said: "The main objective was to kill the Venezuelan president, a terrorist attack in the middle of a pandemic." It did not take long for President Nicolas Maduro to cry coup. It was all planned in the White House, he said. On May 6, 2020, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said: "Donald Trump, Mike Pompeo were directly behind this." Later, Venezuelan authorities arrested 13 people. Among them were two Americans. Luke Denman and Airan Berry, Venezuela said the duo played a key role in the plot. Adding-- they were working with Jordan Goudreau-- an American military veteran who runs a security company in Florida. Maduro furnished proof, he said: "Here's his license as part of silvercorp. Here's the passport of the other American mercenary who was a member of Donald Trump's security, they claim. Berry, Airan was born May 15, 1978, in Texas, United States. His identification as a member of the silvercorp company. " Goudreau has reportedly admitted to organising the invasion. He also admitted to working with Denman and Berry. US President Donald Trump was quick to deny involvement. He said: "I just got information [referring to two US Citizens detained in Venezuela. Nothing to do with our government but I just got information on that. It has nothing to do with our government." Back in Caracas, opposition leader and self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido rubbished the alleged incursion. Maduro is trying to divert attention from real issues, he said: "They want to sow confusion, they want to sow a state of apparent commotion to hide what's going on in Venezuela." The United States has been tight-lipped on this supposed botched coup. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called it a consular matter. He said: "We want to get every American back. If the Maduro regime decides to hold them, we'll use every tool that we have available to try and get them back. It's our responsibility to do so." Venezuela meanwhile is beating its chest. It's latest so-called proof against the trump administration is this confession video where Luke Denman said: "My responsibility to silvercorp are written into a contract or described in a contract signed by Jordan Goudreau, Juan Rendon and Juan Guaido." The 34-year-old Denman claims that the plan was to secure a Caracas airport so that Maduro could be sent to the United States. This edited video is Maduro's best ammo against the trump administration. He is now lodging a case at the International Court of Justice. The culprits are the US government and President Donald Trump.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accuses United States of plotting coup

Venezuela's state TV has shown a video of a US citizen apparently confessing to plotting to overthrow President Nicolas Maduro and bring him to the US.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump had denied America's link to alleged Venezuela invasion attempt.

However,&nbsp;troops that went to capture Maduro were&nbsp;still in action according&nbsp;to&nbsp;Jordan Goudreau, a former US special forces soldier&nbsp;who was linked to plot to topple him.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-troops-on-mission-to-capture-venezuelan-president-maduro-still-in-action-296719">US troops on mission to capture Venezuelan President Maduro still in action</a>

Meanwhile,&nbsp;a video released by Venezuela's government shows Luke Denman, a former special operations forces member and one of 13 people arrested over the weekend, saying&nbsp;that he was hired to train Venezuelans in Colombia before returning to Caracas and taking control of an airport to allow Maduro to be taken out of the country.

"I was helping Venezuelans take back control of their country," he added.

Denman said he and Airan Berry, 41, were contracted by Jordan Goudreau, an American military veteran who leads a Florida-based Silvercorp USA firm, to carry out the operation.

Venezuela says they are "mercenaries" whose armed incursion was foiled. It will seek extradition of Goudreau, who has admitted he was involved in the operation.

According to Maduro, Silvercorp signed a contract with opposition leader Juan Guaido, a politician seen by the US and many European countries as Venezuela's legitimate leader.

Maduro has often accused US President Donald Trump of trying to invade the country and overthrow him.

"Donald Trump is the direct chief of this invasion," Mr Maduro said during a press conference, after the video of Mr Denman was broadcast.

Venezuela's state TV has shown a video of a US citizen apparently confessing to plotting to overthrow President Nicolas Maduro and bring him to the US. Earlier, US President Donald Trump had denied America's link to alleged Venezuela invasion attempt.

Venezuela's state TV has shown a video of a US citizen apparently confessing to plotting to overthrow President Nicolas Maduro and bring him to the US. Earlier, US President Donald Trump had denied America's link to alleged Venezuela invasion attempt. However, troops that went to capture Maduro were still in action according to Jordan Goudreau, a former US special forces soldier who was linked to plot to topple him. Also read: US troops on mission to capture Venezuelan President Maduro still in action Meanwhile, a video released by Venezuela's government shows Luke Denman, a former special operations forces member and one of 13 people arrested over the weekend, saying that he was hired to train Venezuelans in Colombia before returning to Caracas and taking control of an airport to allow Maduro to be taken out of the country. "I was helping Venezuelans take back control of their country," he added. Denman said he and Airan Berry, 41, were contracted by Jordan Goudreau, an American military veteran who leads a Florida-based Silvercorp USA firm, to carry out the operation. Venezuela says they are "mercenaries" whose armed incursion was foiled. It will seek extradition of Goudreau, who has admitted he was involved in the operation. According to Maduro, Silvercorp signed a contract with opposition leader Juan Guaido, a politician seen by the US and many European countries as Venezuela's legitimate leader. Maduro has often accused US President Donald Trump of trying to invade the country and overthrow him. "Donald Trump is the direct chief of this invasion," Mr Maduro said during a press conference, after the video of Mr Denman was broadcast.

US citizens confess 'failed coup' in Venezuela after Trump denies involvement

US troops that went to capture Nicolas Maduro Moros, the President of Venezuela are still in action according&nbsp;to&nbsp;Jordan Goudreau, a former US special forces soldier&nbsp;who was linked to plot to topple him.

Goudreau claimed the battle was not over in a video released late on Sunday, hours after Maduro’s government claimed it had foiled a United States-backed sea ''raid and invasion''&nbsp;near Venezuela’s main international airport.

The 43-year-old American citizen, claimed that ''our men are continuing to fight right now.''

However, he did not provide any evidence to justify his claims.

Previously, Venezuela’s leaders had&nbsp;claimed they had frustrated what they called a US-backed assault near the port city of La Guaira, 20 miles north of Caracas, killing eight alleged assailants.

The country's interior minister, Néstor Reverol, claimed a platoon of “terrorist mercenaries” had tried to make landfall using speedboats but been repelled by security forces.

According to Goudreau, the operation had involved ''60 troops'', including two former US special forces members, who had arrived in Venezuela by land and sea.

&nbsp;''Two US veterans had infiltrated Venezuelan territory and were “in the first stage of a mission to recruit members of the security forces to join their cause,'' he added.

The incident has taken place almost a year to the day after&nbsp;a botched attempt&nbsp;to remove Hugo Chávez’s authoritarian successor from power.

<aside data-component="rich-link" data-link-name="rich-link-1 | 1">Maduro has been the President of Venezuela since 2013 and his presidency is under dispute since 2019.&nbsp;</aside>

US troops that went to capture Nicolas Maduro Moros, the President of Venezuela are still in action according to Jordan Goudreau, a former US special forces soldier who was linked to plot to topple him.

US troops that went to capture Nicolas Maduro Moros, the President of Venezuela are still in action according to Jordan Goudreau, a former US special forces soldier who was linked to plot to topple him. Goudreau claimed the battle was not over in a video released late on Sunday, hours after Maduro’s government claimed it had foiled a United States-backed sea ''raid and invasion'' near Venezuela’s main international airport. The 43-year-old American citizen, claimed that ''our men are continuing to fight right now.'' However, he did not provide any evidence to justify his claims. Previously, Venezuela’s leaders had claimed they had frustrated what they called a US-backed assault near the port city of La Guaira, 20 miles north of Caracas, killing eight alleged assailants. The country's interior minister, Néstor Reverol, claimed a platoon of “terrorist mercenaries” had tried to make landfall using speedboats but been repelled by security forces. According to Goudreau, the operation had involved ''60 troops'', including two former US special forces members, who had arrived in Venezuela by land and sea. ''Two US veterans had infiltrated Venezuelan territory and were “in the first stage of a mission to recruit members of the security forces to join their cause,'' he added. The incident has taken place almost a year to the day after a botched attempt to remove Hugo Chávez’s authoritarian successor from power. Maduro has been the President of Venezuela since 2013 and his presidency is under dispute since 2019.

US troops on mission to capture Venezuelan President Maduro still in action

Thanks to subsidies under socialist former President Hugo Chavez and his successor and protege, Nicolas Maduro, gasoline sold by state oil company PDVSA - which has a legal monopoly on fuel sales - is essentially free in Venezuela.

Motorists offer pump workers tips of snacks or a few hundred bolivares - under 10 U.S. cents - instead of payment.

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But the country’s 1.3 million barrel-per-day refining network has all but collapsed, and U.S. sanctions aimed at ousting Maduro have complicated fuel imports, prompting Venezuelans to either wait hours outside gas stations, or turn to the pricey black market.

Octavio Salom, 53, said he and fellow kidney patients in the eastern city of Puerto Ordaz bought 20 liters of gasoline at $2 per liter for the nurses that provide their dialysis treatment to take a taxi to the clinic.

“They told us that if we could not secure transport, they could not give us dialysis,” Salom said.

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In the western city of Maracaibo, black market dealers are offering to deliver 20 liters of gasoline for $50, according to a Reuters witness. In some areas, Venezuelans have reported paying up to $4 per liter.

That was above pump prices in Hong Kong, which surveys show has the world's most expensive gasoline. Unleaded gasoline at Royal Dutch Shell stations in the city sold for $2.15 per liter as of Thursday, the company's website here showed.

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“Now we need to do sketchy deals to be able to get what is ours, gasoline,” said Maria Ines Urdaneta, a university professor in Maracaibo who always keeps a full tank in case her asthmatic son has an attack.

“As a single mother, I need to go negotiate with some guy who bleeds my wallet dry of dollars just to get gasoline.”

Venezuela’s spike comes as pump prices elsewhere are plunging due to falling demand amid the coronavirus outbreak. In the United States, prices averaged $0.48 per liter ($1.81 per gallon) in the week ended April 20, according to the Energy Information Administration.

PDVSA did not respond to a request for comment.

Venezuela’s government is seeking to repair refineries, and this week received refining material from Iran.

Thanks to subsidies under socialist former President Hugo Chavez and his successor and protege, Nicolas Maduro, gasoline sold by state oil company PDVSA - which has a legal monopoly on fuel sales - is essentially free in Venezuela.

Thanks to subsidies under socialist former President Hugo Chavez and his successor and protege, Nicolas Maduro, gasoline sold by state oil company PDVSA - which has a legal monopoly on fuel sales - is essentially free in Venezuela. Motorists offer pump workers tips of snacks or a few hundred bolivares - under 10 U.S. cents - instead of payment. Also read: South Korea to provide face masks to foreign veterans of 1950-53 Korean War But the country’s 1.3 million barrel-per-day refining network has all but collapsed, and U.S. sanctions aimed at ousting Maduro have complicated fuel imports, prompting Venezuelans to either wait hours outside gas stations, or turn to the pricey black market. Octavio Salom, 53, said he and fellow kidney patients in the eastern city of Puerto Ordaz bought 20 liters of gasoline at $2 per liter for the nurses that provide their dialysis treatment to take a taxi to the clinic. “They told us that if we could not secure transport, they could not give us dialysis,” Salom said. Also read: Bangladesh garment factories reopen, defying virus lockdown In the western city of Maracaibo, black market dealers are offering to deliver 20 liters of gasoline for $50, according to a Reuters witness. In some areas, Venezuelans have reported paying up to $4 per liter. That was above pump prices in Hong Kong, which surveys show has the world's most expensive gasoline. Unleaded gasoline at Royal Dutch Shell stations in the city sold for $2.15 per liter as of Thursday, the company's website here showed. Also read: India briefed EU on methodology followed in combating spread of COVID-19: India's envoy to EU Gaitri Issar Kumar “Now we need to do sketchy deals to be able to get what is ours, gasoline,” said Maria Ines Urdaneta, a university professor in Maracaibo who always keeps a full tank in case her asthmatic son has an attack. “As a single mother, I need to go negotiate with some guy who bleeds my wallet dry of dollars just to get gasoline.” Venezuela’s spike comes as pump prices elsewhere are plunging due to falling demand amid the coronavirus outbreak. In the United States, prices averaged $0.48 per liter ($1.81 per gallon) in the week ended April 20, according to the Energy Information Administration. PDVSA did not respond to a request for comment. Venezuela’s government is seeking to repair refineries, and this week received refining material from Iran.

Venezuela's gasoline goes from world's cheapest to steepest as fuel shortages bite

The United States on Tuesday called on Venezuela's Juan Guaido to renounce his claim to the presidency at least temporarily as it recalibrated its strategy to oust leader Nicolas Maduro.

The shift came after more than a year of faltering US-led efforts to oust the leftist Maduro and as Guaido comes under growing pressure, with authorities on Tuesday summoning him over charges of attempting a coup.

In a new "democratic transition framework," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Maduro and Guaido should set up an interim government with members of both their parties that will arrange elections in six to 12 months.

If fully implemented, the United States and European Union would lift sanctions, including sweeping US restrictions on Venezuela's vital oil exports and on Maduro and his allies as individuals, the State Department said.

The IMF and other international lenders would be invited to consider economic relief for Venezuela, from which millions have fled as they face dire shortages of food and other necessities.

The plan also calls for the departure of foreign forces from Venezuela, a reference to the regime's support from Cuba and Russia.

"We believe this framework protects the interests and equities of all Venezuelan people who desperately seek a resolution to their dire political, economic and humanitarian crisis, and who know Venezuelans can have something better," Pompeo said, urging all sides to consider it "carefully and seriously."

But Maduro has repeatedly ruled out stepping aside and Guaido himself proposed a transitional government in failed, Norwegian-brokered talks last year.

US still backs Guaido

Pompeo signalled that US goals have not changed, saying that Washington still supported Guaido -- a 36-year-old engineer who has been recognized as interim president by some 60 countries since January 2019.

And while the framework says that any Venezuela citizen can run for president in future elections, Pompeo reiterated that the United States wanted Maduro out.

"We've made clear all along that Nicolas Maduro will never again govern Venezuela," Pompeo told reporters.

Asked if Guaido could run, Pompeo said: "Absolutely yes."

"I think he's the most popular politician in Venezuela. I think if there were an election held today, he could do incredibly well," Pompeo said.

"But more importantly we continue to support him. When we put together this pathway to democracy, we work closely with him."

Elliott Abrams, the US point man on Venezuela, said that Guaido would remain head of the National Assembly -- a position from which he derives his legitimacy following wide allegations of fraud in Maduro's 2018 re-election.

But Abrams said that any person who heads the transitional government would not be allowed to run for president.

Guaido summoned

Guaido welcomed Pompeo's initiative, writing on Twitter: "This is the time to rise; we are taking the right steps to save Venezuela."

Hours earlier, Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab said on state television that Guaido had been summoned to appear before prosecutors in an investigation into the seizure of weapons in neighboring Colombia.

Saab alleged that the arms were to be smuggled into Venezuela. Colombia last week said it seized a weapons cache linked to a retired Venezuelan general, Cliver Alcala -- who last week surrendered to US authorities on drug-trafficking charges.

Alcala on Tuesday pleaded not guilty before a federal court in New York.&nbsp;

He was once close to late president Hugo Chavez, Maduro's predecessor and ideological inspiration. But Saab charged that Alcala was taking orders from Guaido.

Opposition supporters say that the Venezuelan judiciary regularly trumps up charges for political reasons, although Guaido has been allowed to operate freely, even after he flew to Washington earlier this year to meet President Donald Trump.

The United States last week also filed drug-trafficking charges against Maduro, casting him as a common criminal with a $15 million bounty on his head.

The United States on Tuesday called on Venezuela's Juan Guaido to renounce his claim to the presidency at least temporarily as it recalibrated its strategy to oust leader Nicolas Maduro.

The United States on Tuesday called on Venezuela's Juan Guaido to renounce his claim to the presidency at least temporarily as it recalibrated its strategy to oust leader Nicolas Maduro. The shift came after more than a year of faltering US-led efforts to oust the leftist Maduro and as Guaido comes under growing pressure, with authorities on Tuesday summoning him over charges of attempting a coup. In a new "democratic transition framework," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Maduro and Guaido should set up an interim government with members of both their parties that will arrange elections in six to 12 months. If fully implemented, the United States and European Union would lift sanctions, including sweeping US restrictions on Venezuela's vital oil exports and on Maduro and his allies as individuals, the State Department said. The IMF and other international lenders would be invited to consider economic relief for Venezuela, from which millions have fled as they face dire shortages of food and other necessities. The plan also calls for the departure of foreign forces from Venezuela, a reference to the regime's support from Cuba and Russia. "We believe this framework protects the interests and equities of all Venezuelan people who desperately seek a resolution to their dire political, economic and humanitarian crisis, and who know Venezuelans can have something better," Pompeo said, urging all sides to consider it "carefully and seriously." But Maduro has repeatedly ruled out stepping aside and Guaido himself proposed a transitional government in failed, Norwegian-brokered talks last year. US still backs Guaido Pompeo signalled that US goals have not changed, saying that Washington still supported Guaido -- a 36-year-old engineer who has been recognized as interim president by some 60 countries since January 2019. And while the framework says that any Venezuela citizen can run for president in future elections, Pompeo reiterated that the United States wanted Maduro out. "We've made clear all along that Nicolas Maduro will never again govern Venezuela," Pompeo told reporters. Asked if Guaido could run, Pompeo said: "Absolutely yes." "I think he's the most popular politician in Venezuela. I think if there were an election held today, he could do incredibly well," Pompeo said. "But more importantly we continue to support him. When we put together this pathway to democracy, we work closely with him." Elliott Abrams, the US point man on Venezuela, said that Guaido would remain head of the National Assembly -- a position from which he derives his legitimacy following wide allegations of fraud in Maduro's 2018 re-election. But Abrams said that any person who heads the transitional government would not be allowed to run for president. Guaido summoned Guaido welcomed Pompeo's initiative, writing on Twitter: "This is the time to rise; we are taking the right steps to save Venezuela." Hours earlier, Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab said on state television that Guaido had been summoned to appear before prosecutors in an investigation into the seizure of weapons in neighboring Colombia. Saab alleged that the arms were to be smuggled into Venezuela. Colombia last week said it seized a weapons cache linked to a retired Venezuelan general, Cliver Alcala -- who last week surrendered to US authorities on drug-trafficking charges. Alcala on Tuesday pleaded not guilty before a federal court in New York. He was once close to late president Hugo Chavez, Maduro's predecessor and ideological inspiration. But Saab charged that Alcala was taking orders from Guaido. Opposition supporters say that the Venezuelan judiciary regularly trumps up charges for political reasons, although Guaido has been allowed to operate freely, even after he flew to Washington earlier this year to meet President Donald Trump. The United States last week also filed drug-trafficking charges against Maduro, casting him as a common criminal with a $15 million bounty on his head.

In Venezuela shift, US asks Guaido to renounce power, for now

The United States has charged&nbsp;Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and several top aides on Thursday for "narco-terrorism" and offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture.

Unveiling&nbsp;the indictment, the attorney general, William Barr, said the Venezuelan leadership collaborated with a dissident faction of the former Colombian guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, operating on the Colombian-Venezuelan border, which Barr described as an ''extremely violent terrorist organization''.

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''We estimate that somewhere between 200 and 250 metric tons of cocaine are shipped out of Venezuela by these routes,''&nbsp;Barr said. ''Those 250 metric tons equate to 30 million&nbsp;lethal doses.''

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"It's time to call out this regime for what it is," he added. "The Maduro regime is awash in corruption and criminality."

Alongside Maduro, Venezuela’s vice-president for the economy, Venezuela’s defence minister, and the supreme court’s chief justice are among the list of 15 current and former officials who have been indicted.

<aside data-component="rich-link" data-link-name="rich-link-3 | 1">
The Justice Department accused Maduro of leading a cocaine-trafficking gang called "The Cartel of the Suns" that shipped hundreds of tons of narcotics into the US over two decades, earning hundreds of millions of dollars.
</aside>

The United States has charged Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and several top aides on Thursday for "narco-terrorism" and offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture.

The United States has charged Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and several top aides on Thursday for "narco-terrorism" and offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture. Unveiling the indictment, the attorney general, William Barr, said the Venezuelan leadership collaborated with a dissident faction of the former Colombian guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, operating on the Colombian-Venezuelan border, which Barr described as an ''extremely violent terrorist organization''. Also read: Man who orchestrated 3000 murders for drugs kingpin Pablo Escobar dies of stomach cancer ''We estimate that somewhere between 200 and 250 metric tons of cocaine are shipped out of Venezuela by these routes,'' Barr said. ''Those 250 metric tons equate to 30 million lethal doses.'' Also read: Indonesia: Even with strict preventive laws in place, people are brewing cannabis coffee "It's time to call out this regime for what it is," he added. "The Maduro regime is awash in corruption and criminality." Alongside Maduro, Venezuela’s vice-president for the economy, Venezuela’s defence minister, and the supreme court’s chief justice are among the list of 15 current and former officials who have been indicted. The Justice Department accused Maduro of leading a cocaine-trafficking gang called "The Cartel of the Suns" that shipped hundreds of tons of narcotics into the US over two decades, earning hundreds of millions of dollars.

US indicts Venezuelan President Maduro and other top leaders for drug trafficking

Venezuela's elections council said on Sunday (March 8) that a fire over the weekend destroyed most of the voting machines stored in its main warehouse in the capital, Caracas, potentially complicating parliamentary elections scheduled for this year.

Nearly 50,000 voting machines and almost 600 computers went up in flames as a result of the fire that broke out on Saturday (March 7), said elections council chief Tibisay Lucena.

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/polls-open-in-venezuela-election-boycotted-by-opposition-138394">Polls open in Venezuela election boycotted by opposition</a>

She did not elaborate on how many voting machines were still available for use, or how the incident would affect future elections. Lucena said she had asked state prosecutors to look into the cause of the blaze, which did not cause any injuries.

The South American country's elections have come under heavy criticism since President Nicolas Maduro's 2018 re-election was widely dismissed as rigged in his favour, leading dozens of governments around the world to disavow his government in 2019.

Venezuela holds elections this year for parliament, which is currently controlled by the opposition. Maduro's adversaries are demanding that the country instead hold a new presidential election, and have not yet said whether they will participate in the legislative election. A date for that vote has not been set.Venezuela's elections council said on Sunday (March 8) that a fire over the weekend destroyed most of the voting machines stored in its main warehouse in the capital, Caracas, potentially complicating parliamentary elections scheduled for this year.

Also Read:<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/venezuela-postpones-presidential-election-to-late-may-34460">&nbsp;Venezuela postpones presidential election to late May</a>

Nearly 50,000 voting machines and almost 600 computers went up in flames as a result of the fire that broke out on Saturday (March 7), said elections council chief Tibisay Lucena.

She did not elaborate on how many voting machines were still available for use, or how the incident would affect future elections. Lucena said she had asked state prosecutors to look into the cause of the blaze, which did not cause any injuries.

The South American country's elections have come under heavy criticism since President Nicolas Maduro's 2018 re-election was widely dismissed as rigged in his favour, leading dozens of governments around the world to disavow his government in 2019.

Venezuela holds elections this year for parliament, which is currently controlled by the opposition. Maduro's adversaries are demanding that the country instead hold a new presidential election, and have not yet said whether they will participate in the legislative election. A date for that vote has not been set.

Venezuela's elections council said on Sunday (March 8) that a fire over the weekend destroyed most of the voting machines stored in its main warehouse in the capital, Caracas, potentially complicating parliamentary elections scheduled for this year.

Venezuela's elections council said on Sunday (March 8) that a fire over the weekend destroyed most of the voting machines stored in its main warehouse in the capital, Caracas, potentially complicating parliamentary elections scheduled for this year. Nearly 50,000 voting machines and almost 600 computers went up in flames as a result of the fire that broke out on Saturday (March 7), said elections council chief Tibisay Lucena. Also Read: Polls open in Venezuela election boycotted by opposition She did not elaborate on how many voting machines were still available for use, or how the incident would affect future elections. Lucena said she had asked state prosecutors to look into the cause of the blaze, which did not cause any injuries. The South American country's elections have come under heavy criticism since President Nicolas Maduro's 2018 re-election was widely dismissed as rigged in his favour, leading dozens of governments around the world to disavow his government in 2019. Venezuela holds elections this year for parliament, which is currently controlled by the opposition. Maduro's adversaries are demanding that the country instead hold a new presidential election, and have not yet said whether they will participate in the legislative election. A date for that vote has not been set.Venezuela's elections council said on Sunday (March 8) that a fire over the weekend destroyed most of the voting machines stored in its main warehouse in the capital, Caracas, potentially complicating parliamentary elections scheduled for this year. Also Read: Venezuela postpones presidential election to late May Nearly 50,000 voting machines and almost 600 computers went up in flames as a result of the fire that broke out on Saturday (March 7), said elections council chief Tibisay Lucena. She did not elaborate on how many voting machines were still available for use, or how the incident would affect future elections. Lucena said she had asked state prosecutors to look into the cause of the blaze, which did not cause any injuries. The South American country's elections have come under heavy criticism since President Nicolas Maduro's 2018 re-election was widely dismissed as rigged in his favour, leading dozens of governments around the world to disavow his government in 2019. Venezuela holds elections this year for parliament, which is currently controlled by the opposition. Maduro's adversaries are demanding that the country instead hold a new presidential election, and have not yet said whether they will participate in the legislative election. A date for that vote has not been set.

Fire destroys most voting machines in Venezuela's main elections warehouse

President Nicolas Maduro sparked a furore in Venezuela after he urged women to produce six children, each for the "good of the country".

While addressing a woman present at the healthcare event, Maduro said, "May God bless you for having given life to six little girls and boys".

He then urged that "Every woman should have six children for the good of the country", he said.

Although Venezuela sits on the world's largest proven oil reserves, Venezuela's economy has collapsed under Maduro's leadership and the country has suffered five years of recession. The UN says more than 4.5 million people have left the country due to its crisis while inflation is the highest in the world, according to the International Monetary Fund.

In 2019, the official currency, the bolivar, depreciated more than 90%, while hyperinflation in the first nine months of the year clocked in at 4,680%, according to the central bank.

According to a report by the United Nations' children's agency Unicef, 13% of Venezuelan children were malnourished between 2013 and 2018.

A bitter power struggle between the Maduro government and the opposition leader Juan Guaido has exacerbated the country's economic crisis.

Last year, Guaido declared himself the country's acting president in a direct challenge to Maduro.&nbsp; 
He derived such authority from his position as the speaker of the National Assembly after the legislature declared Maduro's 2018 re-election invalid following a poll widely denounced as rigged.

 
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President Nicolas Maduro sparked a furore in Venezuela after he urged women to produce six children, each for the "good of the country". While addressing a woman present at the healthcare event, Maduro said, "May God bless you for having given life to six little girls and boys".

President Nicolas Maduro sparked a furore in Venezuela after he urged women to produce six children, each for the "good of the country". While addressing a woman present at the healthcare event, Maduro said, "May God bless you for having given life to six little girls and boys". He then urged that "Every woman should have six children for the good of the country", he said. Although Venezuela sits on the world's largest proven oil reserves, Venezuela's economy has collapsed under Maduro's leadership and the country has suffered five years of recession. The UN says more than 4.5 million people have left the country due to its crisis while inflation is the highest in the world, according to the International Monetary Fund. In 2019, the official currency, the bolivar, depreciated more than 90%, while hyperinflation in the first nine months of the year clocked in at 4,680%, according to the central bank. According to a report by the United Nations' children's agency Unicef, 13% of Venezuelan children were malnourished between 2013 and 2018. A bitter power struggle between the Maduro government and the opposition leader Juan Guaido has exacerbated the country's economic crisis. Last year, Guaido declared himself the country's acting president in a direct challenge to Maduro. He derived such authority from his position as the speaker of the National Assembly after the legislature declared Maduro's 2018 re-election invalid following a poll widely denounced as rigged.

Woman should have six children for the good of the country: Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro

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