Venezuela

[phkrause]

‘Fat Leonard,’ a fugitive now returning to the US, was behind one of the military’s biggest scandals

WASHINGTON (AP) — Returning convicted defense contractor Leonard “Fat Leonard” Francis to U.S. custody as part of the Venezuelan prisoner swap on Wednesday is the latest twist in a decade-long salacious saga and bribery scheme that swept up dozens of American Navy officers.

https://apnews.com/article/fat-leonard-navy-bribery-scandal-venezuela-extradition-57c07f7efdf9e0cbcaad35d04eff3b6e?

[phkrause]

The US and Venezuela swap prisoners: 1 Maduro ally for 10 Americans and a fugitive contractor The United States freed a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in exchange for the release of 10 Americans imprisoned in the South American country and the return of a fugitive defense contractor known as “Fat Leonard” who is at the center of a massive Pentagon bribery scandal, the Biden administration announced Wednesday. Read more.

Why this matters: The deal represents the Biden administration’s boldest move yet to improve relations with the major oil-producing nation and extract concessions from the self-proclaimed socialist leader.   The largest release of American prisoners in Venezuela’s history comes weeks after the White House agreed to suspend some sanctions, following a commitment by Maduro to work toward free and fair conditions for the 2024 presidential election.   U.S. officials said Biden’s decision to grant clemency to Alex Saab, long regarded by Washington as a bagman for Maduro, was difficult but necessary to bring home jailed Americans - a core administrative objective that in recent years has resulted in the release of criminals once seen as untradeable.

Related coverage ➤ ‘Fat Leonard,’ a fugitive now returning to the US, was behind one of the military’s biggest scandals US eases oil, gas and gold sanctions on Venezuela after electoral road map signed

[phkrause]

Secret US spying program targeted top Venezuelan officials, flouting international law

MIAMI (AP) — A secret memo obtained by The Associated Press details a yearslong covert operation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration that sent undercover operatives into Venezuela to surreptitiously record and build drug-trafficking cases against the country’s leadership – a plan the U.S. acknowledged from the start was arguably a violation of international law.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-dea-drugs-cocaine-maduro-spying-law-fbf37f94207d05fb45dca1b75bf04d41?

[phkrause]

Venezuela closes its embassy in Ecuador to protest the police raid on the Mexican Embassy there

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro ordered the closure of his country’s embassy and consulates in Ecuador on Tuesday in solidarity with Mexico in its protest over a raid by Ecuadorian authorities on the Mexican Embassy in Quito.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-closes-embassy-ecuador-mexico-3874d5469a5ef3665e2130b12c4c8776?

[phkrause]

Forced to emigrate, Venezuelans living abroad hope for change — and to eventually return home

The prolonged economic and political instability in Venezuela has forced millions of Venezuelans to leave over the past decade, quashing many of their dreams and leaving many wondering if they’ll ever return to what was once South America’s most prosperous country.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-election-migrants-maduro-opposition-hope-f37b6b4960d50b047632e96b60225ea7?

[phkrause]

Why Venezuela’s presidential election should matter to the rest of the world

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The future of Venezuela is on the line. Voters will decide Sunday whether to reelect President Nicolas Maduro, whose 11 years in office have been beset by crisis, or allow the opposition a chance to deliver on a promise to undo the ruling party’s policies that caused economic collapse and forced millions to emigrate.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-presidential-election-maduro-machado-edmundo-crisis-115b02aa4ad25b7fb8cf583b3dd10a7f?

[phkrause]

Venezuelan election could lead to a seismic shift in politics or give President Maduro 6 more years

Whether it is President Nicolás Maduro who is chosen, or his main opponent, retired diplomat Edmundo González, the election will have ripple effects throughout the Americas. Read more.

[phkrause]

Maduro and opposition party both claim victory in Venezuela’s presidential election Venezuela’s opposition claimed victory in Sunday’s presidential election, setting up a showdown with the government, which earlier declared President Nicolás Maduro the winner. The delay in announcing results — six hours after polls were supposed to close — indicated a deep debate inside the government about how to proceed after Maduro’s opponents came out early in the evening all but claiming victory. Read more.

Why this matters: The National Electoral Council, which is controlled by Maduro loyalists, earlier said Maduro had secured 51% of the vote to 44% for Edmundo González. But it didn’t release the tallies from each of the 30,000 polling booths nationwide, promising only to do so in the “coming hours,” hampering the ability to verify the results.   When Maduro finally came out to celebrate the results, he accused unidentified foreign enemies of trying to hack the voting system. Foreign leaders held off recognizing the results.   Venezuela sits atop the world’s largest proven oil reserves, and once boasted Latin America’s most advanced economy. But it entered into a free fall after Maduro took the helm. Economic sanctions from the U.S. seeking to force Maduro from power after his 2018 reelection — which the U.S. and dozens of other countries condemned as illegitimate — only deepened the crisis.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Why Venezuela’s presidential election should matter to the rest of the world   Blinken says US has ‘serious concerns’ about announced result of Venezuelan election   Read this story in Spanish: Autoridad electoral venezolana declara ganador a Maduro; la oposición denuncia irregularidades

[phkrause]

Venezuela election

 

Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro and his political opponents both claimed to have won the presidential election on Monday as the US and multiple regional nations voiced skepticism about official results. With 80% of votes counted, Maduro won more than 51% of the vote, besting the Democratic Unitary Platform candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, who gained more than 44%, according to a statement by the National Electoral Council. Opposition leader María Corina Machado said their candidate, González, had received 70% of the vote against Maduro's 30%. If Maduro takes office, it will be for a third consecutive six-year term.

 

Venezuelan opposition says it has proof its candidate defeated President Maduro in disputed election

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — As thousands of people demonstrated across Venezuela, opposition candidate Edmundo González on Monday announced that his campaign has the proof it needs to show he won the country’s disputed election whose victory electoral authorities handed to President Nicolás Maduro.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-presidential-election-maduro-machado-edmundo-results-acee6c8cd3a8fc88086c2dd71963b759?

[phkrause]

US arrests a former Green Beret over the failed 2020 raid into Venezuela to remove Maduro

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A former U.S. Green Beret who in 2020 organized a failed cross-border raid of Venezuelan army deserters to remove President Nicolás Maduro has been arrested in New York on federal arms smuggling charges.

https://apnews.com/article/green-beret-arrested-venezuela-nicolas-maduro-39461cdea92af09832b526a74a7d51a2?

[phkrause]

US recognizes opposition candidate González as the winner of Venezuela’s presidential election The pressure is rising on Venezuela’s electoral authority to back up its decision to declare President Nicolás Maduro the winner of the country’s presidential election. Read more.

Key points: The U.S. announcement came amid diplomatic efforts to persuade Maduro to release vote tallies from the election and increasing calls for an independent review of the results, according to officials from Brazil and Mexico.   Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and Edmundo González addressed a huge rally of their supporters in the capital, Caracas, on Tuesday, but they have not been seen in public since. Later that day, the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodriguez, called for their arrest, calling them criminals and fascists.   On Wednesday, Maduro asked Venezuela’s highest court to conduct an audit of the election, but that request drew almost immediate criticism from foreign observers who said the court is too close to the government to produce an independent review.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ What options does Maduro have after Venezuela’s contested presidential election?   Little-known paper sheets are key to declaring victory in Venezuela’s election   Carter Center unable to verify Venezuela election results and blasts officials for lack of transparency

[phkrause]

Venezuela election

 

The US has said "it is clear" that President Nicolas Maduro lost the popular vote in Venezuela's election last week as a key opposition leader said she is in hiding in fear for her life. Though Maduro had promised free and fair elections, the process was marred with allegations of foul play — with opposition figures arrested, their key leader María Corina Machado banned from running, opposition witnesses allegedly denied access to the vote count and overseas Venezuelans largely unable to cast ballots. Protests broke out across Venezuela after the country's electoral body announced Maduro as the winner with 51% of the votes. Many young opposition supporters said they would leave the country if Maduro was re-elected, pointing to the devastating collapse of Venezuela's economy and violent repression under his rule.

[phkrause]

AP review of Venezuela opposition-provided vote tallies casts doubt on government’s election results

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — An AP analysis of vote tally sheets released Friday by Venezuela’s main opposition indicates that their candidate won significantly more votes in Sunday’s election than the government has claimed, casting serious doubt on the official declaration that President Nicolás Maduro won.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-maduro-machado-biden-gonzalez-a625eb01979bc9cf5570d03242f198b1?

[phkrause]

An aid worker’s airport disappearance stirs fear of repression following disputed Venezuela election

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The last time anyone heard from Edni López was Sunday. The 33-year-old political science professor and award-winning poet was preparing to board a flight to Argentina to visit a friend when she texted from the airport that something was wrong with her passport.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-crackdown-maduro-opposition-disputed-election-f59c93361b9b17e83c3af97ce0c7f275?

[phkrause]

DNA on weapons implicates ex-U.S. Green Beret in attempted Venezuelan coup, federal officials say

MIAMI (AP) — Federal investigators say they found the DNA of a decorated former U.S. Green Beret on some of the 60 automatic weapons he allegedly smuggled from Florida to South America as part of a failed 2020 coup attempt against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-maduro-coup-arms-smuggling-dna-da832a30eea2150d0366851935998bd7?

[phkrause]

Latin American effort to mediate Venezuela standoff loses steam as Maduro consolidates rule

MIAMI (AP) — It was a rare diplomatic gamble when the three leaders of Latin America’s largest democracies inserted themselves into the high-stakes standoff between Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and his opponents over who won the country’s presidential election.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-maduro-mediation-brazil-mexico-colombia-0189b6e14f14548667acc0d6e369297e?

[phkrause]

Venezuelan judge issues arrest warrant for opposition’s former presidential candidate

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A Venezuelan judge on Monday issued an arrest warrant for the opposition’s former presidential candidate Edmundo González as part of a criminal investigation into the results of the highly anticipated July election that both the ruling party and its opponents claim to have won.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-edmundo-gonzalez-arrest-warrant-d34272422cddb42c1dde9166539a85d5?

[phkrause]

Opposition presidential candidate flees Venezuela for asylum in Spain Former Venezuelan presidential candidate Edmundo González arrived in Spain on Sunday after fleeing into exile. It was part of a negotiated deal with Nicolás Maduro’s government that dealt a major blow to millions who placed their hopes in his opposition campaign. Read more.

Key points: The surprise departure of the man considered by Venezuela’s opposition and several foreign governments to be the legitimate winner of July 28 presidential election was announced late Saturday by Venezuelan officials who just a few days ago ordered his arrest.   González landed Sunday at a military airport near Madrid, accompanied by his wife and Spanish officials. Hours later, he sent a short voice message to supporters thanking them for their support. “My departure from Caracas was surrounded by acts of pressure, coercion and threats,” he said.   On the streets of Caracas on Sunday, the mood was one of despair at the loss of someone who reignited a movement to end more than two decades of single-party rule. González joins the swelling ranks of opposition stalwarts who once fought Maduro only to throw in the towel and seek asylum abroad in the face of a brutal crackdown. In Spain, he joins at least four former presidential hopefuls who were imprisoned or faced arrest for defying Maduro’s rule.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Venezuela revokes Brazil’s custody of diplomatic mission that’s housing 6 Maduro opponents   Human rights group implicates Venezuelan security forces in killings during post-election protests

[phkrause]

Venezuela’s government offers $100K reward for whereabouts of opposition’s presidential candidate

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government on Thursday announced a $100,000 reward for information on the whereabouts of Edmundo González, the opposition candidate who claims to have defeated President Nicolás Maduro in last year’s election.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-edmundo-opposition-presidential-election-reward-arrest-5b6bf23e53642db059304bef14d2f4ff?

[phkrause]

Venezuelan opposition leader says his son-in-law has been kidnapped Self-exiled Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González, who claims to have defeated President Nicolás Maduro in last year’s presidential election, said his son-in-law was kidnapped Tuesday in Venezuela’s capital. Read more.

What to know: González, who was traveling in the United States, said Rafael Tudares was kidnapped while on his way to drop off González’s two grandchildren at school in Caracas. González is touring the Americas to rally support for his effort to get Maduro out of office by Friday. That’s when, by law, the South American country’s next presidential term begins.   González, who has been recognized by several governments including the U.S. as Venezuela’s president-elect, has not explained how he plans to return to the troubled country or wrest power from Maduro, whose ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela controls all aspects of government.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ What to know about Venezuela’s upcoming presidential inauguration   Venezuelan opposition leader who claims to have defeated Maduro meets Biden at White House   Americans sue Venezuela’s Maduro for anguish caused by imprisonment, alleged torture   Venezuela’s political newcomer Edmundo González says it’s his turn to rule CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Edmundo González has become a beacon of hope for millions of Venezuelans. They want to call him president. He believes he won that office at the ballot box last year. The government of President Nicolás Maduro says he did not. https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-election-inauguration-kidnapping-gonzalez-maduro-ec86b4d13d107d1d2a92c5679da11025?

[phkrause]

Venezuela’s opposition leader defies Maduro to lead protests that end in confusing arrest claims

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela opposition leader María Corina Machado’s aides said she was detained Thursday, followed moments later by official denials of her arrest, in a confusing episode that capped a day of protests seeking to block President Nicolás Maduro from clinging to power.

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-election-inauguration-maduro-protests-edmundo-machado-db8a045f2614cb71022674dc6b73bd88?