“Venezuela is preparing together with Cuba, together with Nicaragua, together with our older brothers of the world, if one day we have to take up arms to defend the right to peace, the right to sovereignty and the historical rights of our homeland,” said the Chavista leader at the closing of the International Anti-Fascist World Festival, convened by the ruling party.
The statements coincide with growing rumors on the Island of sending Cuban troops to Caracas. A resident in Sancti Spíritus who asks for anonymity reports to this newspaper that a neighbor of hers was “very worried” because her son, belonging to the prevention troops of the Armed Forces (FAR), known as the Red Berets, had been mobilized. In her words, “she supports that they defend the Revolution, but she does not agree with sending her son to Venezuela.”
Without official confirmation, Falcon Eyes, which monitors the movement of Cuban aircraft, said on Friday, the day of Maduro’s investiture, that a FAR continue reading
[Army] flight CU-T1456 traveled to Caracas at dawn “so as not to attract attention, with anti-riot troops and special troops.”
During Saturday’s meeting, Maduro called for a “great global alliance,” like the one he said was formed 80 years ago to advance the defeat of “fascism.” In reference to the victory of the extinct Soviet Union over Nazi Germany in World War II, he said: “Let no one be fooled: this scenario could arise again. Eighty years later, I ring the bell for humanity.” And he warned: “don’t make a mistake with Venezuela.”
“If it’s for good, we’ll move forward. And if it’s the hard way, we will also defeat the Fascists, so that they respect our people,” he added at the event, broadcast by the state channel VTV.
Yván Gil denounced on Saturday the attack with “fire bombs” against the consulate in Lisbon
Comando Con Venezuela, which is part of the largest anti-Chavista coalition, the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), “categorically” condemned this Sunday the attack against the general consulate of Venezuela in Lisbon, which was also denounced by the Administration of Nicolás Maduro and the Government of Portugal.
“We categorically reject and condemn any act of violence and join the call that reiterates the inviolability and protection of diplomatic missions and the importance of their protection, as stipulated in international law,” wrote the opposition team on the social network X.
The Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Yván Gil, denounced on Saturday an attack with “fire bombs” against the headquarters in Lisbon, accused “fascism” and thanked “the rapid intervention of the Portuguese authorities, which prevented further damage.” Likewise, according to a message published on Telegram, he hopes that the investigations will allow the attackers to be found and “determine the corresponding consequences.”
Portuguese police sources confirmed in statements to EFE that around 10 pm on Saturday “something similar” to a Molotov cocktail was thrown against the consulate, which caused, “from what it seems, some damage to the outside of the shutters” of the building, with no record of injuries.
The government of conservative Prime Minister Luís Montenegro “vehemently” condemned the attack and said it was an “intolerable” act. “The inviolability of diplomatic missions must be respected in all cases,” the Portuguese Foreign Ministry said.
According to official data, in Portugal there are about 10,000 Venezuelans registered as residents, and 1,600 voted in the presidential elections in their country, in which Nicolás Maduro obtained a disputed victory proclaimed by the pro-Maduro electoral body.
The Venezuelan community has organized protests in several Portuguese cities against the Chavista leader, in support of the claimed triumph of Edmundo González Urrutia.
Maduro took office as president for a third consecutive six-year term, set to run until 2031, despite allegations of fraud in the July 28 elections, made by the majority opposition which claimed the electoral triumph of González Urrutia and warned of the consummation of a “coup d’état.” The resounding victory, with 67% of the votes, is reflected in the minutes compiled by the opposition, ratified by international bodies such as the Carter Center – observer of the elections – and deposited in the National Bank of Panama.
In response, Maduro said on Saturday that “no one wants military intervention” or “more sanctions”
In the midst of the condemnation by much of the international community, which the Maduro Government also does not recognize, former Colombian presidents Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010) and Iván Duque (2018-2022) raised the possibility of an intervention in Venezuela.
In response, Maduro said on Saturday that “no one wants military intervention” or “more sanctions.”
Referring to this idea, the current Colombian president, Gustavo Petro, asked them to “stop thinking about death.” “Stop thinking about the death of brothers. Didn’t you read the story of Cain in the Bible?” Petro asked.
Uribe, who ruled Colombia between 2002 and 2010, spoke about the proposal for international intervention this Saturday in Cúcuta, the city with the main border crossing of Colombia with Venezuela, after Maduro’s investiture. “We call for an international intervention, preferably endorsed by the United Nations, to oust those tyrants from power and immediately call for free elections,” the former president said.
The position of Petro’s government, which states that there were no free elections in Venezuela and has not yet recognized Maduro as president, is to maintain relations with the neighboring country to avoid a new avalanche of refugees.
During his Saturday speech, Uribe also called on the Bolivarian National Armed Forces “to fulfill their function in accordance with the Constitution and help evict the dictatorship.”
In Caracas, some neighborhoods woke up practically empty and others had a timid influx of citizens
Moreover, the silence in the streets of Venezuela marked the first day of Nicolás Maduro’s third term, with little traffic and reduced commercial activity, while police and the military continued patrolling.
In Caracas, some neighborhoods were practically empty and others had a timid influx of citizens who went out to buy food or basic products, in view of the few open establishments, mostly in areas considered essential, according to EFE in a tour of eight areas of the capital.
“Today, Saturday, I was surprised because everything is closed,” Nixon Ávila, an engineer who needed to send a shipment, told EFE, something he considered “unusual.” “It’s not normal, I imagine it was because of what happened yesterday,” he said, regarding Maduro’s inauguration.
Meanwhile, the deployment of security agents continues, especially in the city center, where the headquarters of public authorities and state institutions are located.
Another citizen, who identified himself as Luis González, told EFE that, while “some places aren’t open yet out of fear,” there is a police presence “all over” Caracas and a “very low” number of people. González, a migrant who arrived in Venezuela 46 years ago, regretted that such a rich country “has so much poverty.”
“They say that nothing lasts forever,” said the man, who was expecting an upcoming announcement “by the opposition, the one who won the election,” he said, without mentioning a name.
Lorena Figueredo also hopes that the “change” announced on Friday by opposition leader María Corina Machado will materialize
Lorena Figueredo also hopes that the “change” announced on Friday by opposition leader María Corina Machado will soon materialize.”
In that sense, although Figueredo admitted to being “downcast” because of the current political crisis, she told EFE that “the last faith” she will lose is the possibility of a change of Government, in the hands of Chavismo since 1999.
While crossing a “quite dark” part of Caracas with few open shops, she said that she will continue living there with her children, who “say that they won’t leave their Venezuela” because “they continue to fight for their country.”
The silence in the eastern part of the city was broken on one street, where a group of Chavista supporters listened to a man playing the guitar and performing pieces by the late singer Ali Primera, who supported the ruling party.
“Here in Petare everything is the same as always, with the revolutionary people. Nothing has happened, and people are living like they do, with Chavismo for everyone. There will be more people on the street later when the party starts,” said David, who identified himself as the head of a UBCH (Hugo Chávez Battle Unit).
The crowded Plaza Baralt, in the center of Maracaibo, was “totally paralyzed”
At nightfall, two concerts organized by the ruling party to “celebrate” Maduro’s investiture in the east and west of the capital gathered hundreds of people, according to images transmitted by the state channel VTV.
In Maracaibo, capital of the state of Zulia (northwest), the panorama was similar: loneliness in the streets, few shops open and a strong police presence.
The busy Plaza Baralt, in the city center, was “totally paralyzed,” according to a merchant who, as on Friday, when “there were no sales,” predicted that he would close early for the second consecutive day.
“We are sick of politics, and that also affects the turnout,” Rodulfo Gutiérrez, a 68-year-old craftsman, told EFE. He is a resident of the capital of this boundary region with Colombia, where the border was closed by the Venezuelan authorities until next Monday.
The drop in the circulation of people is also noticeable in the coastal strip of the state of La Guaira (north), usually full of visitors. Today there were plenty of spaces for vehicles to park.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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14ymedio/EFE, Havana, 11 January 2025 — The collision of two buses on a road in the Cuban province of Camagüey left three dead and 60 injured this Friday, according to state media reports. Among the injured were seven minors who received care in a pediatric hospital, five in the operating room and two in intermediate therapy, while the adults were attended in the provincial hospital of Camagüey, according to the local station Radio Cadena Agramonte.
