Page 2 - Venezuela Crisis

Venezuela releases dozens of prisoners in 2 days, hundreds still detained

Venezuela's leading prisoner rights organisation said Monday that dozens of prisoners were released over the weekend, as the United States continues to pressure the acting government to free hundreds of dissidents jailed during the administration of ousted leader Nicolas Maduro. Alfredo Romero, president of Foro Penal, said in a post on X that 266 "political prisoners" had been freed since January 8, when Venezuela's acting government promised to release a "significant number" of prisoners in what it described as an effort to promote national reconciliation. Maduro was captured by the United States in a raid on January 3, and was replaced by Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, a longtime ruling party insider, who is now the nation's acting president. According to human rights groups, prisoners released this weekend included an opposition activist, a human rights lawyer and a journalism student who was imprisoned in March after he published complaints about his hometown's sewage system,

US used secret weapon to disable Venezuelan equipment in Maduro raid: Trump

President Donald Trump said the US used a secret weapon he called "The Discombobulator" to disable Venezuelan equipment when the US captured Nicolas Maduro. Trump also renewed his threat to conduct military strikes on land against drug cartels, including in Mexico. Trump made the comments in an interview Friday with the New York Post. The Republican president was commenting on reports that the US had a pulsed energy weapon and said, "The Discombobulator. I'm not allowed to talk about it." He said the weapon made Venezuelan equipment "not work." "They never got their rockets off. They had Russian and Chinese rockets, and they never got one off," Trump said in the interview. "We came in, they pressed buttons and nothing worked. They were all set for us." Trump had previously said when describing the raid on Maduro's compound that the US had turned off "almost all of the lights in Caracas," but he didn't detail how they accomplished that. The president also indicated the US will con

MRPL explores buying Venezuelan oil as it halts Russian crude imports

The US in October sanctioned Russia's two largest oil producers - Rosneft and Lukoil - giving companies until November 21 to wind down dealings with them

FAA warns pilots of risks over eastern Pacific, citing 'military activity'

The Federal Aviation Administration has urged US aircraft operators to exercise caution when flying over the eastern Pacific Ocean near Mexico, Central America and parts of South America, citing military activities and satellite navigation interference. The warning was issued in a series of Notices to Airmen (NOTAMs) issued by the FAA on Friday. They say, Potential risks exist for aircraft at all altitudes, including during overflight and the arrival and departure phases of flight. Such notices are issued routinely in any region where there are hostilities nearby. The notices come after nearly four months of US military strikes against boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific that the US alleged were trafficking drugs. After 35 known strikes that killed at least 115 people, according to the Trump administration, the US conducted a large-scale strike against Venezuela. President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were seized and transported to New York, where they

First flight with 231 deported Venezuelans from US lands in Caracas

A flight with 231 Venezuelan migrants deported from the US city of Phoenix arrived Friday to their home country, nearly two weeks after the United States captured former President Nicols Maduro and took him to New York to face drug trafficking charges. The Eastern Airlines plane arrived at an airport outside the capital, Caracas, marking the resumption of flights after Washington according to Venezuelan officials unilaterally suspended direct deportation air transfers in mid-December. The previous direct flight from the US was on December 10. Return flights for deported migrants had been regularised since late March as part of the transfers agreed upon by both governments. The transfers were successively affected amid heightened tensions since US military forces began to execute a series of deadly attacks against boats suspected of smuggling drugs in international waters of the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean, including several vessels that they claim departed from Venezuela. Maduro

US seizes 6th sanctioned oil tanker as pressure on Venezuela mounts

US forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader US effort to take control of the South American country's oil. The US Coast Guard boarded the tanker, named Veronica, early Thursday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on social media. The ship had previously passed through Venezuelan waters and was operating in defiance of President Donald Trump's "established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean, she said. US Southern Command said Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to take part in the operation alongside a Coast Guard tactical team, which Noem said conducted the boarding as in previous raids. The military said the ship was seized without incident. Several US government social media accounts posted brief videos that appeared to show various parts of the ship's capture. Black-and-white footage showed at least four helicopte

Venezuela's acting president urges oil reforms to woo foreign investment

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodrguez used her first state of the union message on Thursday to advocate for opening the crucial state-run oil industry to more foreign investment following the Trump administration's pledge to seize control of Venezuelan crude sales. For the first time, Rodrguez laid out a vision for Venezuela's new political reality one that challenges her government's most deeply rooted beliefs less than two weeks after the United States captured and toppled former President Nicols Maduro. Under pressure from the US to cooperate with its plans for reshaping Venezuela's sanctioned oil industry, she declared that a new policy is being formed in Venezuela and urged the nation's diplomats to tell foreign investors about it. The Trump administration has said it plans to control future oil revenue to ensure it benefits the Venezuelan people. Rodrguez on Thursday painted a picture of money from the oil sales flowing into the national budget to bolster crisis-stricke

'Don't play games' with Trump: US warns Cuba's leaders after Venezuela raid

The Special Forces raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas earlier this month should make Havana take US threats seriously, Jeremy Lewin, a State Department official said

Trump to keep Machado's Nobel peace prize, laureate title to stay with her

US President Donald Trump will keep the Nobel Peace Prize offered by Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, while the Nobel Committee says the laureate title cannot be transferred

US seizes tanker linked to Venezuela ahead of US Prez's meet with Machado

The seizure marks the sixth vessel targeted in recent weeks that was either carrying Venezuelan oil or had done so in the past

Trump to meet Venezuelan Oppn leader after cozying up to Maduro's successor

President Donald Trump is set to meet Thursday at the White House with Venezuelan opposition leader Mara Corina Machado, whose political party is widely considered to have won 2024 elections rejected by then-President Nicols Maduro before the United States captured him in an audacious military raid this month. Less than two weeks after U.S. forces seized Maduro and his wife at a heavily guarded compound in Caracas and brought them to New York to stand trial on drug trafficking charges, Trump will host the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Machado, having already dismissed her credibility to run Venezuela and raised doubts about his stated commitment to backing democratic rule in the country. She's a very nice woman, Trump told Reuters in an interview about Machado. I've seen her on television. I think we're just going to talk basics. The meeting comes as Trump and his top advisers have signaled their willingness to work with acting President Delcy Rodrguez, who was Maduro's vice president

US races to sell Venezuelan oil, transforming ties with former foe

US officials brokered the sale of hundreds of millions dollars worth of Venezuelan oil to stabilize the country's economy after capturing its president

China seeks assurances over loans to Venezuela after Maduro's capture

While state-owned China National Petroleum Corp. holds stakes in three joint ventures producing heavy crude in the Orinoco Belt and one in Zulia state, production is limited and uneven

Venezuela crisis unlikely to hit India oil prices in near term: Crisil

On January 3, the US launched a large-scale operation in Venezuela's capital Caracas and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores

Venezuela frees political prisoners as govt vows to 'rescue' Maduro

Venezuelan authorities released at least seven people, including Virgilio Laverde, youth coordinator for Machado's Vente Venezuela party in the southern state of Bolívar

Machado offers Nobel to Trump, committee says prize is non-transferable

The committee also made it clear that it does not comment on the actions or statements of laureates after the prize is awarded

Tanker carrying oil from Mexico reaches Cuba, increasing tensions with US

Mexico has become a key supplier of oil to Cuba after Venezuela's exports fell, drawing criticism from US lawmakers and adding strain to ties with President Trump

Colombian President Petro resumes criticism of US after detente with Trump

Petro, addressing supporters in Bogota just after the call, signaled that he had planned to make a "tough" speech attacking Trump, but would now moderate his language

Venezuela seeks closer ties with US while condemning Maduro's fall

One of the first major tests of the Trump-Rodríguez alliance will focus on the oil riches of Venezuela, home to the one of the world's largest proven reserves of the key global commodity

US sends delegation to Venezuela to restore ties after Maduro's capture

The United States and Venezuelan governments said Friday they were exploring the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that an delgation from the Trump administration arrived to the South American nation on Friday. The small team of US diplomats and diplomatic security officials traveled to Venezuela to make a preliminary assessment about the potential re-opening of the US Embassy in Caracas, the State Department said in a statement. Venezuela's government acknowledged the delegation's presence in Venezuela and announced that it will send a delegation to the US but it did not say when. Venezuela's government on Friday acknowledged that US diplomats had travelled to the South American country and announced that it will send a delegation to the US but it did not say when. In a statement, Delcy Rodrguez's government said it has decided to initiate an exploratory process of a diplomatic nature with the Government of the United States of America, .