US rejects claims of CIA involvement in alleged plot to kill Maduro after Venezuela arrests six
Source: The Guardian
US rejects claims of CIA involvement in alleged plot to kill Maduro after Venezuela arrests six
State department says allegations of American collusion are categorically false as US navy member identified among foreign citizens detained
Guardian staff and agencies
Sun 15 Sep 2024 02.09 BST
Last modified on Sun 15 Sep 2024 02.10 BST
The US state department rejected wild allegations of CIA involvement in an alleged assassination plot against Nicolás Maduro after Venezuelan officials announced the arrest of three Americans, two Spaniards and a Czech on Saturday.
The claims of a plot against Maduro the Venezuelan president, whose recent re-election is contested were made on state television by Diosdado Cabello, the interior minister. Cabello said the foreign citizens including a US navy member were part of a CIA-led plot to overthrow the Venezuelan government and kill several members of its leadership. In the television programme, Cabello showed images of rifles that he said were confiscated from some of the alleged plotters.
The US state department late on Saturday confirmed the detention of a US military member and said it was aware of unconfirmed reports of two additional US citizens detained in Venezuela.
Any claims of US involvement in a plot to overthrow Maduro are categorically false. The United States continues to support a democratic solution to the political crisis in Venezuela.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/sep/15/us-rejects-claims-of-cia-involvement-in-alleged-plot-to-kill-maduro-after-venezuela-arrests-six