Venezuela arrests five foreigners over alleged antigovernment activity

Maduro government announces detention of five foreigners, including three US citizens, amid post-election crackdown.

The administration of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has announced the arrest of five foreigners suspected of antigovernment activity, as part of an ongoing crackdown after the country’s contested presidential election.

Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said on Thursday that three people from the United States, one from Bolivia and one from Peru had been detained for alleged “terror” activities, without offering details.

“The detained foreigners speak Spanish perfectly, a necessary requirement for them to involve themselves in communities,” Cabello said on state television, adding that one of those from the US had been detained in the border state of Zulia.

Human rights groups say repression has increased in Venezuela after the presidential race on July 28.

When Maduro’s government claimed victory without offering the usual breakdown of election results, the country’s opposition denounced the results as fraudulent and released voter tallies that it said proved Maduro’s rival had won.

Election observers from nonprofits like the Carter Center likewise reported that the vote “did not meet international standards of electoral integrity”. And foreign governments like that of the US have called on Venezuela to release the full results.

But Maduro has rejected the allegations of election malfeasance. Instead, his government has used allegations of foreign meddling to help justify crackdowns on dissent.

Critics say Maduro and his allies have also used foreign prisoners as leverage in international relations.

In December 2023, for instance, Venezuela released dozens of foreign prisoners in exchange for the release of Maduro’s ally and businessman Alex Saab from US custody. The deal was seen at the time as a cautious step towards better relations between the two hostile governments.

The US and Venezuela have long been at loggerheads: The US has accused Venezuela of human rights abuses and democratic back-sliding, while Venezuela has criticised the US for interference in domestic affairs.

Washington has also imposed numerous sanctions on the Maduro government. But in October 2023, under the Barbados Agreement, the US agreed to ease certain sanctions if Venezuela committed to “competitive and inclusive elections”, free of repression.

But following Maduro’s declaration of victory in July, relations between Venezuela and the US deteriorated once more. The election controversy also strained relations between Venezuela and Latin American counterparts like Brazil and Chile.

Last month, Cabello also announced that three Americans, two Spaniards, and one Czech citizen had been arrested in connection to an alleged plot by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to assassinate Maduro.

The most recent arrests bring the number of foreigners detained by the Maduro government to at least 12. Cabello named the three detainees from the US as David Guttenberg Guillaume, Jonathan Pagan Gonzalez and Gregory David Werber.

“The safety and security of American citizens anywhere around the world is our first priority, and we’re going to gather more information about this in the hours ahead,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters at a news conference.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies