Tag: Venezuela

Maduro blames ‘terrorists’ as new blackout grips Venezuela

by Marc BURLEIGH / Esteban ROJAS CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — President Nicolas Maduro blamed “terrorists” for a new, near-nationwide blackout that gripped Venezuela Tuesday, two weeks after a similar outage caused deaths and chaos. In a statement on Twitter, Maduro said a deliberately set “large-scale fire” hit facilities around the Guri hydroelectric plant in the south of the country that supplies power to 80 percent of Venezuela’s 30 million inhabitants. Another operation by “criminal hands” […]

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New blackout hits swaths of Venezuela including Caracas

by Marc BURLEIGH / Guillaume DECAMME CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — A new blackout hit many regions in Venezuela including much of Caracas on Monday, sowing alarm two weeks after a nationwide outage that paralyzed the country. The power cut in the capital occurred at 1:28 pm (1720 GMT) and knocked out electricity in the city center. Cellphone signals were also disrupted and television was blanked out. Shops hastily lowered shutters, fearing looters. A Venezuelan newspaper […]

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Maduro’s government calls new Venezuela blackout an ‘attack’

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — President Nicolas Maduro’s government said Monday that a new blackout across much of the country was an “attack” against the electricity system, adding that work was being carried out to bring back power. Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez said on state television that the attack targeted the country’s principal hydroelectric plant, Guri, as in the last, nationwide blackout that hit Venezuela earlier this month. © Agence France-Presse

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Venezuela government accuses arrested Guaido aide of ‘terrorism’

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) –The Venezuelan government said Thursday it arrested a top aide to opposition leader Juan Guaido, regarded as interim leader by the US and other countries, for “terrorism.” Interior Minister Nestor Reverol read a statement on state TV saying Guaido’s chief of staff Roberto Marrero, detained in a predawn raid on his Caracas home, was involved in a plot by Colombia and Central American countries to attack the leadership of President Nicolas Maduro’s […]

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Cradle of Venezuela oil industry is a scene of desolation

by Margioni BERMÚDEZ MENE GRANDE, Venezuela (AFP) — Greasy slicks continue to darken the ground in Mene Grande, a modest town where Venezuela’s oil boom was born more than a century ago. But now the days of crude glory are gone, replaced by desolation. The asphalt on the roads is worn down. Water, cooking gas and electricity are absent most of the time. Locals, who previously received generous oil-related salaries, have left the country because […]

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Finland tops world happiness rankings, South Sudan bottom: UN

Finland ranked as the world’s happiest country for the second year running while war-torn South Sudan sank to the least contented in a United Nations report released on Wednesday. The Nordic nation of 5.5 million people, known for their love of forests, lakes and saunas, topped the study which used survey data asking citizens in 156 countries how happy they perceive themselves to be, as well as measures such as life expectancy, income and social […]

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In Caracas, water an obsession after days of blackout

by Margioni BERMÚDEZ CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Plastic bottles and containers at the ready, Keisy Perez ignores the stench from the brown river as it slips slowly through the grimy San Agustin district of Venezuela’s capital. The quest for drinkable water has rapidly become an obsession for millions like her in Caracas days after a crippling power blackout stalled the city’s pumps. In this part of Caracas, the Guaire river is effectively an open sewer. […]

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All American diplomats have left Venezuela: Pompeo

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) –The United States has withdrawn all remaining diplomatic personnel from its embassy in Caracas as the crisis in Venezuela deepens, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday. “Today, all US diplomats remaining in Venezuela departed the country. I know it is a difficult moment for them,” he said in a statement. “They are fully dedicated to our mission of supporting the Venezuelan people’s aspirations to live in a democracy and build […]

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Venezuela’s pro-regime ‘colectivos’ vow to back Maduro whatever it costs

by Nina NEGRON / Margioni BERMÚDEZ CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) –Jorge Parrado collects water for his Caracas district. But he is also ready to fight completely in support of President Nicolas Maduro as a member of a “colectivo,” cells that uphold and enforce the regime’s socialist ideals. He had arrived at a park in the west of the capital aboard a water tanker to fill it from wells. The precious water was to be taken to […]

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Venezuela’s US invasion: the dollar takes hold

by Esteban ROJAS CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro may be fiercely opposed to the “imperialist” United States. But in one regard, a US invasion is already happening: the dollarization of his South American country. Dollar bills are mixed in with wads of the near-worthless bolivar in markets. Long lines form for an opportunity to buy dollars. Shops offering scant and desperately sought basic items are increasingly demanding dollars as payment. The adoption […]

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Venezuela calls public sector back to work as blackout recedes

by Maria Isabel SANCHEZ and Marc BURLEIGH CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuela’s public employees were called to return to work Thursday after the government ended a nearly week-long hiatus caused by an unprecedented nationwide blackout that deepened widespread anger against President Nicolas Maduro. Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez said in an address on state television Wednesday that Maduro decided the public sector would resume work on Thursday, although state schools would remain closed for an extra […]

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China offers Venezuela help to restore power

China on Wednesday offered to help Venezuela as it faces a crippling multi-day power blackout that President Nicolas Maduro has blamed on the United States. “China hopes that Venezuela can quickly find the cause of this accident and restore normal power and social order,” foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said at a regular briefing. “China is willing to offer assistance and technical support to Venezuela to restore the power system,” Lu said. Power has been […]

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