International
United States: “Maduro has deprived the results they announced of credibility”
The U.S. Government said on Monday that the announcement of the results of Sunday’s elections in Venezuela, which were won by President Nicolás Maduro, according to the National Electoral Council (CNE), had no credibility and called on local authorities to publish the minutes.
“By declaring a winner without the detailed minutes by district to support it, the representatives of (Nicolás) Maduro have deprived of any credibility the alleged election results they announced,” a senior US official said in a call with journalists.
“We have serious concerns that this result does not reflect the will or votes of the Venezuelan people,” he added.
The US representatives in the call did not want to address the possibility of imposing sanctions or other measures, although they said that they have “a number of options” and that it will depend on “what decisions the CNE takes in the coming days, in relation to the publication of the data.”
The White House announced earlier that it will postpone decision-making on Venezuela, including the possibility of imposing new sanctions, until all the voting minutes of the elections are published.
Joe Biden’s Administration has “serious concerns that the announced results do not reflect the will of the Venezuelan people,” White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said at a telephone press conference.
The spokesman considered that it is “absolutely essential that each vote is counted in a fair and transparent manner, that electoral officials immediately share the information with the opposition and independent observers, and that the electoral authorities publish the complete and detailed minutes of the votes.”
“We will hold on to our pronouncement until that happens. We and the rest of the international community are observing and will respond accordingly,” he said.
According to the National Electoral Council (CNE), the Chavista leader obtained 51.20% of the votes (5,150,092 votes), compared to 44.2% of the votes of the majority opposition champion, Edmundo González Urrutia (4,445,978 votes), who denounced an electoral fraud.
The governments of China, Russia and Iran have congratulated the Venezuelan leader on the electoral victory while leaders of Europe and other Western countries have asked for transparency in the count.
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, on an official visit to Tokyo, was “seriously concerned” about the validity of the announced results and questioned that they reflect the “volunity” of the voters.
International
El Chapo’s son Joaquín Guzmán López pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges
Joaquín Guzmán López, one of the sons of notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, pleaded guilty on Monday to drug trafficking charges in a U.S. court, months after his brother Ovidio reached a similar plea agreement, according to local media reports.
The defendant appeared before a federal court in Chicago early Monday afternoon and changed his previous plea in the case, the Chicago Tribune reported. U.S. authorities accuse him of forming, together with his three brothers, the cartel faction known as “Los Chapitos.”
The group is believed to have continued the operations of El Chapo, who has been serving a life sentence in the United States since 2019.
Guzmán López, 39, was arrested after landing in Texas in a small aircraft alongside cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.
International
Venezuela authorizes return flights as U.S. continues deportations amid rising tensions
The arrival of U.S. aircraft carrying undocumented Venezuelan migrants continued regularly despite rising tensions between Washington and Caracas over President Donald Trump’s military deployment in the Caribbean.
Trump maintains that the deployment is part of an anti-narcotics operation, while Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro insists the true objective is to remove him from power and seize the nation’s oil resources.
Venezuela’s aviation authority has “received a request from the United States government to resume repatriation flights for Venezuelan migrants from that country to Venezuela,” the Ministry of Transportation said in a statement .
“Under the instructions of President Nicolás Maduro, authorization has been granted for these aircraft to enter our airspace,” it added.
Caracas will permit two Eastern Airlines flights to land on Wednesday and Friday.
Migration remains one of the Trump administration’s flagship issues. On Monday, the U.S. president held a meeting with his National Security Council to discuss the situation in Venezuela, a day after confirming he had spoken with Maduro by phone, without offering further details.
According to the Venezuelan government, roughly 75 deportation flights have been carried out this year, returning at least 13,956 Venezuelans from the United States.
International
20,000 rounds stolen from german army after driver leaves cargo unattended
The German army confirmed the theft of a shipment of ammunition that occurred a week ago while it was being transported by a civilian delivery driver, a military spokesperson told AFP, confirming earlier media reports.
According to Der Spiegel and the regional broadcaster MDR, around 20,000 rounds of ammunition were stolen from an unguarded parking lot near Magdeburg, in eastern Germany, while the driver was asleep in a nearby hotel. No information has been released regarding the identity of the suspects, and the military declined to specify the exact type or amount of ammunition taken.
Authorities have also not indicated how the perpetrators knew the cargo would be left unattended.
“The theft was discovered upon delivery at the barracks,” the German army spokesperson said.
A police spokeswoman confirmed to AFP that an investigation has been opened but refused to provide further details “for tactical reasons.”
Sources close to the German military, cited by Der Spiegel, believe it is unlikely the theft was a coincidence. They suspect the thieves waited for the driver to stop for the night before striking.
Der Spiegel also reported that the Defense Ministry normally requires two drivers for this type of transport to ensure the cargo is constantly monitored. However, in this case only one driver was assigned, meaning the civilian transport company failed to comply with the security protocols.
El Chapo’s son Joaquín Guzmán López pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges
Venezuela authorizes return flights as U.S. continues deportations amid rising tensions
20,000 rounds stolen from german army after driver leaves cargo unattended
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