Politics Court issues arrest warrant for opposition candidate in Venezuela

Following the presidential election in Venezuela, which was overshadowed by allegations of fraud, an arrest warrant has been issued for opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia. The ex-diplomat is accused, among other things, of usurping office, incitement to disobey the law, conspiracy and sabotage, according to the decision of a court in Caracas responsible for terrorism proceedings. The judge thus granted a corresponding request by the pro-government public prosecutor's office.

It is unclear where González is currently staying. The last time he appeared in public was on July 30 at a demonstration in Caracas. He then addressed his supporters several times in video messages. Most recently, he let three summonses to the public prosecutor's office pass, where he was supposed to testify to the accusations against him.

"They have lost all touch with reality," wrote opposition leader María Corina Machado on X. "By threatening the elected president, they are only bringing us closer together and strengthening the support of Venezuelans and the world for Edmundo González. Serenity, courage and determination. We are moving forward."

After the election on July 28, the election authority, which is loyal to the party, declared Nicolás Maduro, the authoritarian head of state who has been in power since 2013, the winner. However, it has not yet published a breakdown of the results. The opposition is accusing the government of electoral fraud and is claiming victory for its candidate González. According to their own information, they have the detailed results lists from more than 80 percent of the constituencies. According to this, González is said to have received 67 percent of the votes and Maduro only 30 percent.

The USA and several Latin American countries have already recognized the ex-diplomat's election victory. The European Union and the Organization of American States also doubt the official election results.

Self-proclaimed interim president Guaidó also under scrutiny

Maduro's re-election in 2018 had already not been recognized by many countries. Juan Guaidó, then president of parliament, declared himself interim president in 2019, but was unable to assert himself in the country - mainly because the military backed Maduro. This allowed him to simply sit out the protests at the time.

An arrest warrant was also issued for Guaidó in October last year. The public prosecutor's office accuses him of treason, usurpation of office and embezzlement, among other things. The 41-year-old now lives in exile in the USA.

Venezuela suffers from mismanagement, corruption and international sanctions. More than 80 percent of the population live below the poverty line. According to UN figures, over seven million people - around a quarter of the population - have left the country in recent years due to poverty and violence.

USA has Maduro's plane confiscated

Shortly before the arrest warrant for González was issued, the US authorities confiscated one of Maduro's aircraft due to sanctions violations. The Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft was seized in the Dominican Republic and transferred to the US state of Florida, according to the Department of Justice in Washington. Justice Minister Merrick Garland explained that the aircraft had been purchased illegally for 13 million dollars via a shell company and smuggled out of the USA "to be used by Nicolás Maduro and his cronies".

The government of the South American country condemned the seizure of its plane. "The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela denounces to the international community that the authorities of the United States of America, in a criminal practice that can only be described as piracy, have illegally seized an airplane belonging to the President of the Republic, justifying this with the coercive measures that they unilaterally and illegally impose throughout the world," a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Caracas read.