Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY

A12 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 27 July 2017

Venezuela leader’s foes levy new sanctions and fresh strike

By M. WEISSENSTEIN only solution is a change of
Associated Press government.”
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) Among those hit by the
— Opponents of President U.S. sanctions were Tibi-
Nicolas Maduro at home say Lucena Ramirez, the
and abroad tried again president of the National
Wednesday to pressure the Electoral Council and pres-
socialist leader into halting ident of Venezuela’s Na-
his plans to rewrite Venezu- tional Board of Elections;
ela’s constitution though Elias Jose Jaua Milano,
there was no public sign minister of education and
their efforts were working. head of the Presidential
The Trump administra- Commission for the Nation-
tion announced sanctions al Constituent Assembly;
on 13 current and former Tarek William Saab Halabi,
members of Maduro’s ad- president of Venezuela’s
ministration, freezing their Republican Moral Coun-
U.S. assets and barring cil; and Maria Iris Varela
Americans from doing busi- Rangel, a member of Ven-
ness with them. ezuela’s Presidential Com-
The U.S. also joined with a mission for the Constituent
dozen other regional gov- Assembly.
ernments in urging Maduro In addition, penalties will
to suspend Sunday’s elec- Anti-government demonstrator eye Venezuelan Bolivarian National Guard officers on the first apply to several members
tion of a national assembly day of a 48-hour general strike in protest of government plans to rewrite the constitution, in the of Venezuela’s national
for rewriting the charter. Bello Campo neighborhood of Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, July 26, 2017. President Nicolas guard, police and other
Those moves came as a Maduro is promoting the constitution rewrite as a means of resolving Venezuela’s political standoff security services, including
coalition of Venezuelan and economic crisis, but opposition leaders are boycotting it. Interior Minister Nestor Luis
opposition groups orga- (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) Reverol Torres, who was in-
nized a second national four months of demonstra- lic to go to the polls Sunday. republic that you swore to dicted last year by the U.S.
strike in a week. tions to at least 98. Meanwhile, opposition defend,” Lopez said in a Justice Department for his
Highways were mostly Venezuela was less than leader Leopoldo Lopez 15-minute video message. alleged role in an interna-
empty and businesses shut- four days from a vote that called on Venezuelans “I ask you not to be ac- tional cocaine distribution
tered across the country as would start the process of to support the strike in his complices in the annihila- conspiracy.
millions of people observed rewriting its constitution by first direct public message tion of the republic.” The Trump administration
the 48-hour strike and ac- electing members of a spe- since being moved from Three days of protests are has said it is considering
tivists threw up roadblocks cial assembly to reshape prison to house arrest this planned leading up to Sun- further sanctions, including
in many neighborhoods to the charter. month. day’s vote, starting with the restrictions on Venezuelan
keep others from getting to The opposition is boycot- The 46-year-old former strike and culminating Fri- oil imports, a potentially
work. ting the vote, saying elec- Caracas-area mayor, who day with a demonstration devastating blow to Ven-
By late afternoon, clashes tion rules were rigged to was sentenced to 14 years billed as a “takeover of Ca- ezuela’s economy.
between police and pro- guarantee Maduro a ma- in 2015 after being con- racas.” The U.S. also said it had de-
testers erupted at some jority in the constitutional victed of inciting violence “We have to do every- termined that Venezuelan
roadblocks in Caracas, assembly. during a previous spate of thing possible to halt the Vice President Tareck El Ais-
and the chief prosecutor’s Maduro did not address protests, also appealed to constitutional assembly,” sami, hit with U.S. sanctions
office reported at least one the nation Wednesday the military not to deploy said Maria Medina, an of- in February, had “hundreds
person killed. but state-run television for Sunday’s election. fice administrator who was of millions of dollars” in as-
That increased the official was filled with scenes of his “We are on the brink of waiting in line at a state-run sets that have been frozen
count of dead in nearly backers exhorting the pub- their trying to annihilate the bank that opened. “The due to the sanctions. The
U.S. has accused El Ais-
22 injured after boats collide in Puerto Rico sami of playing a major
role in global drug traffick-
ing, a charge he denies. El
Aissami is the most senior
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico The collision took place vessel crashed into a com- ond were hurt. Venezuelan official ever
(AP) — Puerto Rico au- Tuesday night near the mercial boat that carries Further details were not targeted by the U.S.
thorities say more than 20 tourist town of La Par- both locals and tourists to immediately available. The flagship airline in neigh-
people have been injured, guera, a popular weekend visit cays and go snorkel- A spokesman for the U.S. boring Colombia said it
three of them seriously, in a boating destination. ing. Coast Guard did not im- was suspending all flights
boat crash off the island’s A police statement Two people on the first mediately return a phone to Venezuela, citing secu-
southwest coast. Wednesday says a private boat and 20 on the sec- call seeking comment.q rity concerns. q