Mon Jan 13 19:57:09 UTC 2025: ## Venezuela Seeks Interpol’s Help to Arrest Opposition Leader Leopoldo Lopez in Exile
**CARACAS** – The Venezuelan government has requested an Interpol arrest warrant for Leopoldo Lopez, a prominent opposition figure currently in exile in Spain. Attorney General Tarek Saab announced the move on Monday, citing Lopez’s recent social media endorsement of comments made by former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe calling for international intervention to remove President Nicolás Maduro from power.
Lopez, a former mayor and leader of the Voluntad Popular party, fled Venezuela in 2020 after spending six years imprisoned and under house arrest. Saab accuses Lopez of instigating violence against the state, treason, conspiracy, and criminal association.
The request comes amidst heightened tensions following Venezuela’s disputed July presidential election, which saw Maduro win a third term. The opposition, including Lopez, claims the election was rigged, citing evidence of manipulated voting sheets showing their candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez (now also in exile), as the victor. The election results were announced swiftly without the usual vote breakdown, fueling suspicions of fraud. Post-election protests resulted in numerous arrests and reported deaths, further escalating the political crisis.
The United States, which recognizes Gonzalez as the legitimate president, has increased its reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest to $25 million. Maduro, in turn, accuses foreign powers of meddling in Venezuelan affairs.
Lopez’s initial arrest and subsequent imprisonment in 2014 drew international condemnation from human rights organizations, who denounced the charges as politically motivated. His latest legal troubles highlight the ongoing political polarization and repression within Venezuela. The Interpol request represents a significant escalation in the Venezuelan government’s efforts to silence its opposition, both within the country and abroad.
First Piper 