Venezuela’s government admitted for the first time that members of the political opposition left an Argentine diplomatic compound in Caracas after sheltering there for over a year, but fiercely denied US claims of a covert international rescue operation, AP News reported.
Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello confirmed on Wednesday that six individuals, including aides to opposition leader María Corina Machado, had departed the Argentine ambassador’s residence. However, he dismissed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s assertion that their arrival in America followed a “successful rescue,” insisting the exits were “negotiated with the government.”
Cabello alleged one individual left the compound as early as August 2023, contradicting opposition accounts that all six remained until this week.
The group had sought refuge in March 2023 after arrest warrants were issued by President Nicolás Maduro’s loyalists, who accused them of inciting violence to destabilise the state. Among them was Fernando Martínez, a former 1990s cabinet minister, who reportedly left the embassy in December and died in February after appearing before prosecutors.
The diplomatic standoff unfolded against a backdrop of escalating measures by Maduro’s government, which systematically targeted dissent since controversially claiming victory in last year’s presidential election. Opposition figures and international observers widely dismissed the poll as fraudulent, sparking deadly protests and a rupture in Venezuela’s relations with Argentina and other nations.
