Arrest warrant issued for Venezuelan opposition leader Machado

An arrest warrant has been issued for opposition leader Maria Corina Machado in Venezuela following the presidential election held last Sunday, in which Nicolas Maduro was re-elected.

After Maduro and Venezuelan National Assembly President Jorge Luis Rodriguez called for the arrest of Machado and the opposition's presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez, the President of the Caracas Criminal Court, Elsa Janeth Gomez Moreno, signed the arrest warrant for Machado.

Rodriguez accused Gonzalez and Machado of being "behind a fascist conspiracy" and "wanting to start a civil war in Venezuela," repeatedly comparing the opposition to Nazis.

OFFER OF POLITICAL ASYLUM TO GONZALEZ AND MACHADO

Costa Rica offered political asylum to Gonzalez and Machado following the arrest warrant. In a statement, Costa Rican Foreign Minister Arnoldo Andre Tinoco said, "We are prepared to grant political asylum in Costa Rica to both Maria Corina Machado and Edmundo Gonzalez, as well as to any person in Venezuela who is being politically persecuted."

11 PEOPLE KILLED IN PROTESTS

In the protests that erupted in Venezuela following the election results, 11 people, including 2 children, lost their lives, and 84 people were injured. Police have detained 749 people.

The National Electoral Council (CNE) of Venezuela announced that Maduro won the election held last Sunday, noting that Maduro received 51.2 percent of the vote, while the opposition coalition Unitary Democratic Platform (PUD) candidate Edmundo Gonzalez received 44.2 percent. Exit polls, however, indicated that Maduro lost the election and that Gonzalez was the winner. Maduro, who won a controversial election for a third term, has been governing the country since April 2013, following the death of Hugo Chavez. The international community is calling for transparency and demanding clarity in the vote count.

News Source: İHA