US sanctions Venezuela’s security chiefs for crackdown

Washington: The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on 21 of Venezuela’s top security and cabinet officials, accusing them of a campaign of repression following President Nicolas Maduro’s re-election bid in July.
Washington and the G7 said the new measures came after they recognized opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as president-elect, amid accusations of fraud against Maduro.
“The repressive actions of Maduro and his representatives in the wake of Venezuela’s presidential election are a desperate attempt to silence the voices of its citizens,” Treasury Department Acting Under Secretary Bradley Smith said in a statement.
Fifteen leaders of Venezuela’s security apparatus are among those whose assets have been frozen, including the heads of the intelligence service, the military counterintelligence service, the national guard and the police.
The sanctions also target Venezuela’s communications minister and the head of the prison service.
“All of these entities are part of Maduro’s security apparatus and are responsible for the violent suppression and arbitrary detention of peaceful protesters,” a senior US administration official told reporters.
The US Treasury said Venezuelan security forces also issued an “improper arrest warrant” for Urrutia, forcing him to flee to Spain.
At the same time, the US State Department said it was expanding visa restrictions on associates of Maduro.
“Maduro’s security apparatus engaged in widespread abuses, including assassinations, repression and mass detention of protesters,” the State Department said in a statement.
In September, the United States announced sanctions against 16 Venezuelan officials for alleged election fraud.
They included senior figures in Venezuela’s electoral council and Supreme Court, which the US Treasury said at the time had “obstructed the transparent electoral process and the publication of accurate election results.”
Maduro claimed victory in the election and defied intense domestic and international pressure to release detailed polling numbers to back up the claim.
Amid outcry at home and abroad, a former bus driver elected by late dictator Hugo Chavez is now serving his third term.
But the oil-rich country’s economy has crumbled, as Venezuelans suffer severe shortages of food, medicine and other basic goods.
Maduro is accused of leading a harshly repressive left-wing regime, with a systematic crackdown on the opposition.