Venezuela (2006-2018)

[AdamG]

BOGOTA, Colombia Venezuela on Monday accused neighboring Colombia of planning a bombing campaign or a “military invasion” amid heightened tensions in the region and a mass exodus fueled by Venezuela’s collapsing economy.

Saab didn’t provide proof of his allegations, but other regional allies pointed to the weekend visit to Colombia by Admiral Kurt Tidd, head of U.S. Southern Command.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nati...#storylink=cpy

[AdamG]

This reads like some Draconian Gilbert & Sullivan production.

Military officers* are joining the exodus of Venezuelans to Colombia and Brazil, fleeing barracks and forcing President Nicolas Maduro’s government to call upon retirees and militia to fill the void.

High desertion rates at bases in Caracas and the countryside are complicating security plans for the presidential election in 13 days, which by law require military custody of electoral materials and machinery at voting centers.

Last week, officers who rank as high as general were called in and quartered for several days at their units. Retired officials and militia members were also contacted by their superiors, according to one retired officer who asked not to be named for fear of angering the regime. Government officials are training these fill-in personnel for the election, said a second retired officer.

High-ranking members of the military are barred from much contact with the lower ranks . Lines of young military men asking for retirement are long, said the first retired officer. The officer tried to chat with one, but officers running the barracks forbade them from talking to each other. The retiree said top officers fear too much conversation will permit officers and enlisted solders to form alliances for a coup.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...ith-vote-ahead

* Given the lack of comprehension sometimes exhibited by the American media, it's unclear whether Bloomberg is refering to the lower Enlisted, NCOs, field or staff grade officers - or all of the above.

[AdamG]

This is what you get with a Socialist Dictator.

Venezuelan security forces have carried out hundreds of arbitrary killings under the guise of fighting crime, the UN's human rights body says.
In a report, it cites "shocking" accounts of young men being killed during operations, often in poor districts, over the past three years.
The UN's human rights chief said no-one was being held to account, suggesting the rule of law was "virtually absent".
Venezuela has in the past dismissed human rights allegations as "lies".

The UN Human Rights Office alleges that extra-judicial killings were carried out by officers involved with the Operations for the Liberation of the People, ostensibly a crime-reduction initiative. These officers may have killed more than 500 people since July 2015 as a way to showcase crime-reduction results, it says. They are alleged to have faked evidence to make it look as though the victims died in exchanges of fire.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin...575599?SThisFB

[AdamG]

Sidebar comedy: so much for this Kennedy effort.

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http://citizensenergy.com/assistance-programs/joe-4-oil

[Firn]

The Wonkblog discusses the inflation in Zim, eh Venezuela:

Indeed, in the span of a few months, the International Monetary Fund has gone from forecasting that Venezuela’s inflation rate would hit 12,875 percent by the end of the year to now saying that it will get to 1 million percent. Now, this isn’t the type of prediction you should take literally — the IMF says it’s more a “signal that the situation in Venezuela is similar to that in Germany in 1923 or Zimbabwe in the late 2000s.” Instead, as we said, it’s a reminder that even a failed state such as Venezuela can still fail some more. Which it almost certainly will.

It seems to my personal theme here in this thread. Over the year you saw things getting worse and worse, and marveled how things can get on like that but one always had to keep in mind that there human tragedy can plunge into deeper cliffs still. Or as the WP puts it:

If history has taught us anything, it’s that things can always get worse, even when that seems impossible — as it does right now in Venezuela.

Firn

[AdamG]

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has accused opposition lawmakers of playing a role in a failed attempt to assassinate him over the weekend.

During a nationally televised address to Venezuelan troops on Saturday, Maduro was unhurt when explosives-laden drones exploded near the podium.

In a speech on Tuesday, Maduro said Julio Borges, a prominent opposition leader living in exile in neighboring Colombia, was a co-conspirator in the plot, but he did not elaborate on what role the politician had played.

https://www.npr.org/2018/08/08/63658...nation-attempt

WHAT TO KNOW
What happened? Two blasts in Caracas, Venezuela, on Saturday interrupted an open-air speech by President Nicolas Maduro — detonations that authorities blamed on twin drones loaded with explosives. Witnesses said they heard a loud bang and saw one drone fall from the sky and hit a nearby building. Maduro later called the attack, which occurred at a military parade in celebration of the country’s national guard, an assassination attempt. He was not hurt during the explosion, but seven soldiers were injured.
Why it does it matter? Maduro, who’s been in power since 2013, accused political foes in neighboring Colombia and the U.S. of trying to kill him. Appearing on state television, Venezuela’s defense minister described the attack as an attempt to wipe out the country’s leadership. Representatives of the Colombian and American governments denied any involvement, and critics of Maduro warned the socialist strongman might use the incident as a pretext to crack down on his political adversaries. The attack also draws attention to Venezuela’s escalating political and economic turmoil, which has led to widespread food and medicine shortages.
HOW TO THINK ABOUT IT
Who was it? Maduro appeared on television hours after the bombing to blame right-wing conspirators in Colombia, including his foe, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, as well as financiers from Florida. Venezuela has often blamed Colombia for its political turmoil, and there are a large number of Venezuelan immigrants living in Florida. Authorities have thus far arrested six so-called “terrorists and hired killers” linked to the attack following raids in Caracas. A group called “Soldiers in T-shirts,” which describes itself on Twitter as “loyal to the people of Venezuela,” claimed responsibility for the attack but provided no proof of involvement.

It’s just the beginning. Drone strikes, such as those on suspected terrorist leaders, are nothing new. Even the Islamic State has used these devices on targets for years. But there appear to have been few, if any, prior attempts by non-state actors on such a high-level political leader. And it’s probably not the last: As technology improves and becomes more accessible, experts believe these types of attack may well become the preferred weapon of insurgents, terrorists and revolutionaries.

https://www.ozy.com/need-to-know/spe...enezuela/88541

The assailants flew two drones each packed with 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of C-4 plastic explosive toward Maduro, his wife and other top leaders as he spoke Saturday evening at an event celebrating the 81st anniversary of the National Guard, said Interior Minister Nestor Reverol. One of the drones was to explode above the president while the other was to detonate directly in front of him, he added.

But the military managed to knock one of the drones off-course electronically and the other crashed into apartment building two blocks away from where Maduro was speaking to the hundreds of troops, Reverol said.

https://abcnews.go.com/International...-kill-57039101

[AdamG]

Venezuela's government created a new migration police force on Friday to increase controls at the country's borders amid a mass exodus sparked by an ongoing political and economic crisis. Vice President Delcy Rodriguez announced the move on state TV, saying that the migration police will "immediately" take control of Venezuela's 72 entry and exit points. She said that the police force will reinforce "the existing controls" that are currently being carried out by National Guard soldiers who oversee border security.

https://www.dw.com/en/venezuela-crea...ols/a-45777514