Maduro urges all powers of state to use 'iron fist' against violence
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has urged the country’s authorities to use an "iron fist" to end crimes and violence that erupted after his reelection in July.
"I demand from all the powers of state greater speed, greater efficiency and an iron fist against crime, against violence, against hate crimes; an iron fist and certain, severe justice," Maduro said Monday.
Violent protests erupted in Venezuela after the country’s National Electoral Council (CNE) said the 61-year-old Maduro had won 52 percent of votes cast on July 28, securing a third six-year term in office.
The opposition has claimed that its candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia obtained 66% of the votes and is the winner.
Gonzalez Urrutia, a 74-year-old retired diplomat, had replaced opposition leader Maria Corina Machado after she was barred by a court from running for president over fraud.
Maduro said the two were encouraging a "coup d'etat" against him and fomenting a "civil war situation", which he said, has been neutralized.
Urrutia’s claim to victory has been recognized by the US and several Latin American countries, including Argentina, Uruguay and Peru.
Earlier this month, Maduro accused the US and right-wing American tech entrepreneur Elon Musk of attempting to engineer coups in his country.
“It is a coup orchestrated by the United States and Elon Musk, [Argentinean President Javier] Milei and other ... right-wing fascists,” Maduro asserted.
Maduro, a former bus driver who became president following the death of his mentor Hugo Chavez in 2013, was re-elected in 2018 despite US-orchestrated opposition.
Venezuela has also been hit by US sanctions for years, and grappling with economic challenges, including hyperinflation.
Since November 2019, the US-led sanctions have pushed unbridled inflation in Venezuela to above 4,000 percent.
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