CARACAS, Jan 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado said Saturday the "hour of freedom" had arrived for her country after the United States seized strongman Nicolas Maduro. "Venezuelans, the HOUR OF FREEDOM has arrived!" "We are going to restore order," she stated, adding Gonzalez Urrutia must now be "recognized as Commander in Chief of the National Armed Forces by all officers and soldiers." Machado was barred from running in the 2024 election by institutions loyal to Maduro, and was replaced on the ticket by Gonzalez Urrutia, a little-known diplomat. She was awarded the Nobel prize for "her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy."

Source: Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha January 04, 2026 05:26 UTC