Venezuela opposition members who hid in embassy flee Caracas with US help
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says group now in the US after a ‘rescue’ operation
Five top aides of Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado escaped the country after the US helped them foil a siege of the Argentine embassy in Caracas where they had been holed up for 15 months.
“The US welcomes the successful rescue of all hostages held by the Maduro regime at the Argentinian Embassy in Caracas,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday evening in a post on X. He said the group was on US soil after a “precise operation” to free them, without elaborating.
Machado, who has spearheaded the strongest movement to end President Nicolas Maduro’s 12-year rule, praised the “impeccable and epic operation for the freedom of five heroes of Venezuela”.
Maduro’s government had placed permanent check points surrounding the embassy, while his security forces took control of a private house neighbouring the residence.
The timing of the operation was unclear, but it was announced when Maduro and other senior officials were in Russia to attend a parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany by the Soviet Union and its allies.