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| Venezuela crisis: US hits 13 top officials with sanctions | |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| The US government has imposed sanctions on 13 senior Venezuelan officials as pressure mounts on President Nicolás Maduro ahead of a controversial vote for a new constituent assembly. | The US government has imposed sanctions on 13 senior Venezuelan officials as pressure mounts on President Nicolás Maduro ahead of a controversial vote for a new constituent assembly. |
| The sanctions freeze the US assets of those affected, and stop US entities from doing business with them. | The sanctions freeze the US assets of those affected, and stop US entities from doing business with them. |
| Those targeted include the interior minister and the head of the army. | Those targeted include the interior minister and the head of the army. |
| Last week, President Donald Trump vowed "strong and swift economic actions" if Mr Maduro held the poll, due on Sunday. | Last week, President Donald Trump vowed "strong and swift economic actions" if Mr Maduro held the poll, due on Sunday. |
| "Who do these imperialists in the United States think they are?" Mr Maduro said on Wednesday. "The government of the world?" | |
| He also called the sanctions "illegal, insolent and unprecedented". | He also called the sanctions "illegal, insolent and unprecedented". |
| The vote, which Venezuela says will proceed as planned, is to choose the 545 members of a new constituent assembly that would rival the opposition-held National Assembly. | The vote, which Venezuela says will proceed as planned, is to choose the 545 members of a new constituent assembly that would rival the opposition-held National Assembly. |
| Critics say the president is trying to cement a dictatorship. He argues it is the only way to bring peace back to the divided nation. | Critics say the president is trying to cement a dictatorship. He argues it is the only way to bring peace back to the divided nation. |
| The US sanctions also target the head of Venezuela's National Electoral Council, Tibisay Lucena, and former vice president Elias Jaua, who is leading the presidential commissions organising Sunday's vote. | The US sanctions also target the head of Venezuela's National Electoral Council, Tibisay Lucena, and former vice president Elias Jaua, who is leading the presidential commissions organising Sunday's vote. |
| The inclusion of senior figures from the state oil company PDVSA underlines a further threat from Washington that sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector could be next. | The inclusion of senior figures from the state oil company PDVSA underlines a further threat from Washington that sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector could be next. |
| Announcing the sanctions, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the US "will not ignore the Maduro regime's ongoing efforts to undermine democracy, freedom, and the rule of law". | Announcing the sanctions, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the US "will not ignore the Maduro regime's ongoing efforts to undermine democracy, freedom, and the rule of law". |
| "Anyone elected to the National Constituent Assembly should know that their role in undermining democratic processes and institutions in Venezuela could expose them to potential US sanctions," he said. | "Anyone elected to the National Constituent Assembly should know that their role in undermining democratic processes and institutions in Venezuela could expose them to potential US sanctions," he said. |
| Mr Maduro has accused the US of stoking unrest against his government, but President Trump said last week that Washington "will not stand by as Venezuela crumbles". | Mr Maduro has accused the US of stoking unrest against his government, but President Trump said last week that Washington "will not stand by as Venezuela crumbles". |
| A 48-hour general strike is currently under way in Venezuela, in protest at the planned vote. | A 48-hour general strike is currently under way in Venezuela, in protest at the planned vote. |
| A 30-year-old man was killed on Wednesday at a protest in Ejida, in the western state of Merida. The cause of his death was not initially given. | A 30-year-old man was killed on Wednesday at a protest in Ejida, in the western state of Merida. The cause of his death was not initially given. |
| More than 100 people have been killed in protest-related violence, since almost daily anti-government protests began on 1 April. | More than 100 people have been killed in protest-related violence, since almost daily anti-government protests began on 1 April. |
| The unrest has further hammered an imploding economy that is running short of food and medicine. | The unrest has further hammered an imploding economy that is running short of food and medicine. |
| 'End to democracy' | 'End to democracy' |
| Venezuela's opposition is refusing to take part in the elections for the assembly, which it says is a tool for Mr Maduro to entrench himself in power. | Venezuela's opposition is refusing to take part in the elections for the assembly, which it says is a tool for Mr Maduro to entrench himself in power. |
| On Tuesday, opposition leader Leopoldo López called on Venezuelans to step up street protests, saying the president's plan to rewrite the constitution would bring an end to the country's democracy. | On Tuesday, opposition leader Leopoldo López called on Venezuelans to step up street protests, saying the president's plan to rewrite the constitution would bring an end to the country's democracy. |
| Speaking from his home, where he is held under house arrest, he called on the military to withdraw its support from the government. | Speaking from his home, where he is held under house arrest, he called on the military to withdraw its support from the government. |
| "I invite you to not be accomplices to the annihilation of the republic, to a constitutional fraud, to repression," he said in a video posted on Twitter [in Spanish]. | "I invite you to not be accomplices to the annihilation of the republic, to a constitutional fraud, to repression," he said in a video posted on Twitter [in Spanish]. |
| Demonstrations and a 24-hour strike held last week seem only to have hardened the government's resolve to go ahead with the election. | Demonstrations and a 24-hour strike held last week seem only to have hardened the government's resolve to go ahead with the election. |
| But the opposition says it is confident it will be able to shut down most of the country until Friday, when a massive demonstration has been scheduled in the capital, Caracas. | But the opposition says it is confident it will be able to shut down most of the country until Friday, when a massive demonstration has been scheduled in the capital, Caracas. |