On Monday, Venezuela’s foreign minister accused President Nicolás Maduro’s rivals of being responsible for damage to the nation’s diplomatic posts in five other countries.
In a statement, Foreign Minister Yvan Gil claimed that grassroots organizations known as “comanditos,” or small commandos, were responsible for the vandalism. However, he provided no supporting evidence for the claim, which was made three days after Maduro was sworn in for a third six-year term despite clear evidence of his electoral defeat.
Gil stated that in order “to find those responsible and to ensure the integrity of our facilities,” he has requested that the authorities in Portugal, Germany, Spain, Colombia, and Costa Rica speed up their investigations. He did not specify the precise time of the vandalism of the diplomatic facilities.
The principal alliance of opposition did
