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Guaido Calls for Protests to Coincide With His Return to Venezuela

by VOA News

   Venezuelan opposition leader and U.S.-recognized interim President Juan
   Guaido called on the Venezuelan people to take to the streets Monday to
   coincide with his planned return after touring Latin American allies.

   "Today, at 11am, we all go back to the streets," Guaido wrote on
   Twitter Monday, along with an image listing meeting points for roughly
   a dozen cities throughout the country.

   On Sunday, he left the Ecuadorian coastal town of Salinas aboard an
   Ecuadorian air force plane after meeting with Ecuadorian President
   Lenin Moreno. His travel plans have not been made public, but a
   spokesman said Guaido would be in Caracas in time for the Carnival
   season, which begins Monday.

   Guaido has said he expects to be arrested upon his return. But U.S.
   National Security advisor John Bolton warned on Twitter Monday against
   any threats to Guaido's safety upon his return to Venezuela.

   Guaido, recognized by the U.S. and 50 other countries as Venezuela's
   interim leader, heads Venezuela's National Assembly. He used his
   authority to invoke the constitution to declare President Nicolas
   Maduro's leadership illegitimate because of election fraud and declare
   himself interim president.

   Last week Guaido met with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and other
   regional leaders in Bogota, Colombia, and later traveled to Brazil and
   Paraguay.

   The United States increased its pressure on Venezuela Friday, imposing
   sanctions on six high-ranking security officials as well as revoking
   the visas of dozens of other high officials.

   The Trump administration said the sanctions were a response to
   Venezuelan military officials, who last weekend blocked an
   opposition-backed effort to bring food into the country. At one border
   point, aid trucks caught fire and several people died.