Suspicion of terrorist activities 125 foreigners arrested in Venezuela - including Swiss nationals

125 foreigners, allegedly including Swiss nationals, have been arrested in Venezuela on suspicion of terrorism. Critics see other reasons.

Following the controversial presidential election in Venezuela, the government of Nicolás Maduro has stepped up its repression and had at least 125 foreign nationals arrested on suspicion of terrorism. The detainees are said to include Swiss nationals.

This was announced by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello at a press conference broadcast on the state broadcaster VTV. According to the "Infobae" portal, the accused are said to have plotted terrorism and been involved in "destabilizing actions".

According to the interior minister, the individuals wanted to "plunge Venezuela into chaos". They were mainly financed by drug barons.

It is unclear exactly what is behind the arrests. The timing of the arrests remains unclear, as does the decision to make them public only now. Critics suspect that the measures are connected to the opposition demonstrations announced for this Friday.

The government has stepped up security measures in Caracas to "guarantee peace", according to Cabello. The background to this is the planned swearing-in of Nicolás Maduro, whose re-election is highly controversial internationally.

Opposition leader González claims election victory

Opposition candidate Edmundo González claimed victory after the election in July. While the USA and several Latin American countries recognize him as the legitimate president, the pro-government electoral authority declared Maduro the winner.

González went into exile in Spain at the beginning of September, but announced that he would return to Venezuela on Friday to be sworn in as president. The Venezuelan government has issued an arrest warrant and a bounty of 100,000 US dollars has been placed on his head.