Three Americans Arrested in Venezuela for Alleged Assassination Plot (archived)***
“While the arrest of the six foreigners in Venezuela could point towards a planned assassination or coup against Maduro, there remains a possibility the six were arrested as both retaliation against nations who have spoken against Maduro’s contested electoral victory or an attempt to gain a bargaining chip to use against the nations affected. Those who support the former theory point to a statement previously levied by Blackwater founder Erik Prince in late July wherein the former CEO of the private military contracting group called upon United States President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to raise the bounty for the capture of Maduro to 100 million USD “then sit back and watch the magic happen.” Furthermore, supporters of the former theory have also pointed towards the aforementioned failed 2020 Operation Gideon as further evidence of US involvement in an alleged plot to assassinate Maduro.”
Rachel Marsden: It’s coup o’clock again in Venezuela. Does Washington know where its cowboys are?
There were some interesting vibrations in the muck prior to this latest effort online, as well. Social media accounts popped up to promote a movement coined, “Ya Casi Venezuela” (or “Almost Venezuela”), complete with a countdown to some sort of big event scheduled for Sept. 16.
The movement has been promoted by Erik Prince, former Navy SEAL and founder of the former U.S. private security firm Blackwater. He had also appeared in an online video mid-August, sporting a “Resistencia Venezolana” (“Venezuelan Resistance”) T-shirt, telling Venezuelan protesters that their “friends from the north” are “coming soon. We support you to the end.”
Distracting Shenanigans During Venezuela’s Post Electoral Dead Calm
While we wait for the impact of these revelations—both in Venezuela and Spain—and perhaps for a response from the U.S. besides last week’s round of individual sanctions, one of the most bizarre developments in our already discombobulating contemporary history has taken place in the vacuum left by an opposition who lost the initiative, and an international community so far unable to really impact things. Courtesy of social media, we witnessed the arrival of “Ya Casi Venezuela,” an initiative that despite its marketish, slightly joyful, title seems to be crowdfunding—nothing less than—a mercenary army to depose Maduro et al, assuming that chirurgical action by foreign soldiers for hire is the only option left.
The things one has to write down in the 21st century!
Former Navy SEAL Erik Prince, the founder of the private military company Blackwater (known for murdering Iraqi civilians), appears to be involved —something that has instilled in a considerable audience the hope, at least online, that this is for real. Prince, in the past and as a Trump backchannel representative, directly met with Delcy Rodríguez to negotiate the conditions of American prisoners in Caracas. More importantly, former Caracas security chief and political prisoner Ivan Simonovis has become its most notable advocate. Meanwhile, some diaspora celebrities are promoting donations, which according to the Ya Casi Venezuela Twitter account are supposedly managed by a non-profit in the U.S. and overseen by an American who, according to the account, was a former prosecutor of the U.S. Department of Justice, go figure (although according to the site the effort just went over the $800k mark).
Notes:
*María Corina Machado is the female Javier Milei (aka US Puppet)
***Foro Penal was created by Freedom House and has been supported by USAID and NED. The executive director, Alfredo Romero, went to Georgetown University and the University of London. He has been recognized as a WEF Young Global Leader, a public servant by Rotary International, and received the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award.
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