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US announces $25m reward for arrest of Venezuela’s Maduro
The US has announced an increased $25m (£20.4m) reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on the day he was sworn in for a third six-year term in office.
The inauguration ceremony was overshadowed by recrimination from the international community and Venezuelan opposition leaders.
Rewards have also been offered for information leading to the arrest and or conviction of Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello. A new reward of up to $15m for Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino has also been offered.
The UK also issued sanctions on 15 top Venezuelan officials, including judges, members of the security forces and military officials.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said those sanctioned were responsible for “undermining democracy, the rule of law, and human rights violations”.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy went on to describe Maduro’s regime as “fraudulent”.
Also on Friday, the EU said it was extending “restrictive measures” against Venezuela because of “the lack of progress… leading to the restoration of democracy and the rule of law”. The bloc also sanctioned a further 15 Venezuelan officials.
Canada also imposed fresh sanctions in what Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly called Maduro’s “shameless actions”.
Joly said Canada “will not tolerate the erosion of the democratic process or the repression of citizens seeking to express their rights”.
Maduro and his government have repeatedly denounced many of the allegations made by Western countries and opposition leaders.
The reward from the US cites narcotics and corruption charges dating back to 2020.
In 2020, the US changed Maduro and other senior officials in the country with “narco-terrorism”.
It accused them of flooding the US with cocaine and using drugs as a weapon to undermine the health of Americans.
Maduro has rejected the accusations. The US also re-imposed oil sanctions last year, after temporarily easing them in the hope Maduro could be incentivised to hold free and fair elections.
The Venezuelan president has blamed an economic collapse in his country on US-led sanctions he calls illegitimate and imperial. His critics blame corruption and economic mismanagement.
On Friday, President Maduro took the oath of office, vowing his third six-year term in office would be a “period of peace”.
“This new presidential term will be the period of peace, prosperity, equality, and the new democracy,” he said.
“I swear by history, I swear by my life, and I will fulfil it,” he added.
The 28 July election results were widely rejected by the international community, including by Brazil and Colombia, some of Venezuela’s left-wing neighbours.
(BBC)
Rapid half-centuries from Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka and Janith Liyanage put Sri Lanka on course to a substantial total, before an electric new-ball spell from Asitha Fernando wrecked New Zealand’s chase.
Asitha swung the ball prodigiously in his five-over opening spell, taking 3 for 17 in that period. By the end of over seven, and chasing 291 for victory, New Zealand were 22 for 5, their chances all but dashed. Mark Chapman battled bravely for a run-a-ball 81, but had no team-mates to go with him.
New Zealand soon slipped to 48 for 6, then 77 for 7, and though the last rites took some time, Sri Lanka dismissed the opposition for 150, inside 30 overs. This was the third one-sided game in the series. New Zealand had won the other two.
Asitha’s 3 for 26 wasn’t quite a swing-bowling masterclass, as he occasionally struggled with his lines. But it did feature some spectacular deliveries, as he gleaned substantially more swing than any other bowler in the game. The ball to take out Rachin Ravindra’s leg stump was magnificent; Asitha angled it across the left-hander, and got it to tail in very late to slip between bat and pad. All through that new-ball spell, he had that shape to his deliveries. He struck twice in the seventh over, removing Tom Latham and Glenn Phillips, both for ducks.
Malinga also swung the ball, though not as much as Asitha, and bowled probing lines. Theekshana got turn out of a pitch that the New Zealand spinners had also enjoyed earlier in the match, particularly when they picked their way through Sri Lanka’s middle order. Though it was still Matt Henry, who was most penetrative, taking 4 for 55 from his ten overs. Three of those wickets came at the death, but Henry had been instrumental in building pressure through the middle overs too.
The first ingredients of Sri Lanka’s 140-run victory, however, were the fifties to Nissanka and Kusal. Nissanka’s 66 off 42 was unusual. He got to 50 off the 31st delivery he played, but as he was completing that run, appeared to pull a hamstring, and left the field at the end of the tenth over. Kusal then replaced him at the crease and reeled off 54 off 48 to salvage what has otherwise been a modest tour for him.
Nissanka, especially, reveled in taking on the short ball. He crashed five sixes and six fours in his innings, coming back to the middle in the 34th over to swing at a few though he was unable to run or reach particularly far outside off. Kusal hit two sixes and five fours, having made all his runs after the initial fielding restrictions had ended.
Bangladesh’s leading cricketer Tamim Iqbal announced on Friday that his chapter in international cricket has come to an end.The left-handed batsman recently met with the national selection panel, which is preparing the Bangladesh squad for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy, and had been awaiting his decision.
Tamim had earlier retired from international cricket but later changed his mind.
( Cricbuzz)
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been sworn in for a third six-year term after a contentious election that saw his opponent Edmundo Gonzalez claim voter fraud and declare victory.
By starting a new term on Friday, Maduro is defying international pressure and sanctions led by the United States, which has recognised Gonzalez as the winner of the July vote.
“May this new presidential term be a period of peace, of prosperity, of equality and the new democracy,” Maduro said, pledging to comply with the laws of the country. “I swear on history, on my life, and I will fulfil my mandate.”
Maduro’s inauguration came a day after opposition leader Maria Corina Machado made a rare public appearance to lead a protest against his rule. Machado’s team said she was briefly detained during the demonstration.
“I am now in a safe place and with more determination than ever before to continue with you until the end,” Machado said in a social media post after her release.
Maduro, a former bus driver, rose to power after the death of left-wing leader Hugo Chavez in 2013. His tenure has been marred by accusations of authoritarianism as well as economic and political crises.
(Aljazeera)
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