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El Feed
A Hero's Welcome for a DEA Informant
The U.S. just released Maduro’s crony Alex Saab, who was in custody in Miami, in exchange Venezuelan political prisoners and American citizens imprisoned in Venezuela, according to AP and Reuters.
Bargaining Chips
The U.S. released Maduro’s crony Alex Saab, who was in custody in Miami, in exchange for 10 American citizens who were imprisoned in Venezuela. According to Reuters, Venezuela will release 36 prisoners, including 12 US citizens, in exchange for Saab.
By the evening, according to the White House, Venezuela had released 10 American prisoners and fugitive Fat Leonard. A handful of Venezuelans were also released, including electoral NGO Súmate’s director Roberto Abdúl -who helped organized the opposition primaries- and the group of six union leaders detained in 2022.
“Looks good”, president Joe Biden said, “It looks like Maduro, so far, is keeping his commitment on a free election. It ain’t done yet. Got a long way to go. But it’s good so far.”
Later, Saab received a hero’s welcome in Caracas. Venezuela said its “diplomat” was “kidnapped” by the U.S. and had endured “torture”. Saab thanked Maduro and Cilia Flores, who welcomed him in the airport, while Maduro thanked Gerardo Blyde and the Emir of Qatar.
According to judicial documents, Saab was also a DEA informant and even handed the organization $10 million USD.
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