The U.S. Sanctions Five Senior Officials of the Venezuelan Government

On Friday, February 15, the U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions against five military and security officials close to Nicolas Maduro, referring to him as the 'former' president of Venezuela. According to a statement from the Treasury Department, the sanctioned individuals are 'allies of Nicolas Maduro, the illegitimate former president, who suppress democracy and democratic defenders in Venezuela.' One of these five is Manuel Cabello, whom the U.S. Treasury described as the 'illegitimate' head of Venezuela's state oil company. Under these sanctions, all assets of these individuals in the U.S. will be frozen, and transactions by U.S. citizens and companies with them will be prohibited. Another individual, Ivan Rafael Hernandez, commander of the presidential guard and head of the military's counterintelligence section, is described by the Treasury as 'one of the main perpetrators of serious human rights violations and the repression of civil society and democratic opponents.' Manuel Ricardo Christopher, head of Venezuela's security agency, is also among those sanctioned, with the Treasury stating that 'he oversees widespread torture, extensive human rights violations, and the broad suppression of dissent.' Two other individuals on the sanctions list include a commander of a special forces unit and a senior deputy from Venezuela's security agency. Last month, the U.S. government recognized Juan Guaido, the opposition leader and president of the National Assembly, as the legitimate leader and interim president of Venezuela. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described Nicolas Maduro as part of an 'illegitimate mafia government' and the main culprit behind the country's economic collapse. Guaido, who has managed to unite the opposition after years of internal disputes, has promised that protests will continue until Maduro steps down. A social event is scheduled for Tuesday in support of the transfer of humanitarian aid to the country in one of the central squares of Caracas. There have been two major waves of street protests against Maduro's government, the most recent of which was suppressed in 2017. The latest wave of protests began on January 23 with a large rally in Caracas, where Guaido swore in as interim president before thousands of demonstrators.