The U.S. Sanctions Venezuelan Vice President for 'Drug Trafficking'

The United States government has sanctioned the Vice President of Venezuela for allegedly playing a significant role in international drug trafficking. This official is the highest-ranking member of the Caracas government to be targeted by U.S. sanctions. Investigations into Tareck El Aissami's activities have been ongoing for several years. Alongside him, the U.S. Treasury Department has also imposed sanctions on Samark Lopez, an influential Venezuelan businessman accused of playing a key role in El Aissami's activities and money laundering through a network of companies in various countries. These sanctions target 13 companies owned or controlled by Lopez, including five companies in Florida. The Venezuelan Vice President or his government has not yet responded to these sanctions, but Lopez has stated in a statement that this action has 'political objectives.' It remains unclear whether the two are facing criminal charges. The new sanctions come a few weeks after a number of U.S. lawmakers from both the Democratic and Republican parties urged Donald Trump in a letter to take action against Maduro's government and conduct 'thorough investigations' into his Vice President, imposing immediate sanctions against Caracas officials due to activities such as corruption and human rights violations. Tareck El Aissami, 42, has also been the subject of investigations dating back to his tenure as Venezuela's Minister of Interior, during which U.S. officials suspected that dozens of fake Venezuelan passports had reached individuals in the Middle East, including potential agents of Hezbollah. In April 2011, the Washington Post published an article by Roger Noriega, a former U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States, stating that Hugo Chavez - the late President of Venezuela - had secretly met with senior leaders of Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad at a military facility in southern Caracas at the suggestion of the Iranian government. The most prominent Venezuelan drug trafficker ever prosecuted, Walid Makled, has also confessed to bribing government officials through El Aissami's brother to overlook cocaine trafficking. According to Roger Noriega, a senior Venezuelan diplomatic official in Damascus was also in contact with Walid Makled; a figure named Nasr al-Din Atif, who is of Lebanese descent and, according to the Washington Post, runs networks within Hezbollah, some of which are involved in drug trafficking. The U.S. government has previously sanctioned Venezuelan officials on various occasions, including after Hugo Chavez's death and Maduro's rise to power in March 2015, when Caracas was accused of posing a threat to U.S. security. In response to the sanctions, the Venezuelan President has accused Washington of 'seeking to overthrow' his government. In recent months, thousands to hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan citizens have protested against the government amid an escalating economic and political crisis in the country. Most of these protests have led to clashes involving police. There have also been demonstrations in support of the government. The majority of the seats in Venezuela's National Assembly are held by opponents of Maduro's government.