Venezuela's Maduro says two US citizens arrested among group of 'mercenaries'

8/1/2025 12:24

Two U.S. citizens have been arrested in Venezuela, part of a group of seven who President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday branded as "mercenaries," in the latest roundup ahead of the embattled leader's expected inauguration to a new term later this week.



Maduro said the detained U.S. citizens were "very high level," but did not provide further details or evidence of the arrests.



"Just today we've captured seven foreign mercenaries, including two important mercenaries from the United States," said Maduro, who is set to take office for a third term on Friday following last July's contested election that the opposition says it won in a landslide.



Maduro said the group of detainees includes two Colombians who he said were captured in unspecified parts of Venezuela, as well as three others who came from the war in Ukraine. He did provide further detail.



Venezuelan rights groups have warned of a revolving door of prisoners, with fresh detentions coming in even as older prisoners are released, including arrests of foreign nationals.