US slaps sanctions on Venezuelan officials

The US has imposed sanctions on 21 Venezuelanofficials for their role in suppressing protests after a presidential election in July, a senior Washington official said on Wednesday.

Among those targeted by the sanctions are members of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's Cabinet, including Planning Minister Ricardo Jose Menedez and Communications Minister Freddy Alfred Nazaret, as well as top intelligence officials Alexis Jose Rodriguez and Javier Jose Marcano.

Washington says Maduro falsely claimed victory in the vote and that opposition leader  Edmundo Gonzalez is the president-elect.

"Maduro and his representatives' repressive actions in the wake of the Venezuelan presidential election are a desperate attempt to silence the voices of its citizens," Bradley Smith, the acting under secretary of the Treasury Department, said in a statement.

What did Venezuela say?

Venezuela's opposition, as well as a number of Western countries and international organizations, have described the elections as non-transparent and called for the full publication of the ballots.

Maduro's government slammed the latest round of sanctions as a "desperate act" taken against "patriots."

 A Venezuelan Foreign Ministry statement said the country "rejects with the utmost firmness" the latest sanctions of the "outgoing US government against the Venezuelan people and, in particular, a group of patriots who have dedicated themselves to safeguarding peace, stability, economic recovery and national unity in the face of fascist violence."

Maduro claimed victory in the election and defied domestic and international calls to release detailed polling numbers to back up the assertion.

Meanwhile, the oil-rich country is facing a severe economic crisis. Many Venezuelans are confronting acute shortages of food, medicine and other basic goods. 

ftm/sri (Reuters, AFP)