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Unable to enjoy freedom, Venezuelan opposition leader kidnapped as soon as he is released from prison
2026-02-09 09:11:57 / BOTA
Juan Pablo Guanipa, a leading Venezuelan opposition figure and ally of María Corina Machado, was kidnapped on Sunday evening by armed men, just hours after being released from prison.
The news was announced by Guanipa's family.
Machado, the opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said Guanipa was forcibly taken from the Los Chorros area of Caracas around midnight by unknown gunmen. His whereabouts or who was behind the kidnapping are still unknown, and Venezuelan authorities have not made any official statement about the incident.
Guanipa's family said he was kidnapped by about ten men in civilian clothes, and is demanding immediate proof that he is alive.
Guanipa is a leading opposition figure and critic of the regime. He was arrested in May 2025 on charges of involvement in a so-called “terrorist” group, charges that he and the opposition have vehemently denied.
He was released on Sunday as part of a series of political prisoner releases initiated by Venezuelan authorities under international pressure, but the kidnapping just hours after the release has shaken the political scene in Venezuela.
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