Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado announced that her colleague Juan Pablo Guanipa was kidnapped mere hours after his release from detention. The incident occurred in the Los Chorros neighborhood of Caracas, where he was forcibly taken by heavily armed individuals dressed in civilian clothing.
Machado detailed on social media that Guanipa, who leads the Justice First party, was captured in a swoop involving four vehicles. He recently spent eight months in prison among several political figures released in the wake of the U.S. seizing control from Venezuela's former President Nicolas Maduro in January.
The political landscape in Venezuela grows increasingly fraught as Guanipa's party categorizes the incident as an act of aggression by the government. Justice First condemned the act, labeling those responsible as part of the 'repressive forces of the dictatorship' and demanding immediate accountability from Venezuelan officials, including Delcy Rodríguez and Diosdado Cabello.
The situation is dire — his party has urged the international community to call for Guanipa's immediate release and to halt the ongoing persecution of the opposition. Echoing these sentiments, Guanipa’s son had just celebrated his father’s return, emphasizing the urgent need for his safety.
Guanipa, elected governor of Zulia in 2017, had been barred from taking office after opposing Maduro's regime. His activism, especially related to the recent election results, resulted in accusations of terrorism, leading him to go into hiding until his capture in May 2025. Opposition and human rights groups have long accused the Maduro government of using detention to suppress dissent and silence critics.
