Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela, announced on Thursday that he was moving to block X from the country for 10 days, with the ban taking effect on Monday. This comes after Elon Musk and Maduro clashed over the contested election that saw Maduro maintain power.
On Thursday Maduro announced the signing of a proposal with the National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel) to block the social media site. Maduro accused Musk of inciting “hatred, fascism (and) civil war,” with his posts critical of his regime. Shortly after the election, Elon posted to X, “El burro sabe mas que Maduro,” which translates to, “The donkey knows more than Maduro.”
El burro sabe mas que Maduro https://t.co/9fe6JWOatM
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 29, 2024
In later post he added: “Maduro is not a good guy. Venezuela deserves much better.”
Maduro is not a good guy. Venezuela deserves much better.
The US has plenty of domestic oil & gas production and nothing would happen fast in Venezuela, so it would certainly not affect this election.
Several years would be needed to rebuild Venezuela’s oil production.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 30, 2024
He also posted a link to a 2020 Drug Enforcement Administration press release which announced charges of narco-terrorism against Maduro. Attorney General William Barr said in the press release, “The Venezuelan regime, once led by Nicolás Maduro Moros, remains plagued by criminality and corruption.” US Attorney Berman later added, “The scope and magnitude of the drug trafficking alleged was made possible only because Maduro and others corrupted the institutions of Venezuela and provided political and military protection for the rampant narco-terrorism crimes described in our charges.”
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 30, 2024
In a statement on the election, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “It is clear to the United States, and most importantly, to the Venezuelan people that Edmundo González Urrutia won the most votes in Venezuela’s July 28 presidential election.” Edmundo González Urrutia was formally recognized by the US State Department as the legitimate President.
Opposition protests have been carried out for weeks in Venezuela following the election. Days ago, police and army forces were dispatched to manage the protests. The Venezuelan government reports that 2,400 demonstrators have been arrested since July 29.
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