Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whose nearly 12 years in office have been marked by a deep economic and social crisis, was sworn in for a third term on Friday, despite a six-month electoral dispute, international calls for him to keep out and an increase in the American reward offered for his capture.
Maduro, president since 2013, was declared the winner of the July election by both Venezuela's electoral authority and top court, although detailed counts confirming his victory have never been published.
Venezuela's opposition says ballot-box counts show a landslide victory for its former candidate Edmundo González, who is recognized as president-elect by several countries, including the United States. International election observers said the vote was not democratic.
In the months since the election, González fled to Spain in September, his ally María Corina Machado went into hiding in Venezuela, and the arrests of prominent opposition figures and protesters.
In the latest in a series of punitive measures, the outgoing Biden administration increased its reward for information leading to Maduro's arrest or conviction on drug trafficking charges to $25 million, from $15 million previously.
He also issued a $25 million reward for Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and a $15 million reward for Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino, as well as new sanctions against eight other officials, including the head of the oil company. state PDVSA, Héctor Obregón.
The United States accused Maduro and others of narcotics and corruption, among others, in 2020. Maduro has rejected the accusations.
The U.S. move coincided with sanctions from Britain and the European Union each targeting 15 officials, including members of the National Electoral Council and security forces, and Canadian sanctions targeting 14 current and former officials.
Maduro's government has always rejected all sanctions, saying they are illegitimate measures that amount to an “economic war” designed to paralyze Venezuela.
“The outgoing government of the United States does not know how to get revenge on us,” Maduro said during his inauguration speech, without directly mentioning sanctions.
Venezuela's Communications Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the sanctions.
Maduro and his allies have applauded what they say is the country's resilience despite the measures, although they have historically blamed sanctions for some economic difficulties and shortages.
González, who toured America this week, has said he will return to Venezuela to take over as president, but has not given details.
The government, which has accused the opposition of fomenting fascist plots against him, has said González will be arrested if he returns and has offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to his capture.
Get daily national news
Get the day's top news, political, economic and current affairs headlines delivered to your inbox once a day.
Opposition leaders González and Machado are expected to speak later Friday.
Both are being investigated by the Attorney General's Office for alleged conspiracy, but only González has a public arrest warrant.
Machado's first public appearance since August at an anti-government march in Caracas on Thursday was marred by a brief detention.
Her political movement Vente Venezuela said guns were fired and Machado was knocked off the motorcycle she was leaving the event on. They then held her down and forced her to film several videos, she said.
A video shared on social media and by government officials showed her sitting on a sidewalk and recounting losing her wallet.
The government mocked the incident and denied any involvement.
Some 42 people have been detained for political reasons since Tuesday, the judicial NGO Foro Penal said.
Maduro was sworn in at the national assembly in Caracas and said he was taking the oath on behalf of 16th-century indigenous leader Guaicaipuro and the late President Hugo Chávez, his mentor, among others.
“May this new presidential term be a period of peace, prosperity, equality and a new democracy,” Maduro said, adding that he would convene a commission dedicated to constitutional reform.
“This act is possible because Venezuela is peaceful, in full exercise of its national sovereignty, its popular sovereignty, its national independence,” said Maduro.
According to the government, some 2,000 guests from 125 countries attended the inauguration.
The president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, and the president of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, strong allies of Maduro, attended, as did Vyacheslav Volodin, president of the lower house of the Russian parliament.
Venezuela closed its borders and airspace with Colombia for 72 hours starting at 05:00 local time (10:00 GMT), the Foreign Ministry in Bogotá said in a statement, adding that the border on the Colombian side would remain open.
The opposition, non-governmental organizations and international organizations such as the United Nations have for years denounced the increasing repression of opposition political parties, activists and independent media in Venezuela.
US President-elect Donald Trump has said the country is ruled by a dictator.
Meanwhile, the government has repeatedly accused the opposition of conspiring with foreign governments and agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, to commit acts of sabotage and terrorism.
The government said this week that it had detained seven “mercenaries,” including a senior FBI official and a U.S. military officer.
Venezuela's economy has experienced a prolonged crisis marked by triple-digit inflation and the exodus of more than 7 million migrants seeking better opportunities abroad.
Many of Machado's supporters, including retired Venezuelans who would like to see their children and grandchildren return to the country, say jobs, inflation and unreliable public services are among their top concerns.
Meanwhile, the government has employed orthodox methods to try to curb inflation, with some success. Maduro said this month that the economy grew 9% last year.
Some 2,000 people were arrested in the post-election protests. The government said this week it had freed 1,515 of them.
Gonzalez, 75, said his son-in-law was kidnapped Tuesday while taking his children to school.
–Reporting by Oliver Griffin and Julia Symmes Cobb in Bogotá, Matt Spetalnick in Washington, and Marianna Parraga and Gary McWilliams in HoustonWriting by Oliver Griffin and Julia Symmes Cobb Editing by Daniel Wallis and Alistair Bell