Venezuela

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Venezuela Prez Blames Crime on ... Telenovelas

He swipes at one, featuring a murderous beauty queen, in particular

(Newser) - President Nicolas Maduro has a rather unlikely new villain as he campaigns to bring down Venezuela's spiraling crime : telenovelas. He accuses the TV soap operas of spreading "anti-values" to young people by glamorizing violence, guns, and drugs; the UN ranks Venezuela's homicide rate as the fifth highest...

Murdered Ex-Miss Venezuela Had Been Attacked Before

Monica Spear was no stranger to violence, but refused to leave country she loved

(Newser) - A high-profile shooting in Venezuela continues to grab headlines, with the Monday night murder of well-known soap-opera actress and former Miss Venezuela shining a light on the country's rampant violence—as the nation's leader tries to shift the focus. President Nicolas Maduro yesterday tried to paint Monica Spear'...

Former Miss Venezuela, Husband Killed in Robbery

Young daughter of Monica Spear is hospitalized

(Newser) - Venezuelan authorities say a well-known soap-opera actress and former Miss Venezuela and her husband were shot and killed resisting a robbery after their car broke down. Monica Spear, 29, and Henry Thomas Berry, 49, were slain last night near Puerto Cabello, Venezuela's main port. Their 5-year-old daughter was in...

As Currency Falls, Venezuela Wages War on ... Bit.ly

Government turns to censorship to stop flight to dollar

(Newser) - The bolivar is in freefall. Panicked Venezuelans are rushing to buy dollars before their savings become worthless, which is only exacerbating the trend. Faced with this crisis, Nicolas Maduro's government has stepped up … and blocked Bit.ly? The popular link-shortening service has become collateral damage in the government'...

Miss Venezuela Now Miss Universe

Gabriela Isler, 25, is TV personality

(Newser) - A 25-year-old Venezuelan who appears on TV in her country and is an accomplished flamenco dancer is the new Miss Universe. Gabriela Isler was crowned in the pageant at a sprawling exhibition hall on Moscow's outskirts. In the excitement just after the announcement, the tiara fell off Isler's...

Venezuela Downs 2 Illegal Planes

Following passage of new airspace law

(Newser) - Venezuela has shot down a pair of planes that entered its airspace without authorization over the weekend, the country's military says; they were allegedly carrying smuggled drugs. The attacks mark the first time planes have been shot down following the approval of a bill this month allowing the move,...

'Yankees Go Home!': Venezuela Boots Top US Diplomat

Opposition leader says Maduro is just blowing smoke

(Newser) - President Nicolas Maduro has announced the expulsion of the top US diplomat in Venezuela and two other embassy officials, alleging they conspired with "the extreme right" to sabotage the economy and power grid. The US Embassy rejected as unfounded the Venezuelan government's accusations of "a great psychological...

Inside 30 Suitcases on Plane: 1.3 Tons of Cocaine

Paris seizure made on Air France flight from Venezuela

(Newser) - There's a joke about "high flying" in here somewhere: Cops at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport have found 1.3 tons of pure cocaine on an Air France jet. The coke was packed inside 30 suitcases on a flight from Venezuela, and had a street value of about...

Venezuela's Newspapers Face Big Problem: No Paper

Some smell government conspiracy

(Newser) - Venezuela hasn't just run out of toilet paper —it's run out of other kinds of paper too, and that's a big problem for the country's newspaper industry. Five papers have already shut down, and more than half of the country's local papers will have...

70% of Venezuela Goes Dark
 70% of Venezuela Goes Dark 

70% of Venezuela Goes Dark

President Nicolas Maduro blames saboteurs

(Newser) - Activity in Venezuela effectively ground to a halt yesterday, as a blackout plunged 70% of the country into darkness just after noon. Parts of the capital, which the AP reports normally escapes such outages, were affected, rendering traffic lights dark and forcing companies to send thousands of workers home. The...

Gunmen Hit Venezuela Grad Party, Kill 8 'Without Mercy'

'They didn't leave anyone alive'

(Newser) - A college graduation party in Venezuela ended in tragedy after gunmen opened fire, killing eight people. Six of the dead were teenagers, officials say. The attackers "beat (victims) up inside the house and then executed them without mercy ... they didn't leave anyone alive," says a local of...

Venezuela, Nicaragua Say Snowden Is Welcome

Latin American nations willing to offer asylum

(Newser) - He wasn't on that plane to Bolivia , but Edward Snowden may yet end up in Latin America. Venezuela and Nicaragua said yesterday they'd be willing to grant asylum to the NSA leaker, reports the BBC . Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega was a little less expansive, saying his country would...

Snowden Made 21 Asylum Requests, Drops Russia Bid

The 'nos' are starting to pile up

(Newser) - Can Edward Snowden afford to be choosy? Authorities in Russia say the NSA leaker has reportedly canceled a request for asylum after balking at the conditions imposed by Vladimir Putin , including no longer leaking information damaging to the US, the AP reports. Snowden has applied for asylum in no fewer...

Plane Missing Since 2008 Found 3K Feet Underwater

Discovered off Venezuela by US search boat

(Newser) - A plane missing for more than five years has been discovered by a US search boat off Venezuela. The small plane, with ID code YV2081, carried five Venezuelans, a Swiss citizen, and eight Italians. It was found some 3,000 feet underwater about six miles off Los Roques archipelago, the...

Venezuela: Churches Running Out of Wine

Consecrated bread makers hike prices

(Newser) - The Catholic Church in Venezuela could use the services of somebody who can turn water into wine: Its only supplier has stopped selling wine to the church and priests are in danger of running out of supplies with which to celebrate Mass, the BBC reports. The country's only wine...

Venezuela's Shopping List: 39M Rolls of TP

Also toothpaste, soap

(Newser) - It always sucks running out of toilet paper, especially when you're a country of almost 30 million people. Thanks to various international sanctions, Venezuela sometimes runs low on basic necessities, and right now, that very much includes toilet paper , which has a habit of disappearing from shelves the second...

Venezuela's Latest Shortage: Toilet Paper

Government to import 50M rolls

(Newser) - Amid milk and coffee shortages, Venezuela is now facing a sanitary crisis: There's not enough toilet paper to go around. "I'm 71 years old, and this is the first time I've seen this," said one man shopping for the stuff. "This is the last...

Brawl Breaks Out at Venezuela National Assembly

Opposition told they can't speak until they recognize Maduro

(Newser) - Rival lawmakers in Venezuela are blaming each other for a National Assembly slugfest that left seven opposition lawmakers injured. State TV cameras in the chamber were pointed toward the ceiling during the brawl, which erupted after opposition lawmakers were denied the right to speak until they recognize Nicolas Maduro's...

Maduro Grabs State TV to Blast US, 'Nazi' Opposition

As Washington demands recount

(Newser) - Venezuela's new honcho is proving to be no less dramatic than Hugo Chavez, with Nicolas Maduro breaking into state television no fewer than three times yesterday to blast the US and opponent Henrique Capriles. As the New York Times reports, Maduro worked "himself into what seemed to be...

Protests Rage After Venezuela Refuses to Recount

Capriles not accepting 'illegitimate ' result

(Newser) - Police in Caracas fired tear gas to disperse furious opposition supporters after Venezuelan electoral authorities decided there would be no recount of the presidential election result, despite Nicolas Maduro's slender margin of victory . Opposition leader Henrique Capriles insists that he, not Hugo Chavez's anointed heir, is the real...

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