April 8, 2014 -- Updated 1751 GMT (0151 HKT)
A Venezuelan prosecutor formally charged opposition leader Leopoldo
Lopez with public incitement, property damage, arson and conspiracy. FULL STORY
Jailed Venezuela opposition leader charged with public incitement
April 5, 2014 -- Updated 0033 GMT (0833 HKT)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez is charged with public incitement and conspiracy
- Lopez has been held in military jail for over a month
- 39 people have died and over 600 have been injured in anti-government protests
- If found guilty, Lopez could face nearly 14 years in prison.
General Prosecutor Luisa
Ortega Diaz announced the charges at a press conference in Caracas, a
day before the legal deadline to keep Lopez in custody expires.
Lopez, 42, a former mayor
and presidential candidate, has been held in a military jail for well
more than a month. The government of President Nicolas Maduro originally
accused him of terrorism and murder, but those charges were later
dropped.
He is accused of inciting anti-government protests throughout Venezuela that began February 12.
Venezuela's state run news agency said that 39 people have died and more than 600 injured in clashes.
The government blames the protests on "a wave of violence fostered by right-wing leaders in the country."
If found guilty, Lopez could face nearly 14 years in prison.
Lopez, a fiery speaker and charismatic leader, has long been a threat to the socialists in power in Venezuela.
Back in 2008, the
government of then-President Hugo Chavez banned him from running for
public office, accusing him of corruption and misuse of public funds.
Lopez countered that it
was all political retribution and that he had nothing to hide. He took
his case all the way to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, where
he was cleared three years later.
Earlier this year, Lopez organized protests demanding better security, an end to shortages and protected freedom of speech.
CNN's Rafael Romo and Anna-Maja Rappard contributed to this story
TOP LATIN AMERICAN STORIES
- Lesbians' baby baptized by Catholic Church in Argentina
- Chile: Strict building codes saved lives | LIVE BLOG
- Spain suspends sale of riot gear to Venezuela
- Wave of suicides at phone company
- U.S. denies trying to overthrow Castro with Twitter clone
- Stolen paintings found 40 years later
- Literary giant Gabriel García Márquez hospitalized
- Tijuana cop to face U.S. court after drug arrest
- Plane makes emergency landing in Brazil
- COPY http://edition.cnn.com
April 8, 2014 -- Updated 1727 GMT (0127 HKT)Russia warned Tuesday that any use of force in Ukraine's eastern region could lead to civil war, as Kiev seeks to regain control after pro-Moscow uprisings in three cities. FULL STORY | BRAWL IN UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT
Top World Stories
- 'Honeymoon murder' suspect extradited to South Africa
- Plane search area narrows despite no new pings
- 'Optimism is fading away, ever so slightly' in plane search
- Girl was married at 6 years-old
- 20 years on, Rwandans still grapple with genocide legacy
- Pistorius: I was more into Reeva than she was me
- Hagel becomes first foreigner to visit Chinese aircraft carrier
- Spain arrests four accused of attempting to export equipment to Iran
- U.S. to send 2 more missile defense ships to Japan
- COPY http://edition.cnn.com
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário