Mercenaries arrested after the attempt to oust Nicolas Maduro. Photo: TeleSur.
A retired Venezuelan general reveals that top CIA officials were aware of coup plans to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro.
The stunning revelation of the Venezuelan general, identified as Cliver Alcalá, came in a court document filed by his lawyers seeking to nullify narco-terrorism charges. The charges were filed against him nearly two years ago by US federal prosecutors in New York, as reported on Saturday, January 29, by the US news agency Associated Press (AP).
Indeed, Alcalá had lived in Colombia since he fled Venezuela in 2018 after it was discovered that he was secretly leading a plan that sought to overthrow Maduro. The United States offered a $10 million reward for his arrest when charges were announced against him, along with Maduro and other top officials.
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“The efforts to overthrow the Maduro regime have been well known by the United States government,” reads a letter dated November 2021 addressed to prosecutors by the former soldier’s lawyers.
In fact, those in charge of Alcalá’s legal defense, who are trying to prove the opposition of the retired general to the Maduro government, pointed out that his efforts to overthrow the Chavista president “were reported to the highest levels of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the National Security Council and the Department of the Treasury” all of the United States.
With that being said, the lawyers are already looking for documents and information on the communications between US officials —including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former Attorney General William Barr—and members of the Venezuelan opposition about Alcalá.
Alcalá, responsible for the arsenal of weapons destined for the coup against Maduro
According to the document, before turning himself in in 2020, Alcalá claimed responsibility for an arsenal of US-made assault weapons and military equipment in Colombia, for what he said was a planned incursion into Venezuela to topple Maduro.
Furthermore, new indications have emerged about the knowledge of the administration of former US President Donald Trump about what they call “Operation Gideon,” in which the US authorities denied having any involvement.
How did the Operation Gideon coup against Maduro unfold?
The so-called Operation Gideon was a maritime incursion, carried out on May 3, 2020, from Colombia to Venezuela, but which was unsuccessful due to the timely intervention of the Bolivarian National Armed Force (FANB) and the Bolivarian militias.
The FANB managed to kill some eight men in front of the coastal city of Macuto (near Caracas, the capital), while dozens more people, including two US citizens, were captured. A few also managed to escape.
Featured image: Mercenaries arrested after the attempt to oust Nicolas Maduro. Photo: TeleSur.
(HispanTV)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/DD
