Venezuelan security forces detain journalists as armed police patrol streets

At least 14 members of the press were detained in Venezuela on Monday while reporting on the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro by US forces.

The union representing media workers in Venezuela said all but one of those detained worked for foreign news organizations and was released on Monday, while one reporter was also deported.

Foreign news media have long faced restrictions in Venezuela, and few people are granted work visas in the country.

Their arrests came as Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as interim president and said he was willing to cooperate with the Trump administration, which said it would soon “rule” Venezuela.

The union said that media workers were detained by Venezuelan security forces in the National Assembly and its surroundings and the Altamira neighborhood in the capital Caracas.

At least two of them were captured by agents working for Venezuela’s military counterintelligence agency, while others were detained by Venezuela’s intelligence service.

In the union statement, they said their equipment was searched, their phones were checked and their social media posts and messages were read.

A Colombian and a Spanish reporter were also detained near Cúcuta, on Venezuela’s border with Colombia.

The statement stated that the two reporters were not allowed to meet anyone for hours before being sent back to Colombia.

The union described the events as “alarming” and called for the release of 23 media workers detained in the country.

The pressure was not limited to media workers.

A community leader in the Petare neighborhood of Caracas told BBC Mundo that “armed, hooded men were patrolling, checking people’s WhatsApp statuses”.

José, a 60-year-old Caracas resident, said people could not speak freely about what was happening because of the heavy police and military presence on the streets, as well as the wearing of masks by pro-Maduro armed groups known as “colectivos.”

“There is a lot of fear on the streets and in our homes,” said the 33-year-old masseuse, who did not want to give her name.

Members of the government appeared eager to show that security forces are visible in communities by publishing a photo of Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello posing with armed police on Monday night.

Their presence created fear in people critical of the government.

One woman explained that “on every corner there are military people and armed civilian groups that support the government and cause fear among the population.”

Another person, who did not want to be named, told the BBC, “The regime does not allow news to come out from here.” “There are uniformed personnel on the streets stopping people and checking their phones,” they added.

The detention of the journalists comes at a volatile time in Venezuela, where just days ago the country’s leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured by US forces in a pre-dawn raid and dozens of his bodyguards and security guards were killed.

While the seizure sparked celebrations among Venezuelans who opposed Maduro and fled the country, there were no public demonstrations of joy in Venezuela.

Opposition Venezuelans have long decried the repression they would face if they spoke out against the Maduro government.

More than 2,000 people have been arrested in protests following the 2024 presidential election.

The government-dominated electoral council declared Maduro the winner of this election, but voting numbers collected by the opposition and verified by independent media show that the opposition candidate won the election.

In the crackdown that followed the election, security forces checked people’s phones for messages critical of Maduro, leading many Venezuelans to delete their social media accounts and message history.

Many of those arrested at that time were sentenced to long prison sentences after being tried for “treason”.

There are more than 800 political prisoners in Venezuela as of January 5, according to pressure group Foro Penal.