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Venezuela’s Opposition Candidate Says His Son-In-Law Was Kidnapped

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Venezuela’s Opposition Candidate Says His Son-In-Law Was Kidnapped

The man widely called the true winner of Venezuela’s tainted presidential election said on Tuesday that his son-in-law had been kidnapped by hooded men in Caracas, the capital.

Edmundo González said that his son-in-law, Rafael Tudares, was walking Mr. González’s grandchildren to school when he was “intercepted” by hooded men dressed in black, and taken away in a gold van.

“At this time he is missing,” he wrote on X.

The reported kidnapping comes one day after Mr. González met at the White House with President Biden, whose administration recognizes Mr. González as president-elect, in an effort to put international pressure on President Nicolás Maduro, the longtime authoritarian leader who claims he won Venezuela’s July election.

On Monday the Maduro government, in a statement, called the meeting “a flagrant violation of international law and a crude attempt to perpetuate imperialist interference in Latin America.”

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Mr. González, 75, was forced to flee the country shortly after millions of Venezuelans voted for him, and he is now living in exile in Spain. He has promised repeatedly to return to his country to be sworn in on Friday, when Maduro, in power since 2013, is scheduled to be inaugurated for another six-year term.

The Maduro government has imposed a $100,000 bounty on Mr. González and he likely faces arrest if he returns.

The Venezuelan government has unleashed a wave of repression against anyone who challenges its declared victory, arresting about 2,000 people and charging most with terrorism. Human rights groups have described it as Venezuela’s most brutal campaign of repression in recent decades.

The government has released hundreds of those prisoners in recent months, in what many analysts saw as a signal to President-elect Donald J. Trump that it is willing to ease up on human rights in exchange for favorable treatment.

The U.S. State Department called the disappearance an attempt to “intimidate Venezuela’s democratic opposition.”

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A spokesman for the Maduro government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Diosdado Cabello, a top official in Mr. Maduro’s government and one of his most powerful allies, did not refer directly to the episode in public remarks on Tuesday, but said, “today we have just dismantled a very dangerous group” of “foreign mercenaries from the United States and Colombia.’’

Mr. Tudares’ wife, Mariana González, said in a statement that her husband was a victim of “persecution.”

“At what point did it become a crime to be Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia’s family?” she said.

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Video: ‘We Are Orphans’: Shiite Muslims Protest the Killing of Khamenei

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Video: ‘We Are Orphans’: Shiite Muslims Protest the Killing of Khamenei

new video loaded: ‘We Are Orphans’: Shiite Muslims Protest the Killing of Khamenei

Shiite Muslims around the world protested the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader and a senior Shiite Muslim cleric. He died on Saturday during U.S. and Israeli attacks on his country.

By Nader Ibrahim and Malachy Browne

March 1, 2026

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3 US service members killed, 5 seriously wounded in Iran operation

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3 US service members killed, 5 seriously wounded in Iran operation

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Three U.S. service members were killed and five others were seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Sunday morning.

In addition, several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions and are in the process of being returned to duty, CENTCOM announced.

“The situation is fluid, so out of respect for the families, we will withhold additional information, including the identities of our fallen warriors, until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified,” CENTCOM said.

Smoke rises over the city center after an Israeli army launches 2nd wave of airstrikes on Iran on Saturday.  (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. 

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At least nine killed after Iranian strike on Israel’s Beit Shemesh

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At least nine killed after Iranian strike on Israel’s Beit Shemesh

BREAKING,

The Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency service says that 20 others were injured by the impact.

At least nine people have been killed after an Iranian missile strike on the central Israeli city of Beit Shemesh, as Tehran continued to launch retaliatory attacks a day after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in US-Israeli strikes.

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The Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency service said on Sunday that nine people were killed and 20 other people were injured by the impact, including two in serious condition.

The Israeli military said in a statement that search and rescue teams, and a helicopter to evacuate those injured are currently operating in Beit Shemesh, with the army’s spokesperson adding that the circumstances of the impact from the Iranian ballistic missile are under review.

More to come …

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