World
Venezuelan official decries 'grave lack of transparency and veracity' in election results
A Venezuelan electoral official has denounced what he calls a “grave lack of transparency and veracity” in last month’s election results, rebuking authorities who declared President Nicolás Maduro the winner despite strong evidence to the contrary presented by his opponents and doubts from several foreign governments.
Juan Carlos Delpino is one of five members of the National Electoral Council, or CNE in Spanish, and the only one who prior to the vote had shown a willingness to go against the wishes of Maduro’s government.
On Monday, he published a letter on social media detailing several alleged irregularities before and on the day of the July 28 election. He said polling centers were slow to report results from automated voting machines while several opposition volunteers were banished, in violation of electoral rules guaranteeing the transparent transmission of tallies to CNE headquarters.
Delpino said he was informed that the hourslong delay was caused by a supposed hacking of the CNE platform and that only 58% of results had been collected. He said he decided in protest not to join his fellow rectors in monitoring the vote-counting from the CNE data hub or attending the midnight press conference when CNE President Elvis Amoroso, a ruling party loyalist, declared Maduro the winner.
VENEZUELANS WILL KEEP FIGHTING FOR DEMOCRACY. THEY HAVE NO CHOICE
“I deeply regret that the results don’t serve the Venezuelan people, that they don’t help resolve our differences or promote national unity but instead fuel doubts in the majority of Venezuelans and the international community,” Delpino wrote.
Delpino, an electoral expert close to one of Venezuela’s traditional opposition parties, was named to the CNE by the National Assembly controlled by Maduro’s allies last year after several predecessors were removed.
His letter comes as Maduro doubles down on assertions he won reelection by more than 1 million votes. His government has defied calls from the U.S., European Union and even leftist allies from Brazil, Colombia and Mexico to release voting records that would back such claims.
FILE – Officials from the National Electoral Council (CNE), from left, Acme Nogal, Juan Delpino, Antonio Meneces, Elvis Hidrobo Amoroso, Rosalba Gil, and Carlos Quintero, hold a private meeting at the CNE headquarters in Caracas, Venezuela, Aug. 25, 2023. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)
Meanwhile, the opposition has published online what appear to be authentic tallies from 80% of polling machines showing that its candidate, Edmundo González, won by a more than 2-to-1 margin.
Last week, the Venezuelan Supreme Court certified the results and said voting tallies published online by the opposition were forged. Attorney General Tarek William Saab ordered González to testify this week in a criminal investigation over alleged attempts to spread panic in the South American nation by contesting the results.
González on Sunday indicated he had no intention of complying with the order, saying his due process rights and Venezuela’s constitution were being trampled and the only authority he is accountable to are voters. He repeated calls for Maduro to release the voting records from about 30,000 machines nationwide so the results can be independently verified by international experts.
“Venezuela is living moments of uncertainty and unease due to your efforts to violate the desire for change,” González said, addressing Maduro directly in a video published on social media. “Releasing the voting tallies is the guarantee of peace.”
Former diplomat González and his chief backer, opposition powerhouse María Corina Machado, went into hiding after the election as security forces arrested more than 2,000 people and cracked down on demonstrations throughout the country protesting the results.
The two have called for Venezuelans to take to the streets on Wednesday to commemorate a month since their purported victory at the polls.
Meanwhile, mothers of several people arrested by security forces gathered Monday outside a high security prison in central Venezuela where dozens of detainees have started to arrive as a result of a transfer order. Holding signs that read “They Aren’t Terrorists” and “Free our Children,” several said their loved ones were arrested far away from any demonstrations against Maduro.
Eliana Perez said her two adult children were coming home from work and sitting inside a car when they were arrested at a police checkpoint.
“There were no traffic restrictions, no curfew,” said Perez while holding back tears. “They are in agony because they’ve never had any problems with the law before.”
Delpino, in an interview with The New York Times published Monday, said he too had gone into hiding.
His letter also highlighted what he called a number of irregular decisions by the CNE including a lack of meetings prior to the vote that made it difficult to set clear rules on the participation of campaign poll workers, international observers and millions of Venezuelans living abroad.
Updated:
Iran outmanoeuvred US President Donald Trump “like a violin” in negotiations, walking away with far better terms after sensing his desperation for a deal to end the war, former National Security Adviser John Bolton told Euronews.
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TEL AVIV, Israel: Reactions in Israel to the Memorandum of Understanding reached by President Donald Trump and Iran on Sunday have been a mix of wait-and-see-the details and outright criticism.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council confirmed on Sunday that Tehran and Washington had finalized a memorandum of understanding ending the war after months of negotiations. In a statement, the council said all military operations across multiple fronts, including in Lebanon, would cease “immediately and permanently.”
Talks on a comprehensive final agreement will reportedly begin only after both sides have implemented their obligations under the framework and are expected to continue for up to 60 days.
On Monday night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the nation, saying he had spent decades fighting Iran’s efforts to acquire a nuclear weapon. “I can define it as the mission of my life,” he said. “I stood by it until now, and I will stand by it in the future. With or without a deal, Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.”
TRUMP ANNOUNCES PEACE DEAL WITH IRAN, DECLARES STRAIT OF HORMUZ WILL REOPEN: ‘LET THE OIL FLOW!’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking to reporters during a press conference on the U.S-Iran deal on June 15, 2026. (Israel Government Press Office)
He continued, “Not today and not tomorrow. As long as I am the prime minister of Israel, it will not happen.”
Responding to reporters’ questions, Netanyahu acknowledged that he was not familiar with the exact details of the memorandum of understanding reached between the Trump administration and the Iranian regime but lauded the joint U.S.-Israel operation against the regime.
Netanyahu said the campaigns had spared Israel from the threat of nuclear annihilation. “If we had not acted when we did… and with the force we demonstrated in a historic partnership with President Trump and the U.S. military, Iran would already possess atomic bombs,” Netanyahu said.
Earlier on Monday, Defense Minister Israel Katz, held back from directly criticizing the deal but said that the IDF would not withdraw from southern Lebanon, warning that if Iran attacks Israel in response to the fighting against Hezbollah, “we will strike it with full force.”
He said, “The IDF will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza, without any time limit, to protect the border and Israeli communities against jihadist elements.”
IDF troops fighting Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon. (IDF Spokesman’s Unit.)
Katz described the security zones as “among the IDF’s greatest achievements” in the multi-front war since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 massacre, adding that Israel therefore opposes an IDF withdrawal from Lebanon despite all the pressures that will still come.
Katz said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had conveyed these positions to U.S. President Donald Trump and other senior American officials, including U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
“We will not compromise on Israel’s security interests and the protection of our citizens,” he concluded.
IRAN’S REGIME SPINS NUCLEAR AND STRAIT OF HORMUZ DEAL WITH TRUMP AS VICTORY OVER US, ISRAEL
President Donald Trump monitors U.S. military operations in Iran following an Israeli strike in Tehran on Feb. 28, 2026. (@WhiteHouse/X)
Yossi Kuperwasser, head of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security and former chief of the research division in the Israel Defense Forces’ Military Intelligence Directorate, told Fox News Digital that the details of the agreement remain sketchy.
“There was a debate within the Iranian leadership over whether to accept the deal,” he said. “It appears that the information we are hearing is coming from those who opposed it. Maybe they are right, maybe they are wrong, but it raises major concerns in Israel. If this is the deal, it is a disaster. If one listens to President Trump, the deal is probably something different.”
Kuperwasser defined a “good deal” as one in which Iran gives up all components of its nuclear program, grants access to enriched uranium and establishes a robust monitoring system capable of reaching anywhere at any time, including military facilities likely being used for atomic purposes. He added that such an agreement should also prohibit production of missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
A fireball rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike targeting an area in Beirut’s southern suburbs overnight on March 10 to 11, 2026. (Fadel itani / AFP via Getty Images)
“Lebanon’s fate is a matter to be discussed between Washington, Jerusalem, and Beirut,” Kuperwasser said. “Iran is not a party to those talks and should not be according to the Lebanese government. If Lebanon is to be part of a deal with Iran, it means Tehran has a say in Lebanese matters.”
Kuperwasser noted that Israel has lived under the shadow of Iran’s nuclear program since 1998, while noting that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is uniquely positioned to assess the issue given his decades of involvement. He said it remains unclear whether Netanyahu is satisfied with the outcome or what his final assessment will be.
ISRAELI OFFICIALS REPORTEDLY WARN IRAN’S BALLISTIC MISSILES COULD TRIGGER SOLO MILITARY ACTION AGAINST TEHRAN
Former Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid, now leader of the opposition, referred Fox News Digital to his comments on X.
“The emerging agreement achieves none of Israel’s war goals. The regime survives, the missile program exists, and Iran can rebuild its nuclear program. This is a complete failure by Netanyahu, and in the process, he is turning us into a client state that takes orders about its national security,” he wrote.
A motorist rides past a banner featuring images of Iran’s slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his son Mojtaba Khamenei along a street in Tehran on April 15, 2026. (AFP/Getty Images)
On March 19, Prime Minister Netanyahu outlined three war objectives for the U.S.-Israel joint operation against Iran: “One, removing the nuclear threat. Second, removing the ballistic missile threat and removing both of these threats before they’re buried deep underground and become immune from aerial attack. And third, this means creating the conditions for the Iranian people to grasp their freedom, to control their destiny,” the premier stated at the time.
Dr Meir Javedanfar, Iran lecturer at Reichman University, told Fox News Digital that Israel’s most immediate concern regarding the deal is the clause dealing with Lebanon.
“There is genuine concern that this could tie Israel’s hands,” he said. “An additional concern is that Hezbollah could use this clause to regroup and strengthen its armed forces and positions along the border with Israel.”
LETHAL ELITE ‘BLACK-CLAD’ KILL SQUAD GUARDS IRAN’S NEW SUPREME LEADER MOJTABA KHAMENEI
Javedanfar said it is too early to assess whether the deal would leave Israel in a significantly stronger position than the 2015 Obama-era nuclear agreement, citing the fate of Iran’s stockpile of 60% enriched uranium and its atomic infrastructure.
“Will Iran be allowed to continue enriching uranium on its soil? If yes, at what percentage? And how will the international community oversee Iran’s nuclear program? What kind of inspection program will they have? How intrusive will they be?” he added.
The Israel Defense Forces said its troops located and destroyed a Hezbollah underground command center with infrastructure about 8 meters below ground in South Lebanon. (IDF Spokesman’s Unit)
Israel’s controversial National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Monday insisted that the MOU does not bind the Jewish state. “Israel is not subject to the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign nation,” he tweeted, adding that Jerusalem’s duty is to its citizens, its soldiers and the Jewish people.”
He stated, “My position is clear: we are not partners to this agreement that does not ensure our security, and it does not bind us in any way,” he said, adding that while Israelis “love” the United States and “are grateful” to Trump, “the State of Israel is not a banana republic.”
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On Friday, Netanyahu’s office stated that “Even though Israel is not a party to the memorandum of understanding, the Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for President Trump’s commitment that the final agreement at the conclusion of negotiations will include the removal of enriched material, the dismantling of enrichment infrastructure, limits on missile production, and the cessation of Iran’s support for its terrorist proxies in the region.”
President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago on Dec. 29, 2025, to discuss Iran tensions and the Gaza peace plan. (Israel Government Press Office)
Quoting the prime minister, the statement added that “As long as I am the Prime Minister of Israel – Iran will not have nuclear weapons. President Trump and I are in full agreement on this issue. For over 30 years, I have been at the forefront of the international struggle against Iran’s nuclear program. Were it not for this struggle, Iran would have long ago possessed atomic bombs to destroy Israel. Iran is working to destroy the Jewish state, and I am dedicating my life to preventing them from doing so. As long as I am the Prime Minister of Israel, this will not happen.”
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