MercoPress https://en.mercopress.com/ South Atlantic News Agency en Copyright 2026, MercoPress. https://en.mercopress.com/web/img/en/mercopress-logo.gif MercoPress http://en.mercopress.com/ <![CDATA[World Bank estimates $19.6 billion in earthquake damage in Venezuela]]> The disaster struck a country with a poverty rate above 76% and an economy that contracted sharply over the past decade, in a period marked by US sanctions The twin earthquakes that struck northern Venezuela on June 24 caused an estimated $19.6 billion in direct physical damage, according to a preliminary assessment published on Thursday by the World Bank. The figure is equivalent to about 18% of the country's gross domestic product, based on International Monetary Fund data.

]]> Thu, 23 Jul 2026 22:37:00 GMT <![CDATA[New York judge sets June 2027 for the start of Maduro and Cilia Flores's trial]]> Maduro, 63, is charged with conspiracy to commit narcoterrorism, cocaine importation, and possession of machine guns and destructive devices Federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein set June 1, 2027, as the preliminary start date for the trial of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in the narcoterrorism case they face in the United States. The decision came on Wednesday during the case's third hearing before the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, which lasted only a few minutes.

]]> Thu, 23 Jul 2026 07:34:00 GMT <![CDATA[Rubio says talks on Venezuela's democratic transition will begin in early August]]> “I believe the first official conversations will begin the first week of August,” Rubio said at a news conference at Andrews Air Force Base U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that talks to begin a democratic transition in Venezuela will start in early August. Rubio, who leads Washington's relationship with Caracas, said a group representing the National Assembly elected in 2015 —the last one the United States recognizes as legitimate— met with the interim government and agreed to establish a forum for reconciliation talks and to begin the transition process.

]]> Mon, 20 Jul 2026 19:51:00 GMT <![CDATA[Venezuela raises official death toll from June double earthquake above 5,000]]> The true scale of the disaster remains surrounded by uncertainty The official death toll from the double earthquake that struck northern Venezuela on June 24 rose on Friday to 5,069, after 139 new fatalities were added, according to the president of Parliament, Jorge Rodríguez. The tally, released via Telegram, keeps the number of injured at 16,740 and of people left homeless at 17,907. Authorities present these figures as provisional, more than three weeks after the disaster.

]]> Fri, 17 Jul 2026 22:25:00 GMT <![CDATA[Miami ruling links Maduro to "hostage diplomacy," orders $314 million in damages]]> Judge Darrin P. Gayles issued a default judgment on Tuesday against Nicolás Maduro, Saab, five other Venezuelan officials, and the so-called Cartel of the Suns A federal judge in Miami ordered $314 million in damages to be paid to three US citizens who were imprisoned in Venezuela, where they said they were tortured by intelligence services before being freed in a 2023 exchange with Washington for Colombian businessman Alex Saab.

]]> Wed, 15 Jul 2026 22:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[US-backed talks between Venezuela's two parliaments to begin August 1]]> The talks will bring together the National Assembly elected in 2015, with an opposition majority and headed by Figuera, and the 2026 Assembly, controlled by Chavismo and led by Jorge Rodríguez The two legislative bodies vying for legitimacy in Venezuela will begin a joint working agenda on August 1, promoted by the United States, with the stated aim of moving toward a democratic reinstitutionalization of the country, more than six months after the capture of former President Nicolás Maduro.

]]> Tue, 14 Jul 2026 22:07:00 GMT <![CDATA[Venezuela names its envoy to Washington as foreign minister in cabinet reshuffle]]> Plasencia, 53, is a career diplomat with more than three decades in Venezuela's foreign service Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, has appointed diplomat Félix Plasencia to head a new Ministry of Foreign Relations and Trade, merging the diplomatic and foreign trade portfolios. Plasencia had until now served as Venezuela's chief of mission in the United States, and replaces Yvan Gil, foreign minister since 2023, who moves to the Ministry of Science and Technology.

]]> Tue, 14 Jul 2026 07:06:00 GMT <![CDATA[Uruguay postpones second aid flight to Venezuela over changed entry conditions]]> Uruguayan authorities stressed that this is a postponement, not a cancellation of the mission Uruguay has postponed the second shipment of humanitarian aid to Venezuela, scheduled for Tuesday, after a change in the conditions set by Venezuelan authorities for the entry of cargo, Defense Minister Sandra Lazo said. The Air Force's KC-130H Hercules remains loaded with some 15 tons of supplies intended for victims of the June 24 twin earthquakes.

]]> Tue, 14 Jul 2026 07:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Venezuela quake toll rises to 4,490 as government defends withholding missing figure]]> Rodríguez defended the government's decision not to release a figure for the missing, nearly three weeks after the disaster The death toll from the twin earthquakes that struck northern Venezuela on June 24 rose to at least 4,490, after another 157 fatalities were added to Saturday's count, according to figures released by the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez. The number of injured held at 16,740 and that of people rescued alive at 6,462.

]]> Mon, 13 Jul 2026 07:49:00 GMT <![CDATA[PAHO warns Venezuela quake health emergency has entered critical phase]]> Photo: Maxwell Briceno / REUTERS The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) warned on Thursday that the health emergency stemming from the earthquakes that struck north-central Venezuela on June 24 has entered a critical stage and is "far from over," with the focus on preventing disease outbreaks among the displaced population. According to the official toll cited by the organization, as of July 8 the quakes had left 3,811 people dead and 16,740 injured.

]]> Fri, 10 Jul 2026 08:55:00 GMT