Venezuela Strongman Maduro, Clinging to Power, Shuts Down X, Accuses Elon Musk of Launching 'Attack'

Venezuela's strongman dictator Nicolás Maduro seems determined to stay in power, despite the cries of "fraud" that have surrounded that Latin American nation's election in July. Maduro is blocking social media outlets in a post-election crackdown, accusing X CEO Elon Musk of launching an "attack" against his reelection:

#UPDATE Venezuelan opposition warns of mass exodus of migrants if President Maduro remains in power following his contested reelection.

Government blocks social media platform X for 10 days, accusing Elon Musk of an "attack" on Maduro's reelectionhttps://t.co/4G3Z7jA1MP pic.twitter.com/VZKqpqTNJH
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 9, 2024

The post by Agence France-Presse states:

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who has claimed reelection following a disputed vote, says that social media platform X will be blocked in the country for 10 days. The state agency in charge of telecommunications will "remove the social network X, formerly known as Twitter, from circulation in Venezuela for 10 days," Maduro said, after previously accusing the site's owner Elon Musk of an "attack" against his reelection

Protests sparked last week by the declaration of Maduro's victory left at least 24 people dead, according to rights groups, with thousands also arrested.
The Venezuelan opposition claims to have won in a landslide and warned Thursday of a potential mass exodus if Maduro is allowed to remain in power.
"If Maduro chooses to stay by force, the only thing we will see is a wave of migration like never before: three, four, five million Venezuelans in a very short span of time," opposition leader Maria Corina Machado -- who was barred from running in the election -- said in a video conference with Mexican news outlets.

The outcome of the election has been widely criticized. Maduro's opponent, presidential candidate Edmundo González, claims to have evidence that the election was fraudulent, and the United States has recognized González as the victor.

Watch As Venezuelans Show Their Willpower to Vote Out Strongman Maduro in Presidential Election

United States to Venezuela's Maduro: You Actually Lost the Presidential Election

Clamping down on social media isn't exactly the most reassuring of acts on Maduro's part to demonstrate confidence in the fairness of the election. While this X block is claimed to be only for 10 days, it remains to be seen if it will indeed ever be lifted; especially since Maduro seems to have made a personal enemy of X CEO Elon Musk.

In an interesting move (that may never actually happen), Elon Musk accepted an offer to face Maduro in a cage match fight. As my colleague strieff described not long after the election:

As the Venezuelan Army and protesters clashed and massive crowds gathered in Caracas to protest the fraudulent election, Maduro did what any dictator would do. He picked a fight on social media. This is how it started. Musk accused Maduro of fraud.
Following the results of Venezuela’s presidential election, in which both Maduro and his opponent claimed victory, the Tesla CEO took to X to accuse the socialist leader of “major election fraud.”
“Maduro, leave! Venezuelans chose to end the communist dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro. The data announce a crushing victory of the opposition, and the world is waiting for you to recognize the defeat after years of socialism, misery, decadence and death,” Musk wrote in a second post.

Musk also set the terms of the cage match:

The terms of the Musk-Maduro duel: pic.twitter.com/CNmInCz9ZU
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) July 31, 2024

There is, as yet, no date set for the cage match.

What's going to be troublesome for Venezuela's neighbors and the United States is that the outcome of this election and the unrest that followed it may spark another wave of migrants fleeing Venezuela.

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