A viral video circulating on social media and shared by Venezuelan journalists on Sunday appears to show Interior Minister and long-suspected drug lord Diosdado Cabello arguing with an American rescue delegation member after Cabello allegedly blocked the team from helping Venezuelans affected by last week’s devastating earthquakes.
Cabello, a man actively wanted by U.S. authorities on multiple narco-terrorism charges, is one of the Venezuelan socialist regime’s most powerful individuals and the top official in charge of the regime’s repressive apparatus.
As the nation’s interior minister, Cabello has taken an active role in the Venezuelan regime’s response to the devastating deadly earthquakes that struck the nation last Wednesday, leaving more than 1,400 dead (at least) and thousands more injured and still missing at press time.
Most of the devastation occurred in the northern state of La Guaira, where the majority of the nearly 800 buildings that either partially or totally collapsed as a result of the earthquake are located.
La Estrella de Panama reported that a video circulating on social media in recent hours shows Cabello arguing with an individual identified as a member of the United States rescue delegation. In the video, the U.S. member is heard insisting, “There is somebody right over there that we’re trying to help,” while Cabello continues to argue with the man.
The Miami-based outlet El Venezolano TV published what appears to be another angle of the incident. Towards the end of the clip, the American official is heard saying, “I’m not happy with this situation.”
Venezuelan journalist and Breitbart News contributor Emmanuel Rincón asserted that, according to unnamed sources, the argument between Cabello and the U.S. rescue team member lasted several minutes, with Cabello “even hitting a vehicle” at one point.
No official of the Venezuelan socialist regime has publicly commented on the viral video at press time.
The incident occurs at a time when the Venezuelan regime, now led by “acting President” Delcy Rodríguez, faces widespread accusations of being incapable of providing relief to its people after last week’s tragedy. Decades of corruption and mismanagement have left Venezuela unprepared to face natural disasters of any kind, forcing Venezuelans to desperately conduct search and rescue operations without key lifesaving tools and resources.
The left-wing New York Times — which has published full-page ads for Venezuelan regime officials in the past — noted on Sunday that Rodríguez herself has been accused of politicizing the earthquake relief and trying to exploit the tragedy for her own political gain. Reports published last week indicate that members of the Venezuelan socialist regime are blocking civilian-led efforts to organize and deliver humanitarian aid, insisting that local socialist government officials and the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) are the only ones “authorized” to receive supplies and distribute aid.
The Venezuelan regime, through state-owned outlets, appears to convey the narrative that Rodríguez is at the forefront of the nation’s “urgent relief” efforts. In reality, the United States and several other nations, such as El Salvador and Mexico, have sent delegations and critical humanitarian aid resources to help conduct successful search and rescue operations for survivors still trapped in the collapsed buildings, especially in the state of La Guaira.
On Saturday night, Rodríguez summoned a group of international search and rescue brigades to a protocol act in the midst of their work.
Venezuelan outlets observed that Rodríguez herself acknowledged during the event that she was pulling rescue workers away from their duties at such a critical time, stating, “We wanted to briefly step you away from your tasks, which we know are vital, to thank you on behalf of the Venezuelan people. We are in the critical hours for saving lives.”
The regime’s official event reportedly drew criticism from Venezuelans for having pulled international rescue workers to an event during the most critical hours following Wednesday’s devastating earthquakes.
The state of La Guaira was once known as the state of Vargas before the ruling socialists renamed it so as to “decolonize” the state and attempt to erase the legacy of José María Vargas, the first civilian president of Venezuela.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
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