Outside El Helicoide, the headquarters of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service in Caracas, dozens of relatives of prisoners gathered this Saturday to await the release of their loved ones. As the afternoon wore on, a prerecorded message was broadcast over the phone in which Venezuela's new president, Delcy Rodríguez, announced a bill granting total amnesty to the political prisoners amassed in Venezuelan jails. The legislation covers "the entire period of political violence," from 1999, when Chávez came to power, to "the present." At the opening ceremony of the judicial year this Friday evening at the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) of the South American country, Rodríguez tasked the Commission for Judicial Revolution and the Program for Democratic Coexistence and Peace with approving the bill "in the coming hours." And there is little doubt that the bill will be approved shortly. Deputies loyal to the current regime hold a majority in the Venezuelan Parliament, whose head is the president's brother, Jorge Rodríguez. "I once again request the full cooperation of the Venezuelan legislative branch. May this be a law that serves to heal the wounds left by political confrontation, violence, and extremism. May it serve to restore justice in our country and peaceful coexistence among Venezuelans," he stated. At El Helicoide, described as a center of "torture" by NGOs and opposition members, everyone was crying. "Freedom! Freedom!" some shouted. "God is good. God has heard us," Johana Chirinos, the aunt of a prisoner, told the Associated Press.

From the carpets of Miraflores to the darkness of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, two weeks ago He was arrested in Caracas by US forces and transferred the same day to a jail in ManhattanA swift operation—not without deaths on the Venezuelan side—ended when his cell door closed.

"Despite not having been a soldier, I know about war and clandestinity," Petro said a few days ago when Trump was issuing warnings to Bogotá. A tension and exchange of public messages The truce was short-lived: on Wednesday night they made peace with an hour-long phone call that eased tensions, according to the Colombian ambassador in Washington. Trump noted that it had been "an honor" to speak with the very president whom he had labeled a drug trafficker just days beforeFor his part, Petro posted a photograph on social media of two animals—an eagle and a cheetah—symbolizing a step toward friendship between the two countries. But Petro had already warned: "I swore not to touch another weapon since the 1989 peace agreement, but for the sake of my country, I will take up the weapons I don't want again."

"Perhaps they have kidnapped Nicolás and Cilia, but they have not kidnapped the conscience of a people who have decided to be free." These were the words of Nicolás Maduro Guerra, son of the now former president of Venezuela, at the inauguration of Delcy Rodríguez. "To you, Delcy Eloína, I offer my unconditional support in the difficult task ahead. You can count on me, you can count on my family, you can count on our determination to take the appropriate measures to face this responsibility that now falls to you," said the member of the National Assembly. The new face of Miraflores Palace, for her part, was sworn in as president of Venezuela "with sorrow for the kidnapping of two heroes whom we have as hostages in the United States, Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores." But within hours, Trump made it clear to her that Venezuelan energy resources would pass into Washington's control and that the profits would be invested in American products. Yes to everything, is the message Caracas sends to Washington and the world, while internally reaffirming that the "revolution" remains intact.

The Colombian city of Cúcuta is an oasis of calm, detached from the geopolitical map that exists outside. While several paramilitary groups risk everything in the surrounding area, the town center turns its back on the sounds of the mountains. Therefore, the echo coming from Washington—with the threat of expanding Pentagon operations in Colombia—has little impact on the lives of the Colombians who live in this town on the border with Venezuela. They don't hide their fear, but for now, they also don't seem willing to consider a hypothetical operation in certain border positions.

At Cecilia's ranch, they couldn't celebrate lavishly due to their precarious economic situation, but the family certainly didn't lack the desire to toast with the best bottle in the house. From her window, she can almost tell what's happening in Venezuela, since it's only a few kilometers away, but one day she had to pack her bags to look for a better life. "I arrived five years ago," she explains to ARA, happy to have a horizon for her future. Because, now that Nicolás Maduro is no longer in powerShe and her family plan to return to Trujillo, from where they had to flee due to the dire circumstances. "I ate panela with water, and we cooked green papaya for the children," she explains, describing their situation. A declining macroeconomic situation, hyperinflation, and shortages of food and medicine drove millions of Venezuelans into exile. And the collapse of Maduro's Venezuela has been felt most acutely in areas like Cúcuta. According to data from the regional government of Norte de Santander in 2021, the Colombian city hosted up to 10% of the Venezuelans who remained in Colombia. Regarding the total number of exiles worldwide, the Venezuelan Diaspora Observatory reported that up to 9.1 million people had left the country. Cecilia chose to settle in Colombia, despite dreaming of returning someday. “They offered me a thousand dollars, but we never sold the house we have there,” he says. It’s probably a better place than the area where he lives right now. In the La Esperanza neighborhood, the informal settlement known to everyone by the name of the country in front of them, Venezuela, took shape. Small plots of land made of brick for the lucky ones and corrugated iron for those who couldn’t afford thicker walls.

Following the US raid to capture Nicolás Maduro, nothing unusual was observed this Sunday at the Simón Bolívar Bridge, which connects Colombia and Venezuela. This was confirmed by the soldiers guarding the gateway to the nation presided over by Gustavo Petro. Tranquility and normalcy prevailed; a common scene, both for those entering and leaving. In a rare instance, a small group of Venezuelans crossed the border with numerous large suitcases. A group of journalists tried to follow them, but they left. In fact, the biggest beneficiaries of the influx of international journalists during the hot January weather in Cúcuta, the border city, are the street vendors selling snacks. And the press remains in Cúcuta unable to move forward because Venezuela's borders remain closed to anyone carrying recording equipment. The press is barred.

On the night of December 24, Maduro ate the last hallacas Homemade, a traditional Venezuelan Christmas dish. Nicolás Maduro, according to White House sources and Donald Trump himself, will not set foot in Miraflores Palace again and will sit in the dock—in a US court—to answer the accusations leveled against him for drug trafficking. This week, the now-deposed president, speaking from the presidential complex in an interview with Venezuelan state television, described his last conversation with his Washington counterpart: "I think the conversation was pleasant, but the events following the conversation have not been pleasant." A path of almost 14 years that, with Trump's arrival, has accelerated the Venezuelan leader's downfall. to fall into the hands of an alleged Pentagon surgical operation

Farewell to two decades of rule by the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS). This is what the Bolivian people chose this Sunday in the presidential elections when they prevailed—in the first round—over centrist candidate Rodrigo Paz. In an unexpected result, the senator obtained more votes than the main right-wing candidates, although not enough to ensure an outright victory. Paz thus garnered nearly 33% of the vote, while former right-wing president "Tuto" Quiroga also advances to the second round with 26%.