CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela’s government released an American journalist and his local colleague on Wednesday, after they spent more than 12 hours in custody in a move that drew further international condemnation of socialist President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

In the latest crackdown on a challenge to his rule by opposition leader Juan Guaido, Maduro also expelled the German ambassador, accusing him of repeated meddling in the country’s affairs. The United States said it was set to impose sanctions on banks to ramp up pressure on Maduro to leave office.

Most Western countries, including the United States and Germany, have recognized Guaido as the OPEC nation’s legitimate head of state and back his plan to install a transition government ahead of free elections. Guaido says Maduro’s re-election last year resulted from a sham vote and blames him for an economic collapse that has led to widespread shortages and hyperinflation.

Maduro - who says he is the victim of an attempted coup and “economic war” led by the United States - retains control of state functions and the support of the armed forces.

Venezuelan military counterintelligence agents detained American journalist Cody Weddle and his Venezuelan colleague, Carlos Camacho, early on Wednesday, Venezuela’s National Press Workers Union said on Twitter.

Camacho was released in the evening after 12 hours in custody, the union said, while Miami television station WPLG Local 10 said Weddle had also been released and was at the main Caracas-area airport waiting to board a U.S.-bound flight.

WPLG, one of the outlets for which Weddle worked, did not cite its sources on his release, but said his mother was “relieved” to learn the news. Reuters was unable to reach Weddle for comment

Venezuela’s Information Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his release. The government had not commented on his detention all day.

Weddle’s arrest, which came a week after Venezuela deported a team from U.S. television network Univision, was condemned by Guaido, Organization of American States Secretary-General Luis Almagro and several U.S. lawmakers from both major parties.

Kimberly Breier, the top U.S. diplomat for the Western Hemisphere, said on Twitter that the State Department was “aware of and deeply concerned with reports that another U.S. journalist has been detained in Venezuela,” without naming Weddle.

The incident threatened to worsen already-fraught relations between Venezuela and the United States, which has reduced its diplomatic presence in the country after Maduro said in January he would break ties.

The United States slapped sanctions on Venezuela’s vital oil industry in January to try to cut off government revenue and force Maduro out, and pledged further action on Wednesday. A senior official in the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump said it had identified efforts by Maduro to work with foreign banks to move and hide money.

“We will be sanctioning some in the days and weeks to come,” the official said, hours after White House national security adviser John Bolton warned foreign banks they could face sanctions if they participated in transactions benefiting Maduro.

The United States will also revoke the visas of 77 people associated with Maduro, Vice President Mike Pence said, adding to a list of 49 others whose visas were revoked last Friday.

On Wednesday, Maduro’s government declared German ambassador Daniel Kriener persona non grata, days after he and diplomats from other embassies welcomed Guaido home at the Caracas airport.

Guaido had flouted a court-imposed travel ban to visit other Latin American countries to drum up support.

The government gave Kriener 48 hours to leave the country, but did not provide specific details on why he was being expelled.

“Venezuela considers it unacceptable that a foreign diplomat carries out in its territory a public role closer to that of a political leader aligned with the conspiratorial agenda of extremist sectors of the Venezuelan opposition,” it said in a statement.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas called the move “an incomprehensible decision, which escalates the situation instead of easing tensions.” European support for Guaido was “unwavering,” he added.</s>The Latest: US journalist reported freed in Venezuela

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The latest on the detention of a U.S. journalist by Venezuela security forces (all times local):

Executives at a Miami TV station say their correspondent based in Venezuela has been freed from custody hours after security forces seized him at his apartment.

ABC affiliate Local 10 News reported Wednesday that freelance journalist Cody Weddle was at the airport outside Caracas waiting for a flight to the United States.

Weddle's detention came the same day that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the expulsion of Germany's ambassador after the envoy expressed support for Guaido.

Virginia-born Weddle has worked as a journalist in Venezuela for more than four years. It's unclear why officials detained him.

Senior Venezuelan officials would not comment on the case.

Lawyers and press freedom groups say Venezuelan security forces have seized a U.S. journalist at his apartment amid the country's escalating political turmoil.

Neighbors say a squad of five men dressed in black uniforms and carrying a written order demanded entry into the Caracas apartment building of journalist Cody Weddle on Wednesday morning. They say the officers emerged two hours later with the Virginia-born Weddle carrying a large suitcase and equipment bag.

The U.S. State Department says it is aware of a missing journalist and warns President Nicolas Maduro's government that the world is watching.</s>The Latest: US journalist reported freed in Venezuela

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The latest on the detention of a U.S. journalist by Venezuela security forces (all times local):

Executives at a Miami TV station say their correspondent based in Venezuela has been freed from custody hours after security forces seized him at his apartment.

ABC affiliate Local 10 News reported Wednesday that freelance journalist Cody Weddle was at the airport outside Caracas waiting for a flight to the United States.

Weddle's detention came the same day that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the expulsion of Germany's ambassador after the envoy expressed support for Guaido.

Virginia-born Weddle has worked as a journalist in Venezuela for more than four years. It's unclear why officials detained him.

Senior Venezuelan officials would not comment on the case.

Lawyers and press freedom groups say Venezuelan security forces have seized a U.S. journalist at his apartment amid the country's escalating political turmoil.

Neighbors say a squad of five men dressed in black uniforms and carrying a written order demanded entry into the Caracas apartment building of journalist Cody Weddle on Wednesday morning. They say the officers emerged two hours later with the Virginia-born Weddle carrying a large suitcase and equipment bag.

The U.S. State Department says it is aware of a missing journalist and warns President Nicolas Maduro's government that the world is watching.</s>CARACAS (REUTERS) - Venezuela's government expelled the German ambassador on Wednesday (March 6), while press advocacy groups said an American journalist had been detained, as embattled President Nicolas Maduro cracks down on a challenge to his rule.

Ambassador Daniel Kriener was expelled two days after he and diplomats from other embassies welcomed home opposition leader Juan Guaido at the Caracas airport.

The government declared Kriener persona non grata and gave him 48 hours to leave the country, accusing him of meddling in internal affairs, although it did not give specific details.

"Venezuela considers it unacceptable that a foreign diplomat carries out in its territory a public role closer to that of a political leader aligned with the conspiratorial agenda of extremist sectors of the Venezuelan opposition," the government said in a statement.

A German foreign ministry spokeswoman confirmed Venezuela had expelled the ambassador and that the ministry was consulting with its allies on how to respond.

Most Western countries, including Germany, recognise Guaido as Venezuela's legitimate head of state and back his plan to install a transition government ahead of free elections.

Guaido denounces Maduro as an usurper whose re-election last year resulted from a sham vote. Maduro says he is victim of a coup.

Kriener, along with ambassadors and diplomats from other European embassies, had gone to the airport on Monday to support Guaido, who had risked arrest on his return to Venezuela for flouting a court-imposed travel ban to visit other Latin American countries.

On Monday, the embassy said on its Twitter account that Kriener hoped Guaido's return "was a step towards a peaceful and political process to overcome the Venezuelan crisis."

Separately, Venezuela's National Press Workers Union said on Twitter that American journalist Cody Weddle was arrested at his home on Wednesday by military counterintelligence agents. Espacio Publico, a free speech group, said he had been accused of treachery and that the agents took his computer and equipment.

WPLG Local 10 News, a Miami television station that Weddle contributed to, reported on its website that management attempts to reach Weddle "have proven unsuccessful" and that his last contact with station employees was on Monday afternoon.

Neither Venezuela's information ministry nor the US State Department immediately responded to requests for comment.

Last week, Venezuela deported a team from US television network Univision after anchor Jorge Ramos said authorities detained them at the presidential palace.</s>VENEZUELA - Journalist and Local 10 contributor Cody Weddle has reportedly been detained by government officials in Venezuela, according to various reports.

Sources say Weddle’s home in Caracas was the target of an early morning raid by authorities on Wednesday, although those reports have yet to be confirmed.

Weddle's housekeeper is quoted in stories saying he was taken into custody with his passport, other documents, money and a large suitcase.

Attempts by Local 10 management to reach Weddle have proven unsuccessful. His last contact with station employees came on Monday afternoon during the Local 10 News.

Weddle's last report Monday focused on the return of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó to the country. A tweet sent by Weddle claimed Guaidó’s homecoming was “triumphant,” but that a path forward for the leader remained uncertain.

Weddle would become the latest journalist to be detained by embattled Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro as the crisis to deliver humanitarian aid to the country’s residents escalates. Univision anchor Jorge Ramos was detained by government forces last month before eventually being released hours later.

Stay with Local10.com and Local 10 for the latest on this breaking news story</s>MIAMI (Reuters) - Venezuelan security officials who detained an American journalist for more than 12 hours pushed him to voice support for socialist President Nicolas Maduro, whose government faces international condemnation, the journalist said on Thursday.

The journalist, Cody Weddle, told reporters who met him at Miami International Airport as he arrived from Caracas that his interrogators had covered his face with a ski mask and accused him of having contacts with senior military officials.

“It was clear they wanted me to say several things, political things, they wanted me to say Nicolas Maduro is still the president,” said Weddle, a freelance journalist who has worked for outlets including Miami television station WPLG Local 10. “They continually kept asking if I had contacts in the military, if I had contacts in the local police force or in the national police force.”

Weddle’s arrest, which came a week after Venezuela deported a team from U.S. Spanish-language television network Univision, was condemned by opposition leader Juan Guaido, the secretary-general of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, and several U.S. lawmakers from both major parties.

Most Western countries, including the United States and Germany, have recognized Guaido as the OPEC nation’s legitimate head of state and back his plan to install a transition government ahead of free elections. Guaido says Maduro’s re-election last year resulted from a sham vote, and he blames Maduro for an economic collapse that has led to widespread shortages and hyperinflation in Venezuela.

The incident threatened to worsen already-fraught relations between Venezuela and the United States, which has reduced its diplomatic presence in the country after Maduro said in January he would break ties.

Weddle said he believed his interrogators were trying to get him to say things that could manipulated in videos: “We’ve seen this before that when these videos are recorded that they might release some type of edited version to make it look like I said something that I really didn’t say.”</s>CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela’s government released an American journalist and his local colleague on Wednesday, after they spent more than 12 hours in custody in a move that drew further international condemnation of socialist President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

In the latest crackdown on a challenge to his rule by opposition leader Juan Guaido, Maduro also expelled the German ambassador, accusing him of repeated meddling in the country’s affairs. The United States said it was set to impose sanctions on banks to ramp up pressure on Maduro to leave office.

Most Western countries, including the United States and Germany, have recognized Guaido as the OPEC nation’s legitimate head of state and back his plan to install a transition government ahead of free elections. Guaido says Maduro’s re-election last year resulted from a sham vote and blames him for an economic collapse that has led to widespread shortages and hyperinflation.

Maduro - who says he is the victim of an attempted coup and “economic war” led by the United States - retains control of state functions and the support of the armed forces.

Venezuelan military counterintelligence agents detained American journalist Cody Weddle and his Venezuelan colleague, Carlos Camacho, early on Wednesday, Venezuela’s National Press Workers Union said on Twitter.

Camacho was released in the evening after 12 hours in custody, the union said, while Miami television station WPLG Local 10 said Weddle had also been released and was at the main Caracas-area airport waiting to board a U.S.-bound flight.

WPLG, one of the outlets for which Weddle worked, did not cite its sources on his release, but said his mother was “relieved” to learn the news. Reuters was unable to reach Weddle for comment

Venezuela’s Information Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his release. The government had not commented on his detention all day.

Weddle’s arrest, which came a week after Venezuela deported a team from U.S. television network Univision, was condemned by Guaido, Organization of American States Secretary-General Luis Almagro and several U.S. lawmakers from both major parties.

Kimberly Breier, the top U.S. diplomat for the Western Hemisphere, said on Twitter that the State Department was “aware of and deeply concerned with reports that another U.S. journalist has been detained in Venezuela,” without naming Weddle.

The incident threatened to worsen already-fraught relations between Venezuela and the United States, which has reduced its diplomatic presence in the country after Maduro said in January he would break ties.

The United States slapped sanctions on Venezuela’s vital oil industry in January to try to cut off government revenue and force Maduro out, and pledged further action on Wednesday. A senior official in the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump said it had identified efforts by Maduro to work with foreign banks to move and hide money.

“We will be sanctioning some in the days and weeks to come,” the official said, hours after White House national security adviser John Bolton warned foreign banks they could face sanctions if they participated in transactions benefiting Maduro.

The United States will also revoke the visas of 77 people associated with Maduro, Vice President Mike Pence said, adding to a list of 49 others whose visas were revoked last Friday.

On Wednesday, Maduro’s government declared German ambassador Daniel Kriener persona non grata, days after he and diplomats from other embassies welcomed Guaido home at the Caracas airport.

Guaido had flouted a court-imposed travel ban to visit other Latin American countries to drum up support.

The government gave Kriener 48 hours to leave the country, but did not provide specific details on why he was being expelled.

“Venezuela considers it unacceptable that a foreign diplomat carries out in its territory a public role closer to that of a political leader aligned with the conspiratorial agenda of extremist sectors of the Venezuelan opposition,” it said in a statement.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas called the move “an incomprehensible decision, which escalates the situation instead of easing tensions.” European support for Guaido was “unwavering,” he added.</s>CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela’s government released an American journalist and his local colleague on Wednesday, after they spent more than 12 hours in custody in a move that drew further international condemnation of socialist President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

In the latest crackdown on a challenge to his rule by opposition leader Juan Guaido, Maduro also expelled the German ambassador, accusing him of repeated meddling in the country’s affairs. The United States said it was set to impose sanctions on banks to ramp up pressure on Maduro to leave office.

Most Western countries, including the United States and Germany, have recognized Guaido as the OPEC nation’s legitimate head of state and back his plan to install a transition government ahead of free elections. Guaido says Maduro’s re-election last year resulted from a sham vote and blames him for an economic collapse that has led to widespread shortages and hyperinflation.

Maduro - who says he is the victim of an attempted coup and “economic war” led by the United States - retains control of state functions and the support of the armed forces.

Venezuelan military counterintelligence agents detained American journalist Cody Weddle and his Venezuelan colleague, Carlos Camacho, early on Wednesday, Venezuela’s National Press Workers Union said on Twitter.

Camacho was released in the evening after 12 hours in custody, the union said, while Miami television station WPLG Local 10 said Weddle had also been released and was at the main Caracas-area airport waiting to board a U.S.-bound flight.

WPLG, one of the outlets for which Weddle worked, did not cite its sources on his release, but said his mother was “relieved” to learn the news. Reuters was unable to reach Weddle for comment

Venezuela’s Information Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his release. The government had not commented on his detention all day.

Weddle’s arrest, which came a week after Venezuela deported a team from U.S. television network Univision, was condemned by Guaido, Organization of American States Secretary-General Luis Almagro and several U.S. lawmakers from both major parties.

Kimberly Breier, the top U.S. diplomat for the Western Hemisphere, said on Twitter that the State Department was “aware of and deeply concerned with reports that another U.S. journalist has been detained in Venezuela,” without naming Weddle.

The incident threatened to worsen already-fraught relations between Venezuela and the United States, which has reduced its diplomatic presence in the country after Maduro said in January he would break ties.

The United States slapped sanctions on Venezuela’s vital oil industry in January to try to cut off government revenue and force Maduro out, and pledged further action on Wednesday. A senior official in the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump said it had identified efforts by Maduro to work with foreign banks to move and hide money.

“We will be sanctioning some in the days and weeks to come,” the official said, hours after White House national security adviser John Bolton warned foreign banks they could face sanctions if they participated in transactions benefiting Maduro.

The United States will also revoke the visas of 77 people associated with Maduro, Vice President Mike Pence said, adding to a list of 49 others whose visas were revoked last Friday.

On Wednesday, Maduro’s government declared German ambassador Daniel Kriener persona non grata, days after he and diplomats from other embassies welcomed Guaido home at the Caracas airport.

Guaido had flouted a court-imposed travel ban to visit other Latin American countries to drum up support.

The government gave Kriener 48 hours to leave the country, but did not provide specific details on why he was being expelled.

“Venezuela considers it unacceptable that a foreign diplomat carries out in its territory a public role closer to that of a political leader aligned with the conspiratorial agenda of extremist sectors of the Venezuelan opposition,” it said in a statement.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas called the move “an incomprehensible decision, which escalates the situation instead of easing tensions.” European support for Guaido was “unwavering,” he added.</s>The Latest: US journalist reported freed in Venezuela

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The latest on the detention of a U.S. journalist by Venezuela security forces (all times local):

Executives at a Miami TV station say their correspondent based in Venezuela has been freed from custody hours after security forces seized him at his apartment.

ABC affiliate Local 10 News reported Wednesday that freelance journalist Cody Weddle was at the airport outside Caracas waiting for a flight to the United States.

Weddle's detention came the same day that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the expulsion of Germany's ambassador after the envoy expressed support for Guaido.

Virginia-born Weddle has worked as a journalist in Venezuela for more than four years. It's unclear why officials detained him.

Senior Venezuelan officials would not comment on the case.

Lawyers and press freedom groups say Venezuelan security forces have seized a U.S. journalist at his apartment amid the country's escalating political turmoil.

Neighbors say a squad of five men dressed in black uniforms and carrying a written order demanded entry into the Caracas apartment building of journalist Cody Weddle on Wednesday morning. They say the officers emerged two hours later with the Virginia-born Weddle carrying a large suitcase and equipment bag.

The U.S. State Department says it is aware of a missing journalist and warns President Nicolas Maduro's government that the world is watching.</s>(CARACAS, Venezuela) — A U.S. journalist was seized by security forces at his apartment Wednesday amid Venezuela’s escalating political turmoil, then was freed several hours later and deported, executives at his Miami-based TV station and union representatives said.

Cody Weddle was taken to the airport outside Caracas for a flight back to the United States, said ABC affiliate Local 10 News, a station he sent dispatches as a freelance correspondent. Venezuela’s National Union of Press Workers said on Twitter that he had been deported.

It wasn’t clear why he was detained. Government officials did not comment on the case.

Early Wednesday, a squad of five men dressed in black uniforms and carrying a written order demanded entry into Weddle’s Caracas apartment building, neighbors said. The officers emerged two hours later with the Virginia-born Weddle carrying a large suitcase and equipment bag.

“He didn’t say anything,” said the building’s doorman, Juan Jose Araque. “He went quietly.”

Since the start of the year, Venezuela has been shaken by political unrest sometimes erupting in violence after U.S.-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido announced he was invoking the constitution as head of congress to wrest power from President Nicolas Maduro.

Weddle’s apparent arrest came the same day as Maduro ordered the expulsion of Germany’s ambassador after the envoy expressed support for Guaido, escalating a diplomatic standoff with a group of about 50 nations that recognize the opposition leader as Venezuela’s interim president.

Weddle had reported from Venezuela for more than four years, most recently working as a freelance journalist for the ABC affiliate in Miami, a stronghold of Venezuelan exiles, although he also contributed to the Miami Herald and The Telegraph in Britain. He arrived in the country as an English-language correspondent for state-run network Telesur.

Also freed was Weddle’s Venezuelan assistant, Carlos Camacho, who had been swept from his home across town in a similar manner, local media reported.

Marco Ruiz, head of Venezuela’s National Union of Press Workers, said on Twitter before the release that officials with the Directorate General of Military Counterintelligence confirmed to him that the journalists were taken into custody of the agency, which is responsible for dealing with national security threats.

Both men were interrogated, Ruiz said. He said officials provided no further details.

Foro Penal, a lawyer co-op that handles politically sensitive cases, said Weddle was held at a prison in Caracas alongside some of Maduro’s fiercest opponents as well as five other American citizens — all of them dual nationals — who worked at Houston-based Citgo, a subsidiary of Venezuela’s state-run oil monopoly.

Espacio Publico, a Caracas-based media advocacy group, said 49 media workers have been detained in Venezuela over the past two months in a sign of an eroding environment of free speech. Many were released after a few hours, although at least one reporter, German-born Billy Six, has been held since November on what his family says are trumped-up charges of spying .

A team of American journalists led by Univision’s Jorge Ramos in late February said they had their camera equipment and phones seized at Venezuela’s presidential palace after Maduro abruptly ended an interview.

Ramos, one of the most influential Spanish-speaking journalists, said Maduro cut short the interview after 17 minutes when he was shown video on an iPad shot a day earlier of young Venezuelans eating food scraps out of the back of a garbage truck.

Weddle’s mother, Sherry Weddle of Meadowview, Virginia, said she sent her son a text messages early Wednesday, a daily routine they have kept since turmoil began increasing in the South American country. This time there was no reply, she said.

“Usually I get back: ‘I’m fine. Are you OK?’” she said. “I’m just very concerned.”

She told the Miami ABC affiliate that she was relieved to learn her son had been let go.

The U.S. State Department had said in a statement that “the world is watching” Maduro’s handling of the case.

“Being a journalist is not a crime,” the State Department said. “Freedom of expression remains under threat in Venezuela by the Maduro regime.”

E. R. Bert Medina, CEO of ABC’s South Florida affiliate, said in a statement that being unable to reach Weddle was unsettling. “Cody has been dedicated and committed to telling the story in Venezuela to our viewers,” Medina said.
American journalist at WPLG, Cody Weddle, is released from Venezuela after being detained early Wednesday.