Venezuela Faces Nationwide Power Outage Crisis

Venezuela experienced a nationwide blackout affecting all 24 states, which the government attributed to sabotage by opposition groups, particularly in light of ongoing tensions following the controversial July 28 presidential election. Communications Minister Freddy Ñáñez described the event as part of a 'coup plan' orchestrated by the opposition, while President Nicolás Maduro accused the opposition of conducting attacks on the Guri Reservoir, the country's main hydroelectric source. Power began to return in parts of Caracas and some other regions, but many areas remained in darkness, causing significant disruption to daily life. The government activated 'anti-coup protocols' in response to the outage, which follows a pattern of similar blackouts, notably in 2019. Opposition figures have countered the government's narrative by pointing to corruption and mismanagement as the root causes of the electrical failures. Amid the chaos, the government has promised free transportation services to help citizens affected by the power outage.