Venezuela's leader Nicolás Maduro announced on state television on 7 January the arrest of seven foreigners whom he accused of being "mercenaries", allegedly trying to prevent him from taking the presidential oath.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has arrested seven foreigners, including two Americans, who he has accused of being “mercenaries” trying to prevent him from being sworn in for another six years in power.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro looks on during a meeting of leaders of the member states of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America and the Treaty of Commerce and Promotion (ALBA-TCP),

The democratic opposition, led by María Corina Machado, has led a courageous and peaceful campaign against Maduro’s fraud, providing evidence via copies of official tally sheets from polling stations to show that opposition candidate Edmundo González won the election by a margin of more than two to one.

Venezuela is on tenterhooks as it braces for pro- and anti-government protests Thursday -- the eve of President Nicolas Maduro's swearing-in for a third term rejected by the opposition and much of the international community as illegitimate.

Venezuela's embattled opposition on Monday vowed to overcome "fear" and thwart President Nicolas Maduro's plans to be sworn in for another term, with defiant leaders renewing calls for mass protests