Opponents of Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro will take to the streets Thursday, in a last-ditch bid to prevent him from being sworn in for a highly controversial third term as president.Ruling party loyalists have also taken to the streets in a blunt warning to their opponents.

"We ask the world for solidarity right now," said Luis Gonzalez, a Venezuelan exile who has lived in South Florida for the past eight years. The rally comes in response to calls from Machado, who urged Venezuelans worldwide to mobilize peacefully against Nicolás Maduro 's decision to remain in power despite international recognition of opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez as the winner of last year's presidential election.

Venezuelan opposition parties and NGOs decried the arrests of a prominent press freedom activist and a well-known opposition figure, among others, ahead of planned protests against Friday's inauguration of President Nicolas Maduro for his third term.