‘States must not use force’: UN says US raid in Venezuela violated international law

The United Nations on Tuesday expressed deep concern over a dramatic US operation in Venezuela, warning that it clearly “undermined a fundamental principle of international law”.

“States must not threaten or use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state,” AFP quoted Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the UN rights office, as telling reporters in Geneva.

Her remarks followed reports that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were forcibly taken by US commandos in the early hours of Saturday, during an operation that included airstrikes on Caracas backed by warplanes and a heavy naval deployment.

Maduro faces four criminal charges in the US, including narco-terrorism, and Maduro’s vice president has been sworn in as interim president.

Shamdasani rejected Washington’s justification that the raid was warranted by the Venezuelan government’s alleged human rights record.

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“Accountability for human rights violations cannot be achieved by unilateral military intervention in violation of international law,” she said.

She noted that the UN rights office had for a decade documented “the continued deterioration of the situation in Venezuela”.

“We fear that the current instability and further militarisation in the country resulting from the US intervention will only make the situation worse,” she added.

With inputs from agencies