Much of Venezuela remained engulfed by darkness into early Friday amid one of the largest power outages in years, raising tensions in a country already on edge from ongoing political turmoil.
The blackout hit 22 of 23 states by some accounts. It struck the capital Caracas, which until now has been spared the worst of a collapse in the nation's grid, at the peak of rush hour.
Venezuela's socialist government blasted the outage as an "electrical war" directed by the United States. Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez said right-wing extremists intent on causing pandemonium in Venezuela and taking orders from Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio were behind the blackout, although he offered no proof.
While intermittent outages have become regular occurrences in Venezuela of late, rarely have so many states simultaneously been without power for such an extended period. The nation is experiencing hyperinflation projected to reach a mind-boggling 10 million per cent this year, is grappling with food and medical shortages and has lost about 10 per cent of its population to migration in the past few years. Venezuela's economic woes are likely to increase as U.S. sanctions against its oil industry kick in.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Patrick Johnston: Jake Thiel evolves from huge fan to playing for Canada in Rugby SevensThe lanky 21-year-old Thiel is starting to turn heads with his play for Canada in rugby sevens.
Read more »
Tkachuk & Fleury start huge scrum, nearly cause goalie fight - Sportsnet.caMatthew Tkachuk’s run into Marc-Andre Fleury sparked a massive dust-up between the Flames and Golden Knights, and very nearly caused David Rittich and Fleury to drop the gloves for an old-fashioned goalie fight.
Read more »
Manitoba's Hodgson calls win over Newfoundland and Labrador 'huge'Coming off of a pair of losses, Team Manitoba lead Colin Hodgson knows how huge the bounce back win was for their team as the Championship Pool approaches.
Read more »
Seniors with unrentable homes near Vancouver face huge speculation tax billsBelcarra mayor Neil Belenkie and the property owners were at B.C.’s legislature Tuesday demanding relief from the tax
Read more »
How foreign companies use Canada’s universities to steal away huge chunks of intellectual propertyInnovation Nation: Lax rules around university R&D programs are doing more to benefit foreign multinationals than Canada
Read more »
Randle's huge third quarter helps Pelicans beat Suns - TSN.caJulius Randle scored 16 of his 22 points in the third quarter, leading the New Orleans Pelicans to a 130-116 win over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.
Read more »
Leafs fans give Tavares huge ovation after rough game against Islanders - Sportsnet.caJohn Tavares wasn’t treated so kindly by Islanders fans in his return against his former team, but the Maple Leafs’ faithful made sure he knew he was embraced by Toronto with a massive standing ovation.
Read more »
Warriors take top billing at Vancouver Women in Film FestivalFilm festival draws huge interest and puts 47 films on screens.
Read more »
This Week in History: 1933 A giant ape climbs the Empire StateThe film was a considered a technical marvel at the time, and drew huge crowds.
Read more »
United States warning Venezuelan Maduro government not to take action against GuaidoGuaido, who plans to return home Monday, has urged supporters to stage huge demonstrations coinciding with his arrival as a way to pressure Maduro into resignation
Read more »