https://freerepublic.com/tag/aljazeeraauthor/ en-us Tue, 5 May 2026 03:21:15 GMT Focus Forum 15 https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4377707/posts Venezuela’s deposed president, Nicolás Maduro, never enjoyed the charisma or genuine popularity of his predecessor, ‘El Comandante’ Hugo Chávez. So all the murals, billboards and installations dotted around Caracas urging the release of the 63-year-old statesman – along with his wife Cilia Flores – from American captivity, don’t exactly feel like a grassroots effort. ‘Bring them home!’ reads one mural, evoking the Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas. Meanwhile, a stopwatch installed in Caracas’s Bolivar Square counts how long it has been since the presidential couple were abducted by the US army in early January. Maduro currently resides in the Metropolitan... The Spectator https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4377707/posts#comment Tue, 5 May 2026 03:21:15 GMT