Sawt Falasteen - Venezuela offers military training to public amid Trump threats

Nearly a month ago, Washington deployed warships to international waters off Venezuela's coast, backed by F-35 fighters sent to Puerto Rico in what it calls an anti-drug and anti-terrorism operation.

Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez has accused Washington of waging "undeclared war" in the Caribbean, after US strikes killed over a dozen alleged drug traffickers off his country's coast.

Caracas also accused the United States of seeking regime change and stealing its oil and other resources.

In the crammed Petare neighborhood of Caracas, the main avenue was shut down for a day of mini-courses about weapons handling and other "revolutionary resistance" tactics.

"I'm here to learn what I need to learn to defend what is really important to me: my country, my homeland, my nation, Venezuela," said Luzbi Monterola, a 38-year-old office worker.

"I am afraid of nothing and no one."

- 'Oil, gold, diamonds' -

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro -- who stands accused by Washington of running a drug cartel -- has long sought to mobilize civilians in the escalating standoff.

The Petare neighborhood was once the launching point for protests against Maduro's reelection in July 2024, deemed fraudulent by the opposition and much of the international community.

After thousands of volunteers were summoned to military barracks last week for training, Maduro ordered the armed forces to go into the neighborhoods themselves.

But the show of force was subdued, with about 25 armored vehicles parading in the capital city and fewer trainees.

Maduro met with rural workers in the Aragua region on Saturday, calling on "millions" to "be prepared to take up arms and defend the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela if it were attacked by the American empire."

In Petare, soldiers taught volunteers in groups of 30 how to handle weapons. Other topics included how to wear masks, basic first aid, and "ideological thought."

Outside Caracas, training sessions took place in San Cristobal and Barinas, where turnout was also low, according to AFP correspondents.

"All of this is about oil, gold, diamonds -- our resources," said 16-year-old John Noriega, who came to the Petare event with his parents. "We will fight for what belongs to us."

On the coasts, fishing boats cruised alongside naval vessels, state television footage showed.

"Today is a milestone we are marking in the military revolution that we are all writing, the people and the Armed Forces together. It is a true military revolution!" said Lopez.

Venezuela launched three days of military exercises on its Caribbean island of La Orchila in response to the perceived threat from a US flotilla of seven ships and a nuclear-powered submarine.

- 'Incalculable' -

Trump warned Venezuela that it would face "incalculable" consequences if it refused to take back migrants he said it had "forced into the United States."

Repatriation of undocumented Venezuelans living in the United States has until now been one of the rare areas on which talks are ongoing, a diplomatic source told AFP.

On Friday, a US plane brought 185 Venezuelans back to Caracas, bringing to more than 13,000 the total number of repatriations since Trump returned to office in January.

Maduro's YouTube channel -- which carries most of his speeches -- vanished from the platform on Saturday. Officials in Caracas did not immediately comment.

L.AbuAli--SF-PST