Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro has denied reports that Venezuelan opposition politician Juan Guaido has been expelled from the country. “Mr. Guaido has not been expelled and it is better that this lie does not appear in politics,” Petro said yesterday (local time).
The Venezuelan was allowed to travel from Bogota to Miami, Florida, “despite entering the country illegally.”
Colombia’s Foreign Minister Alvaro Leyva had previously said Guaido had come to Bogota “irregularly” and taken to the capital’s El Dorado airport to take a scheduled night flight to the United States. “The ticket had already been bought by him,” it said. Leyva added that Guaido crossed the border without the knowledge of the authorities.
Guaido: Family and colleagues threatened
Guaido said Monday he was deported just hours after arriving in Colombia. He traveled to Colombia on foot to escape persecution in Venezuela. In a video that appeared to have been taken on an airplane, the politician later said: “They are removing me from Colombia.”
After arriving in Miami, he told reporters that he was “very concerned” about his family and colleagues who had been threatened after his trip to Colombia.
