Venezuela's Maduro signs decree blocking X access in country for 10 days

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a press conference at the Miraflores presidential palace, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024. (Cristian Hernandez / AP Photo)

CARACAS — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday said he had signed a decree to block access to social media platform X for 10 days, after earlier saying social media was used to incite violence following the country's presidential election.

Maduro has frequently railed against X owner Elon Musk since the July 28 election which the opposition says it won, a claim backed by an increasing numbers of western governments.

Maduro said he signed a decree presented by regulator Conatel which "has decided to take social network X, formerly known as Twitter, out of circulation for 10 days."

"X get out of Venezuela for 10 days!" he said in a speech which was broadcast on state television.

Maduro and Venezuela's electoral authority have said that the president won a third term in the election, though the opposition claims victory and says it has the vote counts to prove it. Neither Maduro nor the electoral body have released detailed vote tallies.

In the days after the vote, protests from Venezuelans across the country and abroad broke out demanding Maduro step down and to honour a win by opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez.

The protests were largely promoted on social media.

The leftist president earlier this week had asked his supporters to also abandon messaging application WhatsApp in favour of Telegram or WeChat, saying the app was being used to threaten the families of soldiers and police officers.

Maduro has also clashed publicly with Musk since the election. As well as banning the social network for 10 days, Maduro accused Musk of inciting hate, civil war, and death.

The social network did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Earlier, the foreign ministers of Mexico, Colombia and Brazil reiterated calls for Venezuela's electoral authority to publish the vote tallies in a joint statement.

The statement followed comments by Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado on Thursday calling on Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to impress upon Maduro that his best option is to negotiate with the country's opposition.

(Reporting by Mayela Armas and Vivian Sequera; Writing and additional reporting by Oliver Griffin; Editing by Brendan O'Boyle and Michael Perry)