MIAMI — Venezuela’s feared interior minister, Diosdado Cabello — a fugitive sought by U.S. authorities — is facing fierce criticism after footage appeared to show him berating and obstructing American rescue crews, as the death toll from last week’s pair of earthquakes climbed past 1,700.
By Monday, the fifth day of the disaster, officials in the South American nation reported that 5,000 people had been injured and roughly 23,000 affected by the devastating tremors.
U.S. officials said at least three Americans died in the back-to-back 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude quakes that struck northern Venezuela on Wednesday evening. Another dozen U.S. citizens remain unaccounted for.
U.S. Marines, along with civilian search-and-rescue specialists, have been sent to the region to assist efforts to locate survivors buried in the debris.
Among those deployed were members of the elite USA-01 team from Virginia, who rescued a nine-month-old baby and her mother from a collapsed building after nearly three days trapped beneath the rubble.
But even as the teams carried out lifesaving work, a video circulating widely on social media appeared to show Cabello yelling and gesturing angrily at a group believed to be American rescuers.
Cabello is wanted by U.S. authorities, who have placed a $25 million bounty on him, on charges including narco-terrorism, cocaine importation, and using and carrying machine guns.
In the clip, one visibly frustrated rescuer points toward the scene and tells Cabello: “But there’s someone right over there that we’re trying to help.”
“You don’t want us to help them?”
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Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (R-Fla.), a former firefighter, called for US authorities to snatch Cabello after the outburst.
“While the US increases its presence in #Venezuela, we should pick-up thug Diosdado Cabello and bring him to justice so he can stop impeding the distribution of aid to those impacted by the earthquake,” Gimenez commented on X in response to the video.
Cabello has been accused by the US of leading the Cartel of the Suns drug trafficking network involving high ranking officials and military officers.
The former military officer and alleged drug lord, 63, has served as Minister of Interior, Justice and Peace since 2024.
He is widely seen as the primary enforcer of state repression in Venezuela and as interior minister directs the regime’s police and intelligence services.
Even after President Nicolás Maduro’s capture by US forces this year, Cabello has remained near the top of the heap — and is said to be a key lieutenant of acting Venezuelan president Delcy Rodriguez.
Cabello is accused of having overseen the arbitrary detention and torture of political opponents and critical journalists.
President Trump said following the Caracas operation that the US would run Venezuela until a “proper transition can take place.”
Rodriguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president, has publicly thanked Trump for his support following the earthquakes.
The fallout from the earthquakes is, however, threatening to open a new front for Venezuela’s beleaguered socialist ruling class.
Videos circulated over the weekend on social media showed frustrated residents accusing military personnel of offering little assistance to civilians carrying out search and rescue operations.
“Emotionally, the country is deeply shaken,” Venezuelan pollster Ruben Chirinos said, according to the Miami Herald.
“But the anger toward the government’s response is on another level.
“The two biggest sources of anger are clear.
“First, the obstruction of aid organized by ordinary citizens.
“Second, the inaction – or worse – of the armed forces.”
