Venezuela Suspends Flights From Colombia to Prevent ‘Entry of Mercenaries’

Mercenary claims were made by the Venezuelan security minister after reports of an increase in state repression in the lead up to local elections.

A passenger shows a Venezuelan passport as he waits for news after the cancellation of his flight to Caracas at El Dorado International Airport in Bogota on May 19, 2025. Venezuela's ruling reghime said on that day that it had suspended flights arriving from neighboring Colombia after what it called a cross-border infiltration of "mercenaries" allegedly planning to disrupt upcoming legislative and regional elections on May 25. Raul Arboleda/AFP via Getty Images

Venezuelan Security Minister Diosdado Cabello on May 19 announced the suspension of flights from Colombia due to the possible entry of “mercenaries,” days before the legislative and regional elections scheduled for May 25.

Cabello claimed these “mercenaries” are part of a plan to destabilize the country.

“We have given instructions that all flights from Colombia to Venezuela be immediately suspended because the information we have is related to this type of movement of people,” Cabello said in a televised broadcast.

“These are people who come with clear objectives and will enter Venezuela like any other tourist,” he added.

The elections for governors, state legislators, and National Assembly deputies are marked with questions about the legitimacy of Nicolás Maduro’s presidency following allegations of electoral fraud and state repression after the July 2024 presidential elections.

A May report from the Organization of American States documented an increase in human rights violations targeting the opposition, including the state’s use of widespread enforced disappearance as a tool of repression.

The report said electoral repression in Venezuela has reached a critical turning point and gave examples such as state-confirmed murder of protesters, an unprecedented scale of arbitrary detention accompanied by reports of torture and sexual violence, as well as the formal integration of “Colectivos”—armed civilian groups that function as state-enabled actors engaging in home invasions, beatings, arrests, and extrajudicial killings.

38 People Arrested

In his broadcast, Cabello also stated that the Venezuelan regime has arrested 38 people in recent days, of whom 17 are foreigners and 21 are Venezuelans. The broadcast, without presenting evidence, said the individuals had intended to detonate explosives in Venezuelan consulates, hospitals, and public service entities, as well as to attack officials of the current Venezuelan regime, with the aim of “sabotaging” the legislative and regional elections.

Cabello, also without providing evidence, accused Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado and Iván Simonovis Aranguren, a former political prisoner living in the United States, of participating in “conspiracy and terrorism” activities against Venezuela.

Machado and Simonovis have not responded to Cabello’s statements and did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.

The Colombian Foreign Ministry confirmed in a statement posted on social media platform X that it had received information from the Venezuelan regime to suspend general and commercial aviation flights from Colombia for national security reasons until 6 p.m. May 26. “To date, the Colombian Foreign Ministry has not received information regarding the arrest of Colombian citizens,” it said.

LATAM Airlines Colombia announced in a statement the cancellation of flights between Venezuela and Colombia from May 19 to May 26, following the Venezuelan regime’s decision.

Another airline, Avianca, announced the cancellation of flights on the Colombia–Venezuela route from May 20 to 25.