Washington - The United States imposed sanctions yesterday on seven Venezuelans including the owner of news network Globovision for allegedly plundering billions of dollars from the crisis-hit country through black-market currency exchanges. According to the Treasury Department, the sanctioned Venezuelans -- faced with a shortfall in their bolivar currency needed to fund government projects -- went to black-market exchange houses to sell dollars at a higher than official rate. - Freezing US assets -The Treasury Department froze all property and assets of the sanctioned Venezuelans inside the United States, with penalties for financial transactions involving them. Globovision was the last Venezuelan network aligned with the opposition until its 2013 buyout by investors sympathetic to Maduro and his late predecessor Hugo Chavez. President Donald Trump has mused about military intervention in Venezuela, leading Maduro to allege there is a US-backed plot against him.

Source: Philippine Star January 08, 2019 15:45 UTC