Daily Times

CARACAS: Embattled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro declared a three-month state of emergency late Friday to face threats from abroad, as his emboldened opposition geared for a vote to oust him from office.

In an address to the nation, Maduro said that he had signed a new state of emergency decree to neutralise and defeat foreign aggression, which he says is closing in on the country. Maduro said the measures will likely last through 2017, but he did not specify if they will limit civil rights.

The announcement, made with his full cabinet at his side, broadens the scope of an economic emergency decree in effect since January that was set to expire on Saturday. The new decree, is a fuller, more comprehensive protection for our people, which guarantees peace, guarantees stability, that will allow us during the months of May, June, July” to “recover the country’s productive capacity.

“It will be extended constitutionally and last for the rest of the year “and likely throughout the year 2017,” he said.