The exiled leader of the opposition in Venezuela Edmundo Gonzales Urutiawho says he was the winner of the July 28 presidential election in which he faced the head of state Nicolas Madurois en route to Argentina, while authorities in Caracas have offered a $100,000 reward for any information leading to his capture.

Mr. Gonzalez Urrutia, in exile in Spain since September, who has promised to return to his country to “assume his duties” on January 10, replacing Mr. Maduro was expected in Buenos Aires within hours, a source in Argentina’s presidency told AFP yesterday, without elaborating.

A few hours earlier, it was announced in Caracas that a reward was being offered for any information that would lead to the arrest of the opposition figure.

“He is wanted. Arrest warrant. Reward: $100,000,” reads a poster posted on social networking sites by the Venezuelan police, with a photo of Mr. Gonzales Urutia.

The poster will be displayed at airports and police checkpoints across the country, judicial sources said.

The announcement of the re-election of Nicolas Maduro for a third six-year term was disputed by the opposition, which asserts that its own candidate, Mr. Gonzales Urutia, with over 67% of the votes.

Former diplomat and Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who has gone underground, on Tuesday called on her fellow citizens for new protests as President Maduro is expected to be sworn in next Friday, January 10.

“Let’s take the commitment together that my term will start in 2025,” said Mr. Gonzalez Urrutia, who fled to Spain.

The US, the EU and several Latin American governments do not recognize the re-election of Mr. Maduro, who has been elected since 2013 in votes disputed by the opposition.

President Maduro sees opposition allegations of election fraud as part of a plan to stage a “coup” in Venezuela. It continues to be supported by the armed forces.

“On January 10, 2025, we will take to the streets by the millions and swear for Venezuela,” one can hear in a video uploaded by the president to Instagram yesterday, and reproduces excerpts of a speech he had delivered in December in front of the presidency in Caracas.

“The people’s house will never fall into the hands of a puppet,” he says in the text accompanying the video, apparently taking aim at Mr. Gonzales Urutia.

Nicolas Maduro’s victory declaration sparked protests and riots that left 28 people dead and around 200 injured, according to Venezuelan prosecutors.

Over 2,400 opposition members or supporters were detained during the incidents. They were prosecuted for, among other things, terrorism and incitement to hatred, and many were sent to maximum security prisons. Almost 1,400 of them, however, have been released on parole, according to the authorities.

The expected arrival of the Venezuelan opposition leader is expected to further worsen the already toxic atmosphere between Caracas and Buenos Aires.

On Thursday, Argentina announced that it had appealed against Venezuela to the International Criminal Court (ICC), alleging the “arbitrary arrest and enforced disappearance” of Argentine national guard Nauel Gazo, who has been arrested in Caracas and accused of “terrorism”.

Diplomatic relations between the two countries have been severed by Venezuela’s decision after Argentine President Javier Millay questioned the re-election of Nicolas Maduro.

The security of the Argentine embassy in Caracas is now guaranteed by Brazil. In March, six associates of Venezuelan opposition leader Machado, who are accused of “terrorism”, appealed to this diplomatic mission. Five of the six remain there.