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In a further step in his heated and playful verbal exchange with Nicolás Maduro, magnate Elon Musk has promised to take the Venezuelan ruler on a donkey to "Gitmo", shorthand for the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base detention camp.
"I'm coming for you, Maduro. I'll take you to 'Gitmo' on a donkey," Musk tweeted this Thursday.
The owner of X posted his message alongside a video showing how the Venezuelan leader is giving direct orders to his security forces to stop and arrest those protesting in Venezuela.
In the dialogue, one of the members of the forces tells the leader that they have captured two individuals who allegedly confessed that they were paid 50 dollars to join the protests of thousands of Venezuelans demanding accountability for the electoral fraud on July 28.
In a scene that seems to have been staged, Maduro immediately asks, "Who paid you?" to which the policeman responds, "I don't have that information."
"This area has been very violent and prone to unrest. I am very glad that you are protecting the people. These are criminals; we have captured over 1,200 criminals," Maduro stated, suggesting that those who protest against his government "are being trained in Texas and Colombia."
"They were trained to come and attack, to burn. They tried to set that hospital on fire, and the community and you prevented it. 'Is that protest? Is that political struggle?' he questioned."
The police officer replied, "Terrorism," to which Maduro added, "That's fascism. Those people are not ready to govern this country. I am in combat and I count on you."
Musk's post has gone viral on X in recent hours, gathering hundreds of reactions to the crisis in Venezuela, alongside condemnation of Maduro's repression using military forces against the population, who are demanding the release of the electoral records that would declare Edmundo González the winner.
Elon Musk, Maduro's number one enemy
After publicly supporting opposition leader María Corina Machado, billionaire Elon Musk has recently become the number one "public enemy" of Nicolás Maduro's regime, which has even accused him of wanting to "invade Venezuela."
According to Maduro, "social networks create a virtual reality," and he asserted that this "virtual reality is controlled by our new arch-enemy, the famous and desperate Elon Musk."
"He wants to come with his rockets and an army to invade Venezuela. Elon Musk, thank goodness you showed your face, because we knew you were behind it all, Elon Musk, with your money, with your satellites," Maduro accused the owner of Tesla and SpaceX.
Maduro challenged Musk to a fight in a classic schoolyard style.
"Control yourself, because [your tweets] will lead you to failure, just like this right-wing movement has caused all American politicians to fail. Elon Musk, who picks a fight with me, will dry up; anyone who messes with Venezuela will suffer the same fate. Elon Musk, do you want to fight? Let's do this, I'm ready. I'm a son of Bolívar and Chávez. I'm not afraid of you, Elon Musk; let's go for it. Wherever you want. As we say in Caracas, in the neighborhoods, if you want it, I want it too, Elon Musk. Just say where."
The video clip was shared by Musk himself on his X profile, along with a devastating statement: "The donkey knows more than Maduro." "I apologize for comparing the poor donkey to Maduro. It's an insult to the animal kingdom," the billionaire later added.
In another brief message posted on X, Musk confirmed that he accepted the challenge.
"If I win, he will resign as dictator of Venezuela. If he wins, I will give him a free trip to Mars," wrote the businessman, fueling a verbal battle that promises to further ignite the fuse of a political crisis that is currently at its peak.
Maduro responded, "You accepted the challenge. Let's go for it, but come over here. If I win, I'll agree to the trip to Mars, but you have to come with me." He made no mention of the condition imposed to resign if he lost.
In the midst of back-and-forth jabs and invitations with the South African businessman, Maduro lost his verification as a government entity on the social media platform X (the gray mark) this Wednesday.
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