"marking Washington's latest effort to put pressure on President Nicolas Maduro as the US weighs up military action on land. On November 16, the US Department of State declared that the Cartel de los Soles, or Cartel of the Suns, a term Venezuelans use to refer to officials engaged in corruption, would be added to the foreign terrorist organization (FTO) list from today. The US alleges the cartel is overseen by Maduro himself."
"According to the think tank InsightCrime, the name Cartel de los Soles emerged in the 1990s when Venezuelan generals and senior officers, who wore sun insignias on their epaulettes, were investigated for drug trafficking and related crimes. Jeremy McDermott, codirector of InsightCrime, told CNN the cartel is not a traditional, vertically organised drug-trafficking organisation. It is a series of normally disconnected cells embedded"
The US State Department added the Cartel de los Soles to the foreign terrorist organization list, alleging that the network is overseen by President Nicolas Maduro and includes inner-circle and military members. US officials say the designation is necessary to stem drug trafficking and expands US policy options. Venezuelan authorities deny the cartel's existence and Maduro's involvement, calling the action a ridiculous lie and a pretext for future military intervention. The State Department links the Cartel de los Soles and the Tren de Aragua gang to extensive trafficking to the US and Europe. InsightCrime describes the cartel as disconnected cells rather than a hierarchical organisation.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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