NEW YORK, March 27 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made his second appearance in a New York court on Thursday morning following his forcible seizure by United States (US) troops during a military raid in Caracas in early January, reported Xinhua.
During his first arraignment on Jan. 5, Maduro pleaded not guilty to all US charges against him, including drug trafficking, and told the court that he was "kidnapped" from his Caracas residence and that he remains president of Venezuela.
On Thursday, Maduro's lawyer continued pushing the judge to throw out the charges in court and argued that the US is violating Maduro's constitutional rights by blocking Venezuelan government funds from paying for his legal fees.
Although the judge questioned Washington’s rationale for barring Maduro from using Venezuelan funds to pay for his legal defence, he denied the call for the case to be dismissed.
On Jan. 3, US military forces launched a large-scale strike against Venezuela and forcibly seized Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, before transporting them to New York.
The US attacks have shocked the international community, triggering a stream of condemnation and serious concerns worldwide.
The couple has been jailed at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, New York, since their seizure in Caracas.
Protesters gathered outside the courthouse, which was heavily guarded by law enforcement officers, chanting slogans and demanding that Maduro be freed immediately.
"We're here today standing with Nicholas Maduro and Cilia Flores," Jacoe Muldoon, a young protester, told Xinhua. "We think charges should be dismissed and that they should be freed."
Another protester said that the US had no right to kidnap an elected leader of another country, adding that the Venezuelan people are united to face the challenges.
In Muldoon's eyes, the situation in Venezuela and that in Iran are definitely connected as the US launched aggression overseas to seize resources globally.
-- BERNAMA-XINHUA
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