Opposition leader Machado returns to Venezuela after 10 months in exile

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado said Sunday she has returned to her home country after nearly a year in exile. Her appearance was the first since December, about a month before the US military deposed the country’s then-president Nicolás Maduro. "I am here. With you," Machado wrote in a short post in Spanish on X. Her ally, exiled presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, quickly reposted the message and said: "Venezuela! I am thrilled to announce to you that our leader, my dear Maria Corina, is on Venezuelan soil." "Today is a very important day for Venezuelans. Our sovereign voice returns with her to lead and guide this process! Very soon I will be with you and with her so that our country truly advances toward freedom," he added. Read moreUS-backed Venezuela political transition talks begin without Nobel laureate Machado Machado has been in exile since covertly leaving her South American homeland in late 2025 to receive her Nobel Peace Prize. According to Machado's party, she has tried at least seven times to return but has been blocked by Venezuelan authorities. Machado’s homecoming after more than 10 months in exile took pl...