Nicolas Maduro Calls Venezuelan Opposition Leader a ‘Demonic Witch’ Following Her Nobel Peace Prize Award

Venezuela’s authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro called opposition leader Maria Corina Machado a “demonic witch” following her Nobel Peace Prize award, claiming that “90% of the population rejects her.”

Maduro made the comments during an event to mark a new anniversary of the so-called “indigenous resistance,” which substitutes Columbus Day. He avoided mentioning Machado by name, calling her the “the Sayona’s demonic witch,” a Venezuelan folk figure.

Machado, who has been in hiding in the country for over a year, did not address the comment, but has conveyed a warning to her opponent, whose grip on power she has been seeking to end for a long time.

Speaking to Infobae during the weekend, she said that Maduro should either accept “the terms of a negotiated transition back to democracy” or “leave without any negotiation.” She was addressing tensions with the U.S., where the Trump administration has amassed 10,000 troops in the Caribbean.

Machado dedicated the award to U.S. President Donald Trump, writing after the announcement that “today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the U.S., the people of Latin America, and democratic nations of the world as our main allies to achieve Freedom and democracy.”

In another passage of the interview, Machado claimed that “the regime declared a war on us, which we didn’t want, and the the tools of the citizenship and the support of those who genuinely believe in democracy, we’ll win.”

In the meantime, however, the Venezuelan regime is conducting a series of military drills across the country to “defend sovereignty, guarantee the future and preserve territorial integrity.”

The “Ejercicio Independencia 2000” is taking place across eight of the country’s 24 states. It began on Saturday and will take place gradually. Authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro said “Venezuela remains alert, with operational cohesion and willingness to defend its national territory.”

Top official Diosdado Cabello said earlier this week that Venezuelans are “peaceful” but warned that they have been “actively” preparing “in all fronts to resist, for as long as needed, from the attacks that want to be conducted on the country.”

Cabello also made a threat to the U.S., saying that Washington has “no idea who they’re facing-” “We’ll eat them alive,” he added.