On Saturday, September 14, Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello announced that three Americans, two Spaniards and a Czech citizen were arrested over an alleged plot to “destabilize” Maduro and his government through “violent actions.” Cabello added that hundreds of weapons have been seized by the government, according to Agence France Presse.

Detainees had a ‘very clear objective’ of assassinating Nicolas Maduro, Diosdado Cabello says

Cabello did not specify when these people were arrested. He claimed that “the CIA is in charge of this operation and the CNI of Spain, too,” according to Spanish outlets.

Cabello said that the two Spaniards were detained recently in Puerto Ayacucho in the Southwest. He added that the people who have been detained were looking for mercenaries with a “very clear objective” of assassinating the president. “We know that the United States government has links to this operation,” Cabello said.

“They contacted French mercenaries, they contacted mercenaries from Eastern Europe and they are in an operation to try to attack our country,” Cabello further said, adding that “more than 400 rifles were seized” originating in the US. He alleged that the detainees were plotting “terrorist acts.”

Cabello added that the three Americans and Czech national who have been arrested were linked to the alleged plot to intelligence agencies in the United States and Spain, and to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. The United States, Spain and the Czech Republic have not reacted to the claims yet.

The arrests came at a time when there is increasing tensions between the United States and Spain over Venezuela’s disputed July presidential election. The country’s opposition accused Maduro of stealing the election after failing to release detailed vote tallies backing his claim of victory over Edmundo González.