Many Venezuelan protestors stormed the streets in different cities throughout the country on Sunday, January 31, 2021, to demand the release of special envoy and businesses man, Alex Saab.
The over 200,000 protesters took the action following comments by the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, Ulisses Correia, that his country did no wrong in arresting Mr. Saab.
They called for the immediate release of Alex Saab from state custody in Cape Verde.
The protestors held posters with messages in support of the release of the embattled envoy.
Some of the reporters stated that the arrest of Alex Saab was motivated politically by the United States of America against Venezuela who is known to be a close associate of President Nicolás Maduro.
Mr. Saab has been in the news since last year after he was arrested by Cape Verde police on the orders of the United States when his private plane stopped to refuel on the way to Iran on some official duties for the Venezuelan government.
Lawyers for Alex Saab, on the other hand, have been opposing the extradition order which the Cape Verde government has already accepted but has not executed yet due to the ongoing court proceedings.
After a short period of legal scuffles, Mr. Saab’s lawyers succeeded in getting him to be released from prison custody to be held under arrest. Among the arguments advanced by his lawyers, they said Mr. Saab required medical attention which he had not been provided within the prison.
Although it took some days for local authorities to comply with the court ruling for his release from prison, his lawyers lauded the move but had cause to complain after the lead counsel was denied access to Mr. Saab.
The team has subsequently written letters to the office of the Cape Verde prime minister and police chief to formally complain about the denial of access to Mr. Saab.
The ECOWAS court has however set February 4, 2021, to hear the substantive case on the extradition of Mr. Saab.
