UN accuses Venezuela of crimes over humanity

Independent experts for the United Nations’ top human rights body accused the government of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro of crimes against humanity, highlighting grisly cases of torture and killings allegedly carried out by security forces who used techniques like electric shocks, genital mutilation and asphyxiation.

In a scathing in-depth report commissioned by the Human Rights Council, the experts said the people responsible for extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention sand other crimes must be held to account to provide justice for untold thousands of victims and to ensure such crimes did not hap - p en again. The findings of the report are likely to ratchet up pressure on Mr Maduro’s government.