María Corina Machado back in Venezuela after 10 months in exile

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado is back in her home country following a series of failed attempts to return and nearly a year in exile.

Machado announced her return via a post on social media site X, in which she wrote "I am here. With you".

Machado had covertly left Venezuela in December 2025 to receive her Nobel Peace Prize. Just weeks later, US forces seized the country's longtime leader Nicolás Maduro and flew him to New York to face criminal charges.

Machado has heaped praise on US President Donald Trump for launching the risky operation, though Washington has allowed Maduro's deputy, Delcy Rodríguez, to rule as interim president.

According to her party, Machado attempted to return seven times in the past three months, from the United States, Panama and Curaçao. They say she was repeatedly blocked by Venezuelan authorities.

Many believed Washington played a role in blocking Machado's return, given Trump's repeated expressions of satisfaction with Rodríguez.

That claim has been denied by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.