Maduro’s V gesture echoed by loyalists after U.S. capture

After U.S. forces captured Venezuela’s leader Nicolás Maduro and brought him to New York in handcuffs, he flashed a thumbs-up and a two-finger “V” gesture that many onlookers took as a defiant peace sign, and loyal lawmakers in Caracas repeated the sign at a session of the National Assembly.

Experts on Chavismo told the Times the two-handed symbol — one hand forming a V, the other pointing toward it — means “Nosotros venceremos,” or “Together we will win.” The two-finger V has long been used to signal victory in wartime and was popularized by Winston Churchill, the article said.

At the National Assembly session, legislators flashed the same sign with slight variations. Jorge Rodríguez, ratified as president of the National Assembly, raised a fist and then made the V and a thumbs-up; his sister, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, was sworn in as interim leader, and the gestures were broadcast and circulated on social media.

The article says Mr. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were being arraigned in federal court in Manhattan that morning, with an empty chair for Ms. Flores, who is also a legislator. State television VTV called the gesture a “potent symbol of dignity and courage,” while critics dismissed it as hollow.

Key Topics

World, Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela, National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, Delcy Rodríguez