The Saab Case Is Political and Manipulated by the US: Fabri

During an interview with teleSUR on Monday, Camilla Fabri, the wife of Alex Saab, the Venezuelan diplomat who has been detained in the United States since 2021, denounced that his case is political and manipulated by the U.S. government.

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"It has no legal base. Washington used Cape Verde as a puppet to achieve what they wanted to do," Fabri said, adding that the White House knew of Saab's diplomatic missions, as former U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper's book admits.

Referring to the confessions of the former Trump administration official, Fabri recalled that the U.S. knew that Saab was carrying out humanitarian missions to supply Venezuela with medicine and food amid the blockade caused by the U.S. sanctions against this country.

"Esper knew that Saab had been appointed as a diplomat in 2018, two years before his kidnapping... Saab was considered a very important piece for the U.S.", Fabri said, recalling that her husband had already carried out three humanitarian missions before being detained in Cape Verde.

On June 12, 2020, Alex Saab was traveling from Iran to Venezuela on a plane that made a refueling stop in Cape Verde. Following a request made by the U.S., this African country arrested the Bolivarian diplomat. On Oct. 16, 2021, he was extradited to the U.S., where he is being charged with eight counts of money laundering.

Fabri pointed out that her husband's defense strategy is based on the defense of the sovereignty of Venezuela and respect for international diplomatic agreements. "We are facing a political and illogical case," she assured, recalling that a U.S. court is currently analyzing the diplomatic status of Alex Saab.

For more than five years, the U.S. sanctions against Venezuela have prevented President Nicolas Maduro's administration from accessing international markets to acquire goods and services. In response to these restrictions, the Bolivarian government protected Saab and some companies by granting them diplomatic status so they could buy food and medicine.