Venezuelan Interior Minister and long-suspected drug lord Diosdado Cabello on Wednesday accused the Venezuelan Catholic Church of being “fascists in cassocks” for not siding with the regime in condemning America for capturing Nicolás Maduro. Cabello, a man actively wanted by the United States on narco-terrorism charges, has long been one of the regime’s most prominent antagonistic figures towards the Venezuelan Catholic Church. The Venezuelan Catholic Church has consistently called for the Venezuelan regime to release the hundreds of individuals that it keeps as political prisoners. The number represents roughly a third of the 863 political prisoners that Foro Penal had confirmed by the end of 2025. There have been nationals and there have been foreigners, they have been released,” Cabello said.