Political persecution in Venezuela is on the rise, a UN-backed fact-finding mission reported Monday, calling on the international community to take swift action. In September 2019, the UN extended its monitoring of the situation in Venezuela after the UN Human Rights Council created the independent fact-finding mission. The mission, which does not represent the United Nations, documented at least 200 arrests between January and late August 2025. In his letter, Maduro rejected as "absolutely false" US allegations that he leads a drug cartel. Maduro maintained that Venezuela was a "drug-free" country and that only five percent of the drugs produced in neighbouring Colombia made their way onto Venezuelan territory.