CARABALLEDA, Venezuela, – Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido yesterday said that President Nicolas Maduro’s adversaries were “not afraid” even though he was briefly detained by intelligence agents, days after announcing he would be willing to replace the increasingly isolated president.

Guaido’s comments on Friday spurred some opposition sympathizers to conclude that he had declared himself interim president, and led several government officials to say he should be arrested for treason. Intelligence agents on Sunday pulled him from his car on the way from the capital, Caracas, to the coastal town of Caraballeda, his wife and opposition legislators said. He was released shortly thereafter, they said. “I want to send a message to Miraflores – the game has changed,” said Guaido, 35, the head of the opposition-run congress, referring to the presidential palace, from a stage surrounded by cheering opposition sympathizers.

“Here we are! We are not afraid!”(Reuters)…[+]