Venezuelans report blocked access to news outlets days away from the presidential elections

At least five independent media outlets in Venezuela have been blocked within the country in the week leading up to its consequential presidential elections, media and advocate groups have reported.

El Estímulo, Analítica, Runrunes, Medianálisis and TalCual couldn't be accessed, according to local NGO VE Sin Filtro. It added that customers of the country's largest telecommunication companies are not able to enter as a result.

The blockage, which the NGO pins on the Maduro government, takes the overall number of sites in this situation to 11 since the electoral campaign began on July 4. Cazadores de Fake News, Es Paja, el Observatorio Venezonalo de Fake News are some of the others impacted during the previous days.

The country's press workers union, SNTP, denounced the issue on X, saying the actions are an "escalation against freedom of the press, of expression and information, only six days away from the presidential elections."

The Maduro government has routinely attacked media outlets, targeting foreign press in his latest related statements. Speaking in a political rally on Monday, he said that "they have tried to make us invisible a thousand times."

"Now the operation is being run by hitmen, hitmen of lies: EFE, AFP, AP, CNN and several local broadcasters. We know the history, I've seen that movie," said Maduro. "No one is going to tamper with the electoral process. I won't allow them. If they mess up, it will be the last mistake they make in their lives. It will be their last political mistake, justice will be done!" he added.

In this context, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said that, according to journalists and press freedom groups, "government control of the media and self-censorship has distorted election coverage in Venezuela and deprived voters of vital information about the presidential candidates."

In the meantime, Maduro continues escalating his rhetoric as the elections get closer and polls show the opposition with a comfortable lead. Last week, Maduro warned society risks a "fratricidal civil war" and a "bloodbath" if his party doesn't win.

"If you don't want Venezuela to fall into a bloodbath, into a fratricidal civil war because of fascists, we need to guarantee the largest electoral victory in the history of our people," Maduro said during a speech in Caracas.

The statement prompted Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, historically reluctant to criticize Venezuela, to speak publicly. "It scared me," Lula said in an interview with foreign media. In a democracy, he said, "those who lose bathe in votes, not in blood." "Maduro needs to learn that when you win, you stay, and when you lose, you leave and get ready for the next elections."

Aware of the government's reluctance to relinquish power, opposition members have for months been demanding the government engage in negotiations aimed at an orderly transition should they be defeated, a scenario that polls are predicting.