Delcy Rodríguez reshuffles top military command in Venezuela

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez announced a major reshuffle of the top military leadership on Friday, replacing the head of the Strategic Operational Command and six of eight regional commanders amid the aftermath of a devastating double earthquake that has killed over 5,500 people.

Command changes

The new appointments include:

• Major General Rubén Belzares Escobar as head of the Strategic Operational Command (CEO), replacing Rafael Prieto Martínez, who was appointed in March Source: excelsiormx.
• Pedro González Ovalles as commander of the Army, succeeding Belzares Escobar Source: eldiado.
• Víctor Bojas Trujillo as second-in-command of the CEO and José Freitas as head of the Integral Aerospace Defense Command (Codai) Source: elnacionalve.
• Changes to six of eight Regional Strategic Defense Integrals (REDI), including Javier Magallanes (Western), Carlos Solórzano (Insular), Romeri Domínguez (Los Llanos), Denny Ferrer (Eastern), Miguel Yilales (Guayana), and Carlos Villamizar (Capital) Source: diariolibree.

Context

The reshuffle comes as the government manages the crisis from the June 24 double earthquake (magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5), which devastated the northern state of La Guaira. While the military expressed loyalty, some volunteers criticized the official response as slow and insufficient Source: excelsiormx. Minister of Defense Gustavo González López, a former intelligence chief accused of torture, was ratified in his post.