Venezuela says FM detained at New York airport

The Venezuelan government said Saturday its foreign minister was briefly detained at a New York airport and stripped of his travel documents, according to media reports.

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro said the U.S. authorities detained him for an hour and 40 minutes at New York's JFK airport in an action he called a violation of international law.

"We denounce the U.S. government for violating international law," Maduro told Venezuelan television from New York. He asked UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to condemn the detention.

He also demanded investigations be opened and urged the U.S. government to respect international rights.

Venezuela's Foreign Ministry said Maduro was no longer being detained but would not be returning to Caracas on Saturday night.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Saturday called Maduro's seizure "a provocation from Mr. Devil," a name he used to call U.S. President George W. Bush at the U.N. General Assembly this week.

Chavez told state television that the U.S. authorities detained Maduro for alleged links to a failed coup attempt in Venezuela on Feb. 4, 1992.

The U.S. State Department spokeswoman Joanne Moore said: "We are looking into it. I don't have any details."

The U.S. Homeland Security Department on Saturday denied claims by the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry that Maduro was briefly detained at the New York airport.

Source: Xinhua