The rescue team that helped Maria Corina Machado out of Venezuela released a video of the operation
The US NGO Gray Bull Rescue Foundation published a video of the operation by which they helped the Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado to flee the country last month, according to news.ro.
Machado left Venezuela in early December, after nearly a year in hiding, to arrive in Norway after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize.
She boarded a boat off the Venezuelan coast and sailed to a meeting point in the Caribbean Sea. There, she was picked up by Gray Bull founder and special forces veteran Bryan Stern and his crew, who were waiting for her on another boat.
The edited video, released Friday, shows Machado boarding the second ship in the middle of the night.
“They're, they're, they're,” Stern says, as the lights on Machado's boat loom in the distance and approach his craft.
After confirming Machado's identity, Stern helps her into the boat in the dark.
“Hi María. My name is Bryan. Nice to meet you. I'm taking care of you,” he greeted her.
“I'm so wet and it's so cold,” she says.
Machado, dressed in a dark jacket and hat, says to the camera: “I'm María Corina Machado. I'm alive. I'm safe and I'm very grateful to Gray Bull.”
“Jackpot, jackpot, jackpot. The Golden Dynamite objective,” Stern says before pointing to Curaçao, an island off Venezuela.
In earlier statements, Stern reported that they arrived ashore during the morning after a long and not without danger journey due to the weather. From there, Machado boarded a plane to Norway, where he was to receive the Nobel Prize and see his family.
Gray Bull said last month that the extraction mission lasted nearly 16 hours and took place mostly in the middle of the night in rough waters. The NGO carries out civilian extractions in many parts of the world and has a track record of at least 800 operations.
On Friday, Machado refused to comment on the extraction operation, citing safety reasons for those involved.
Machado previously told reporters that he had received support from the US government, but declined to provide details.
“One day I'll be able to tell you, because of course I don't want to put them in danger right now.”
Stern said last month that the operation was funded by anonymous donors and, as far as he knows, was not supported by the US government, but admitted that his team had communicated with the US military to inform them of their presence at sea.
