BOGOTA, Colombia _ Juan Guaido, the self-proclaimed interim president of Venezuela, is calling for national demonstrations Monday and Tuesday, and says he will return to the country in coming days as he attempts to push Nicolas Maduro out of office.
Although he hasn't announced exactly when or how he will get back, the demonstrations are likely to provide cover for a risky return.
Guaido sneaked out of Venezuela Feb. 22, defying a travel ban.
He's also likely to face charges for organizing an attempt to drive cargo trucks that were carrying humanitarian aid into Venezuela. That convoy was stopped last weekend.
Guaido's call for protests comes in the middle of carnival celebrations in Venezuela _ potentially reducing turnout.
Maduro and the courts have allowed Guaido to remain free even after he declared himself president on Jan. 23 _ arguing that the constitution required him, as president of the National Assembly, to do so. Many of Maduro's other political rivals are either in jail or in exile.
More than 60 nations recognize Guaido as the legitimate president and have warned Maduro against detaining him.
In recent days, Colombia has said that Guaido and his family are facing "credible threats" to their lives in Venezuela.
"Colombia rejects any acts of the Nicolas Maduro regime against the liberty, security or personal safety of the interim President of Venezuela or his family," Colombia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "And we will hold (the regime) responsible for any violent action or threat against them."
Guaido has spent the last few days meeting the presidents of Colombia, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Ecuador and Peru, shoring up international support.
While Guaido is popular in the country and has powerful allies abroad, including the United States, Maduro still controls government institutions and, critically, the military high command.
Maduro insists that last year's election gives him the right to rule through 2025 and that Guaido is a Washington puppet and part of broader coup plot.
