Venezuelan migrant Mariangela Lozano longs for her homeland, but ahead of Friday's planned inauguration for President Nicolas Maduro's third term, she has begrudgingly opted to remain in Mexico and brave her meager living conditions.

The democratic opposition, led by María Corina Machado, has led a courageous and peaceful campaign against Maduro’s fraud, providing evidence via copies of official tally sheets from polling stations to show that opposition candidate Edmundo González won the election by a margin of more than two to one.

Venezuela's leader Nicolás Maduro announced on state television on 7 January the arrest of seven foreigners whom he accused of being "mercenaries", allegedly trying to prevent him from taking the presidential oath.

Venezuela's embattled opposition on Monday vowed to overcome "fear" and thwart President Nicolas Maduro's plans to be sworn in for another term, with defiant leaders renewing calls for mass protests

Venezuela is on tenterhooks as it braces for pro- and anti-government protests Thursday -- the eve of President Nicolas Maduro's swearing-in for a third term rejected by the opposition and much of the international community as illegitimate.