Venezuela is experiencing a major blackout that the Maduro government attributes to “sabotage”

CARACAS (AP) - Venezuelans woke up on Friday to a major blackout in the capital, Caracas, which also affected several states.

President Nicolás Maduro's government attributed the blackout, which he said began around 4:50 in the morning, to an "electrical sabotage."

The Minister of Communications, Freddy Náñez, said that workers were working to restore the electrical supply. "No one will steal the peace from the Venezuelan people," he said in a video message shared on social media.

Venezuela has suffered regular blackouts in the past, which the government almost always blamed on its opponents. Energy experts point out that they were the result of fires damaging the power lines and poor maintenance of the electrical infrastructure.

Many of the country's energy problems have decreased as its economy has stabilized, high inflation has decreased, and de facto dollarization has reduced the shortage of imported products.

However, since last month's disputed presidential elections, authorities quickly attribute any disruption, even minor ones, to the opposition. The same thing happened on Tuesday, when a blackout affected Caracas and several states in the central region of the country.

The residents in the capital took the Friday supply cut calmly. Traffic during the busy morning rush hour, which is normally very congested, was smoother than usual, and some complained about not being able to communicate with their families due to the lack of mobile phone service.