Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will be sworn in for a third six-year term after a reelection widely viewed as illegitimate and as his administration grows increasingly brazen in cracking down on its opponents.

Maduro and his aides have always rejected sanctions by the U.S. and others, saying they are illegitimate measures that amount to an "economic war" designed to cripple Venezuela. H

Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro began a third term as president on Friday, cementing his increasingly authoritarian rule.