The United States sanctions government officials Ortega 5:36
(CNN) -
They have called it a "night of the long knives in a tropical version."
In less than a week, and just a few months before a crucial election, the Nicaraguan police detained seven opposition leaders, according to official police statements.
The most recent arrest, which took place this Wednesday, is that of José Bernard Pallais Arana, leader of the National Coalition party.
Police said Arana was arrested for acting "against the independence, sovereignty and self-determination" of the country.
The same applies to the rest of the detainees.
On Tuesday, the police arrested Félix Maradiaga Blandón, Juan Sebastián Chamorro García, José Adan Aguerri and Violeta Granera.
Arturo Cruz had been arrested on Saturday and Cristiana Chamorro, for his part, was under house arrest last Thursday.
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Chamorro: I call on Nicaraguans to continue fighting 1:12
Aguerri is a recognized businessman and former president of the Superior Council of Private Enterprise, a national business federation.
Chamorro, Cruz, Maradiaga and Chamorro García, for their part, have announced their intention to compete against President Daniel Ortega in the next elections.
Ortega, a former left-wing revolutionary whose Sandinista rebels toppled Anastasio Somoza in the 1970s, seeks to win a fourth term on November 7.
In the past, the Ortega government has not hesitated to apply a strong hand against the opposition.
When anti-government protests broke out in the country in 2018, at least 322 people were killed, thousands were injured, and hundreds were detained in just four months.
At the time, UN human rights experts accused the government of human rights violations in dealing with protesters.
Ortega said that the UN report was nothing more than "an instrument of the politics of death, of the politics of terror, of the politics of lies, of the politics of infamy."
Zovatto: Ortega thinks he can do whatever he wants 1:34
When the arrests of the leaders were made public on Tuesday, former Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla wrote on Twitter: "This is a night of the long knives in a tropical version."
In addition to @maradiaga and @Jschamorrog, they arrest the president of @COSEPNicaragua and the leader @VioletaG
It's a night of the long knives in a tropical version
Where are the democratic presidents of the region laying down ideologies in defense of democracy? #Nicaragua
- Laura Chinchilla M. (@Laura_Ch) June 9, 2021
Sanctions against regime officials, including Ortega's daughter
On Wednesday, the United States imposed sanctions against high-ranking members of the Ortega regime, including his daughter and the president of the nation's central bank.
«The United States calls on President Ortega and the Government of Nicaragua to immediately release the presidential candidates Cristiana Chamorro, Arturo Cruz, Félix Maradiaga, (and) Juan Sebastián Chamorro, and other leaders of civil society and the opposition arrested in the last week, included in last night's tough measures, which sent independent journalists and activists into hiding for fear of reprisals, "Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement announcing the sanctions.
"The region and the international community must stand with the Nicaraguan people in support of their right to freely choose their government and their freedom from repression and human rights abuses," he said.
The United States sanctions government officials Ortega 5:36
The accusations against the leaders arrested in Nicaragua
Maradiaga, the first of the three arrested on Tuesday, was going to a meeting at the Attorney General's Office when he, his driver and his personal lawyer were detained, according to a statement from Maradiaga's office.
Maradiaga "rejected the false accusation against him and demanded his immediate release," his office added in a statement posted on Twitter hours after his arrest.
The police accusations against Maradiaga, Chamorro García, Adan Aguerri and Arana are similar to those faced by Cruz.
He was arrested for "acts that violate national sovereignty," according to the Nicaraguan National Police and the Public Ministry.
According to a statement posted on Cruz's Twitter account, the former diplomat arrived in Nicaragua on a plane from the United States on Saturday morning and was detained at the Augusto César Sandino airport in Managua.
Cruz's party, the Alianza Ciudadanos por la Libertad, called for his release in a statement.
"We demand the prompt release of Arturo Cruz and that his physical integrity and constitutional rights be respected," said the opposition party.
Cristiana Chamorro, what is known about her and her arrest?
1:54
Cristiana Chamorro, for her part, was accused of money laundering and mismanagement of the Violeta Barrios Foundation, a non-profit organization that she presided over, according to the Public Ministry.
The Violeta Barrios Foundation has been closed since February due to violating the Foreign Agents Regulation Law that was promulgated in October 2020. The Prosecutor's Office requested precautionary measures against Chamorro, including a travel restriction and disqualification from holding public office, according to a release.
CNN has not been able to reach the legal teams for Aguerri, Chamorro García, Arana and Granera.
Reactions worldwide
The arrests sparked outrage among human rights organizations and foreign leaders.
Last Friday, the US State Department called on the Nicaraguan government to "immediately release the opposition leader Cristiana Chamorro and her two colleagues," describing their detention "on false charges" as "an abuse of their Rights".
He said the measure also "represents an assault on democratic values as well as a clear attempt to thwart free and fair elections."
State Department spokesman Ned Price said that "the current conditions of repression and exclusion are not consistent with credible elections."
On Tuesday, Julie Chung, Acting Undersecretary of the State Department's Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs, said the arrests required "an urgent international response."
Blinken: Nicaragua must guarantee free elections 1:59
“The Ortega regime is responsible for the welfare of the detainees.
They must be released immediately, ”Chung tweeted.
Florida deputy María Elvira Salazar also criticized the measure.
He warned that the Ortega regime "will face the full weight of economic sanctions if free and democratic elections are not held with international observers."
The Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation denounced the arrests, its president, the Nicaraguan-born former actress Bianca Jagger, said on Twitter.
Jagger called Ortega a "criminal dictator."
In dialogue with CNN on Thursday, José Miguel Vivanco, director of the Americas division of Human Rights Watch, called on the international community for more action in light of Chamorro's arrest.
Contributing to this report were Gerardo Lemos and Stefano Pozzebon in Bogotá, Natalie Gallon in Mexico City, and Marlon Sorto, Kiarinna Parisi, Abel Alvarado, and Philip Wang in Atlanta contributed. Jenny Hansler, Kylie Atwood and Nicole Gaouette reported from Washington.