Tarek William Saab is a Venezuelan lawyer and politician, born on September 10, 1962, in El Tigre, Anzoátegui state, into a family of Lebanese merchants. He began his law studies in 1985 at Santa María University and obtained his law degree in 1992. From a young age, he showed himself to be a political activist and was a fervent supporter of the Chavista movement since its beginnings in the 1990s. Throughout his life, he has worked in various roles, including human rights defender and commitment to social causes. Before his political career, he distinguished himself in the academic and cultural fields, being a poet and promoter of musical events.
In his political career, he was a member of the Constituent National Assembly that drafted the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in 1999. In 2000, he was elected as a member of the National Assembly of Venezuela. During the attempted coup d’état in April 2002, he was imprisoned by security forces after a crowd of protesters gathered around his house. By October 2002, he was the president of the National Assembly’s foreign policy commission and was denied a visa to enter the United States. He stated on local television that he had been denied the visa because a report from the U.S. State Department identified him as “a person linked to international subversion.” According to the newspaper El Universal, he claimed he was denied the visa due to alleged ties to international terrorist organizations, which he denied. He has been an outspoken critic of Israel, as well as Luiz InácioLula da Silva, the former president of Brazil and former political ally of Nicolás Maduro, and the current president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, after both criticized the transparency of the 2024 Venezuelan elections.
As an admirer of Fidel Castro, he has taken a stance against what he calls “the empire,” mainly referring to the United States. In his speeches and the regime’s narrative, the blame for the ills created during the governments of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro is attributed to U.S. intervention and sanctions. Saab and other government officials argue that the economic, social, and political crisis in Venezuela has been exacerbated by an international “blockade” orchestrated by the U.S. government, which seeks to destabilize the country and overthrow the Chavista regime.
This rhetoric is used to divert attention from the government’s internal failures, such as corruption, poor economic management, and the repression of human rights. Saab frequently defends that sanctions are a direct attack on Venezuela’s sovereignty. According to him, focusing on internal problems becomes a propaganda effort to justify the regime’s actions and continue consolidating Maduro’s power. In the 2004 regional elections, Saab was elected Governor of Anzoátegui and re-elected in 2008.
In 2005, he was accused by critics within his own party, the Movement for the Fifth Republic (MVR), of participating in electoral fraud in the primaries for local elections. His predecessor, David de Lima, accused him of using his position for political persecution after Saab’s wife accused De Lima of mismanagement.
In 2014, Saab was elected Ombudsman by parliament for a seven-year term, although the opposition deemed the election illegal for procedural reasons. During the Venezuelan protests of 2014, he was criticized by the opposition, who believed he had aligned with the government during the demonstrations. The Washington Post stated that the opposition viewed him as “an apologist for the unpopular government of President Nicolás Maduro.”
On August 5, 2017, the Constituent National Assembly appointed him Attorney General of the Nation after former Attorney General Luisa Ortega Díaz was dismissed. This occurred months after Saab claimed he did not have “the guts, spirit, or willingness to be Attorney General.” On June 14, 2018, the Constituent National Assembly named him president of the Truth Commission.
Regarding his personal life, William Saab has family issues like many Venezuelans related to his position as defender. Saab’s son, Yibram Saab, appears to maintain a contentious relationship, which became public in 2017 when Yibramparticipated in protests against the regime, where he was attacked by security forces, and one of his companions lost their life. Yibram posted a public video asking his father to reflect and do the right thing to protect the people.
YouTube video by Yibram Saab:
On February 2, 2023, the National Bolivarian Police of Nueva Esparta state arrested two men involved in an assassination attempt against several high-ranking officials of the Public Ministry, including Saab. In April 2023, he announced that 51 people had been detained in connection with a corruption investigation at the state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela Sociedad Anónima (PDVSA) and the metallurgical conglomerate Corporación Venezolana de Guayana.
During his 2023 annual report to the United Nations Human Rights Committee, experts questioned Saab’s independence. One of its members, Juan Manuel Santos Pais, commented: “I have never seen a prosecutor defend a government so much.” Saab has been known to accuse the regime’s enemies as terrorists and criminals, often without presenting evidence to support such claims, defaming the regime’s opponents. The lies of these accusations are part of the web between Nicolás Maduro’sregime and his henchmen, aimed at discrediting and fostering unmerited accusations with no probable cause of a crime having been committed. This situation represents one of the regime’s most potent weapons, having an Attorney General who does and says what he is told, with no level of independence whatsoever. Beyond this, these actions destroy the lives not only of those individuals but of their entire families, leaving the country fearful of the macabre reach of the “criminal avenger”.
The term “criminal avenger” highlights the contradiction of someone who presents himself as a defender of law and order, but who, in practice, uses his power to perpetrate abuses, human rights violations, and political persecutions. This dichotomy suggests that, despite his official role, Saab’s actions may be motivated more by political loyalty than by a true commitment to justice and fairness.
In this context, Saab becomes a symbol of how state institutions can be manipulated to serve authoritarian ends, and how those in power can use the rhetoric of justice to cover up repressive practices. This perception has been fueled by his history of accusations against opponents, his role in the repression of protests, and his defense of the government’s narrative about foreign intervention and conspiracy. The criticism towards Saab as “the useful idiot criminal avenger” implies a call for reflection on the role of public officials in defending democracy and human rights, as well as the responsibility to act with integrity and justice in the exercise of power.
Tarek William Saab’s management as Attorney General has been marked by serious human rights violations, with a significant increase in political repression and arbitrary detentions, particularly directed towards opponents and presidential candidates. His trajectory and actions not only question his capacity for the position but also reflect a regression in the institutional framework and defense of human rights in Venezuela. Saab’s recent reappointment as Attorney General in November 2024, in light of his record, is his reward for his unconditional loyalty to Maduro, but also raises serious concerns about the future of the judicial system in the country.
The situation of Edmundo González, a president elected by the people, as well as the persecution of other opponents, underscores the urgent need for significant changes in the power structure and the defense of human rights in Venezuela. The Ombudsman mocks the rights and freedoms of all Venezuelans and plays into the regime’s hands. Like Cuban communism, loyalty above all is always well recognized.
Credits: The information presented has been compiled from various sources, including reports from human rights organizations, local and international media such as El Nacional, El Universal, The Washington Post, Reuters, and official documents, as well as analyses from experts in human rights and international politics. Information from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and other governmental entities that have imposed sanctions on Saab and other officials of Nicolás Maduro’s regime has also been taken into account.
By:
William L. Acosta, NYPD (Ret)
Jesús D. Romero, USN (Ret)
