Argentina has filed a complaint against Venezuela at the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the arrest of an Argentine policeman at the center of a diplomatic row, Buenos Aires announced Thursday.
The "arbitrary detention and forced disappearance" of Nahuel Gallo constitutes "a serious and flagrant violation of human rights, demonstrating a systematic pattern of crimes against humanity" that were "clearly under the jurisdiction" of The Hague-based ICC, the Argentine foreign ministry said.
Venezuelan chief prosecutor Tarek William Saab announced last week that the 33-year-old, who was arrested on December 8, would be charged with "terrorism," fueling tensions between Caracas and Buenos Aires.
Saab said that Gallo was being investigated for allegedly belonging to "a group of people who attempted to carry out a series of destabilizing and terrorist actions from our territory and with the support of international far-right groups."
The Argentine government said Gallo, a corporal in his country's gendarmerie, traveled to Venezuela from Colombia to see his girlfriend and their child and spend year-end holidays with them.
Argentina's Foreign Minister Gerardo Werthein called the Venezuelan allegations "a big lie," while Security Minister Patricia Bullrich said that Gallo "entered Venezuela in a completely legal manner."
Argentina's President Javier Milei, a self-described "anarcho-capitalist," has called Gallo's detention an "abduction," while branding left-wing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro a "criminal dictator."
Buenos Aires has recognized Maduro's opponent in the widely disputed July 28 presidential election as the winner, prompting Caracas to cut diplomatic ties.
Several members of the Venezuelan opposition have taken refuge in the Argentine embassy in Caracas, over which Brazil has temporarily taken custody.