Venezuelan opposition politician Lopez to arrive in Spain on Sunday -sources

Venezuelan opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez will arrive in Spain on Sunday, after spending the past year at the Spanish ambassador's residence in Venezuela to escape house arrest, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Lopez's party, Popular Will, did not say how he left Venezuela, but two people familiar with the matter said he travelled via Colombia. Lopez was jailed in 2014 after leading protests against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. He was released to house arrest in 2017.

From house arrest, he was a mentor to opposition leader Juan Guaido, who early last year invoked the constitution to assume an interim presidency and began a campaign to unseat Maduro. In April 2019, when Guaido tried to spur a military revolt against Maduro, Lopez appeared on the streets again alongside him. When the uprising fizzled, Lopez sought shelter first in the Chilean diplomatic residence and then at the home of the Spanish ambassador.

Lopez's wife, Lilian Tintori, who had joined him at the Spanish ambassador's residence, left for Spain in May 2019, along with their daughter.

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