President-elect Donald Trump says Venezuela's embattled opposition leader must be protected as President Nicolas Maduro takes the oath of office for a third six-year term.

Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro was sworn in for a third presidential term on Friday, despite overwhelming evidence that he lost July’s presidential election to opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez,

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro, in office since 2013, is due to take the oath of office for a third term Friday despite a global outcry that brought thousands out in protest on the ceremony's eve.