Spanish newspaper El Pais has apologized after publishing a photo of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez which it said has turned out to be a fake.
The photo shows a man in hospital with a tube in his mouth and was printed on the front page with the headline: “The secret of Chavez’s illness”.
The Venezuelan government called the photo “grotesque”.
Hugo Chavez has not been seen in public since undergoing treatment for cancer in Cuba last month.
El Pais has withdrawn the photo from its website and collected copies of the first edition of Thursday’s paper from newsstands.
The paper said in a statement that it had obtained the image from a news agency but that it had not been able to independently verify the date, location or circumstances of the photo.
The photo had stayed on El Pais‘s website for around half an hour, it said.
The paper has now opened an investigation into “the mistakes that may have been committed in the verification of the photograph”.
Hugo Chavez’s illness has become a political issue in Venezuela, with the opposition criticizing the president’s prolonged absence from the country.
Hugo Chavez won re-election in October, but his January 10 inauguration ceremony has been indefinitely postponed because of his illness, in a move that forced the Supreme Court to decide on the legality of the situation.
Although the court said the president’s absence was legal and authorized by the National Assembly, opponents did not agree with the interpretation.
In recent days, Venezuelan officials have said that Hugo Chavez’s treatment is going well and that he is in good spirits.
[youtube WaFrS4b98dc]
