Guaido, Maduro rallies set as Venezuela struggles with blackout

The Venezuelan capital Caracas was in near-darkness on March 8, 2019 during the worst power outage in the country's history. [AFP]

Thousands of Venezuelans are expected to protest once again Saturday as opposition leader Juan Guaido cranks up the pressure on beleaguered President Nicolas Maduro -- in the midst of a sweeping electricity blackout that has crippled the crisis-wracked country.

Both Guaido and Maduro, who are locked in a bitter power struggle for the right to lead the oil-rich South American nation, have asked their supporters to fill the streets of Caracas and other cities.