Venezuela releases first photos of cancer-stricken Hugo Chavez

Venezuela published the first photos of cancer-stricken Hugo Chavez since his surgery in Havana more than two months ago, and said the socialist President was breathing through a tracheal tube and struggling to speak.

The pictures showed the 58-year-old, his face looking swollen but smiling, lying down in a hospital bed and flanked by his two daughters. In one, they were reading Thursday's edition of the Cuban state newspaper Granma.

The photos were shown on Friday by Mr. Chavez's son-in-law, Science Minister Jorge Arreaza, who has been travelling between Havana and Caracas to be at his bedside.

He said that Mr. Chavez – whose political identity is built around long-winded speeches, meandering talk shows and casual chatter with supporters – was having trouble talking.

"He doesn't have his usual voice," Mr. Arreaza told Venezuelan state television. "He has difficulty communicating verbally, but he makes himself understood. He communicates his decisions perfectly. He writes them down."

Mr. Chavez has not appeared in public, and has still not been heard from, since the operation on Dec. 11, his fourth surgery for a cancer in his pelvic region first diagnosed in mid-2011.

Neither the pictures nor the new details on his condition offer solid clues as to when he might be able to return home, or whether the disease will force him to step down.

Allies appear content to let Mr. Chavez continue governing silently from Havana indefinitely and bristle when asked about how the long the unusual arrangement could last.

The former soldier has never disclosed what type of cancer he has been treated for and, in his absence, critics have accused government officials of secrecy over his condition.

"A few days ago, the liars said they were speaking with the President. Now they say he can't talk!" opposition leader Henrique Capriles said on Twitter. "They are playing around with their own people."

On Wednesday, Vice-President Nicolas Maduro – Mr. Chavez's preferred successor – said his boss was undergoing "tough" and "complex" alternative treatments, but did not give details.

If Mr. Chavez died or had to step aside, the authorities would have to call a new vote within 30 days. That would likely pit Mr. Maduro against Mr. Capriles, the 40-year-old who lost to Mr. Chavez in last October's election.

The normally loquacious leader's silence since the surgery has convinced many Venezuelans his extraordinary 14 years in power could be coming to an end.

His son-in-law, Mr. Arreaza, however, described a light-hearted mood around the President, who he said enjoyed receiving visitors in his hospital room where he listened to music from his rural boyhood home in Venezuela's central plains.

"It's a party," Mr. Arreaza told state TV.