President Chavez takes control of Venezuela's last privately run oil fields

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's government took over the country's last privately run oil fields Tuesday, intensifying a power struggle with international companies over the world's largest known petroleum deposit.

Newly bought Russian-made fighter jets streaked through the sky as Chavez shouted "down with the US empire!" to thousands of red-clad oil workers, calling the state takeover a historic victory for Venezuela after years of US-backed corporate exploitation. (AP)