A French court has upheld a life sentence handed to Carlos the Jackal, once one of the world's most-wanted militants, who had appealed against his conviction for a series of deadly bombings in France 30 years ago.

The eccentric 63-year-old Venezuelan, whose real name is Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, addressed the court for four hours at the end of the six-week trial Wednesday, before a panel of judges went into chambers for deliberations.

A French court was to rule Wednesday on the appeal of Carlos the Jackal, once one of the world's most-wanted militants, against his conviction for a series of deadly bombings in France 30 years ago.

The eccentric 63-year-old Venezuelan, whose real name is Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, addressed the court for four hours at the end of the six-week trial Wednesday, before a panel of judges went into chambers for deliberations.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro said Tuesday he would consider an asylum request from U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden if the country receives one.

"We have not received an official request. But in the event we were to receive one, we would evaluate it as we understand Ecuador is doing," Maduro said on state television from Haiti, where he was on an official visit.

The late Hugo Chavez lives on -- as a cartoon character, that is.

Months after the Venezuelan leader's death, Barrio TV depicts him high up in the clouds with the likes of independence hero Simon Bolivar and leftist revolutionary Che Guevara -- when Uncle Sam unexpectedly pops up.

Two employees of the U.S. embassy in Venezuela were injured in an "incident" early Tuesday, the State Department said, as local media in Caracas reported the pair had been shot.

"Medical staff inform us that their injuries are not life-threatening," State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters, adding that the incident did not take place at the U.S. embassy compound, but "off-site".

In a ruling out Saturday, Venezuela's Supreme Court rejected one of six challenges to the April 14 presidential election which saw Hugo Chavez's successor Nicolas Maduro win by a razor-thin margin.

Oficially, Maduro -- the late president Chavez's handpicked successor -- won the controversial election by 1.49 percentage points. His rival, Henrique Capriles, has refused to concede.

President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday denounced as "psychological war" a leaked audio recording that purports to show a power struggle among key followers of the late Hugo Chavez.

In the recording, which has set off a sensation since it was made public Monday by an opposition lawmaker, a well-known government newscaster is heard accusing National Assembly speaker Diosdado Cabello of conspiring against Maduro.

Venezuela on Sunday made a rare diplomatic overture to the United States, suggesting it could be time for better ties.

"We are going to remain open to normalizing relations with the United States," Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said on Televen television Sunday.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi urged lawmakers to agree on an electoral law that meets the aspirations of the Lebanese people, the state-run National News Agency reported on Wednesday.

"MPs must reach an accord over a vote law that meets the aspirations of Lebanese people inside the country and around the world,” al-Rahi said after meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas on Tuesday eve.

Carlos the Jackal, once considered one of the world's most wanted terrorists, returned to court in Paris on Monday to appeal his conviction for a series of deadly bombings in France 30 years ago.

The trial kicked off with Carlos, whose real name is Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, appearing without his defense lawyers and saying he had asked them not to attend.