Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been captured by U.S. forces, U.S. President Donald Trump said on social media early Saturday, after a “large scale strike” on Caracas, the Venezuelan capital.
Trump said on Truth Social that Maduro and his wife had been captured and flown out of the country following the “successful” strike. Hours later, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro had been indicted in New York on charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy and importing cocaine, among others.
In the early hours of Saturday, explosions could be heard in Caracas, including in areas surrounding military bases.
Verified video footage shows low-flying, U.S. helicopters sweeping over the city and large fires and plumes of smoke rising at the strike sites. There have been no confirmed casualties.
Venezuelan media is also reporting that strikes hit the mausoleum of former Venezuelan leader and Maduro’s predecessor and mentor, Hugo Chavez.
Following the strikes, video footage posted to social media shows people rushing onto the streets. Hours after the attack, large parts of the capital remain without power.
In response, Venezuela declared a national emergency and denounced the strikes as an attempt by the U.S. to steal Venezuela’s oil and mineral resources. In a statement, the government spokesperson described the strikes as “imperialist” and an “extremely serious military aggression.”
The strikes follow a months-long pressure campaign against the Andean nation. Last week, the CIA launched a drone strike on a port area believed to be used by Venezuelan cartels to traffic drugs to the U.S. and captured two tankers carrying Venezuelan oil in international waters.
U.S. forces have also launched at least 35 strikes on small boats in the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean allegedly carrying drugs north. At least 115 people have been killed as a result, in what human rights organizations have described as “extrajudicial killings.”
The U.S. has labeled Maduro, who has clung onto power after losing the 2024 presidential election, as a narco-terrorist. They say he leads the Cartel de los Soles, a group the U.S. government proscribes as a foreign terrorist organization. A $50 million bounty is placed on Maduro’s head for capture. Maduro and other members of his government accused of involvement in the cartel say the group does not exist.
U.S. operations on land and sea come after an unprecedented military build up of U.S. vessels in the Caribbean surrounding the Venezuelan coast. U.S. Southern Command figures suggest there are around 15,000 service people operating in the area, the largest figure in generations.
Trump has justified his actions as part of his “armed conflict” with drug cartels. In December, Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel peace prize winner, María Corina Machado, who was living in hiding in Venezuela, told CBS News she was supportive of Trump’s strategy. When pressed on airstrikes on land, Machado said she will “welcome more and more pressure so that Maduro understands that he has to go.”
Featured Image: Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been captured by U.S. forces
Image credit: Jeso Carneiro via Flickr
