President Trump says Venezuela’s Maduro was ousted, captured after US strikes
President Donald Trump said the US attacked Venezuela on the night it took its long-serving President Nicolas Maduro after months of pressuring him over allegations of drug use and illegitimacy.
It was the first such intervention in Latin America by Washington since the invasion of Panama in 1989 to remove military leader Manuel Noriega, on similar charges.
Trump said in a Truth Social post: “The United States of America has successfully conducted a major strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who he, along with his wife, kidnapped and expelled from the country.”
The United States had accused Maduro of running a “narco-state” and rigging last year’s election, which the opposition claimed he won by a landslide. The Venezuelan leader, who succeeded Hugo Chavez in taking power in 2013, said Washington wants to control Venezuela’s oil reserves, the largest in the world.
Trump said the operation was being carried out “in coordination with US Law Enforcement” and promised more details at an 8pm press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
Maduro was captured by special forces, a US official told Reuters.
There was no immediate confirmation from the Venezuelan government of Maduro’s capture or departure, but Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino was coy.
“Free, independent and independent Venezuela rejects with all the strength of its history of independence the presence of these foreign soldiers, leaving only death, pain and destruction,” Padrino said in a video broadcast by state media around the same time Trump sent his message.
“Today we clench our fists to protect what is ours, let us unite because in the unity of the people we will find the strength to resist and win.”
While various Latin American governments oppose Maduro and say he stole the 2024 elections, the direct action of the US revives painful memories of past interventions and is often strongly opposed by governments and populations in the region.
The Venezuelan opposition, led by Maria Corina Machado who recently won the Nobel Peace Prize, said in a statement on X.com that it has no official comment on these incidents.
On Saturday, explosions rocked the Venezuelan capital Caracas and elsewhere, prompting Maduro’s government to declare a national state of emergency and mobilize the military. It said the attacks also took place in the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira.
Explosions, planes and black smoke could be seen across Caracas from 2am local time for about 90 minutes, according to Reuters witnesses and images circulating on social media.
Residents expressed shock and fear as they captured video of billowing smoke and bright orange flashes in the sky.
The blackout affected the southern part of Caracas, near a major military base, witnesses said. Local media affiliated with the ruling Socialist Party said the explosions occurred near the Fuerte Tiuna and La Carlota military bases.
Venezuela’s allies Cuba and Iran were quick to condemn the strikes. Tehran called it a “flagrant violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity” and urged the UN Security Council to intervene to stop the “unlawful violence”.
Trump had repeatedly promised to help the South American oil producer and said on Monday it would be “wise” for Maduro to leave power.
The US has deployed a number of military forces in the region, including an aircraft carrier, warships and advanced fighter jets stationed in the Caribbean.
Trump has called for an “embargo” on Venezuelan oil, increased sanctions against Maduro’s government and carried out more than a dozen strikes on US vessels allegedly involved in drug trafficking in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.
