After months of mounting military pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump authorized a bold operation aimed at capturing the Venezuelan leader and bringing him to the United States for trial. This operation followed a series of U.S. military strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats operating out of Venezuela and sought to directly impact Maduro’s regime in a significant manner.
In a Saturday morning interview on “Fox and Friends Weekend,” Trump revealed details of the overnight strike. He stated that Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were evacuated by helicopter to a U.S. warship after the operation concluded. The Venezuelan leader was described by Trump as being “highly guarded” inside a presidential palace that resembled a fortress, although he failed to secure a crucial safe room during the attack.
Trump described the American forces as being equipped with “massive blowtorches,” ready to cut through steel walls had Maduro attempted to lock himself away. He noted that the U.S. forces executed their plan with preparation and precision, having practiced maneuvers on a replica of the palace that matched its every detail, including its fortified structure.
According to Trump, the operation was conducted under the veil of darkness, with nearly all the lights in Caracas turned off to enhance operational secrecy. He elaborated on the effectiveness of this tactic, stating, “This thing was so organized,” as the U.S. forces faced considerable risks during the mission.
The operation reportedly involved at least seven explosions that were audible throughout Caracas, lasting approximately 30 minutes. Following the attack, Delcy Rodríguez, the vice president of Venezuela, stated that the confrontation resulted in casualties among Venezuelan civilians and military personnel. Trump, however, insisted that only a few U.S. personnel sustained injuries, claiming that they were in stable condition, and confirmed that no American aircraft were lost, although one helicopter suffered significant damage.
Weather conditions played a crucial role in delaying the execution of the operation, as Trump noted that U.S. forces waited for four days for the right atmospheric conditions to launch the raid. He emphasized the meticulous planning involved, recounting that they held off until the weather improved, saying, “We were going to do this four days ago, three days ago, two days ago… And then all of a sudden it opened up, and we said, go.”
After the operation, Trump confirmed that Maduro and Flores had been transported to a U.S. warship and were set to face charges in New York, stemming from an indictment alleging their involvement in a narco-terrorism conspiracy. This decisive raid marked a dramatic escalation in the U.S. response to Maduro’s regime, transitioning from air strikes aimed at drug trafficking operations in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since early September.
Prior to the strike on the Venezuelan presidential palace, U.S. military operations had targeted vessels accused of drug smuggling, with at least 35 strikes recorded, resulting in over 115 fatalities. On December 29, Trump confirmed that a drone strike orchestrated by the CIA had successfully targeted a known docking facility utilized by Venezuelan drug cartels, marking the first direct military operation conducted on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. initiated its anti-drug efforts in September.
