Overview
- Residents and journalists reported multiple nighttime explosions, aircraft noise and fires in southern and eastern Caracas, with outages near sites including La Carlota air base and Fuerte Tiuna, and blasts also noted in La Guaira and Higuerote.
- Venezuela announced a state of emergency and called a mass mobilization, accusing the United States of a “very serious military aggression.”
- CBS and Fox News, citing unnamed U.S. officials, reported that President Trump ordered strikes, while the Pentagon and White House declined public comment and the FAA restricted U.S. flights in Venezuelan airspace.
- Colombian President Gustavo Petro said Caracas was being bombed and urged immediate meetings of the OAS and the United Nations.
- The explosions follow months of U.S. counter-narcotics operations with more than 20 reported strikes and over 100 deaths, a recent reported hit on a Venezuelan harbor site, and Maduro’s broadcast offer to discuss drug cooperation and U.S. oil investments.