Overview
- U.S. forces captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a weekend operation, and he appeared in a New York courtroom on narco-terrorism charges.
- Iran’s Foreign Ministry called the detention a kidnapping and formally demanded Maduro’s immediate release.
- Nationwide protests in Iran persist, with at least 36 deaths and more than 2,000 detentions reported by activists.
- Iranian clerics and state outlets voiced concern about a Venezuela-style mission targeting top officials, including an unsubstantiated TV claim of prior U.S.-Israeli kidnap plans.
- Experts say a similar operation in Iran would be far riskier given its size, the IRGC’s strength, the Eagle Claw precedent, and nuclear material, even as President Trump warned he would rescue peaceful protesters and John Bolton said the capture likely caught Khamenei’s attention.