Overview
- State Department and the U.S. Embassy responsible for Venezuela issued a Jan. 10 security alert instructing Americans to depart now as some international flights have resumed.
- Reports describe armed militias known as colectivos establishing roadblocks and searching vehicles for evidence of U.S. citizenship or support for the United States.
- Venezuela remains at Level 4: Do Not Travel, with cited threats including wrongful detention, torture, kidnapping, arbitrary enforcement of laws, crime, civil unrest, and weak health infrastructure.
- The United States has had no in-country diplomatic presence since 2019, leaving routine and emergency consular services suspended and directing any assistance needs to officials in Bogotá.
- Americans still in Venezuela are urged to monitor flight availability, enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, maintain multiple communication methods, and prepare contingency plans as reports of detentions and phone searches continue.