Overview
- Reuters reports the White House maintained direct and backchannel contacts with Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello before and after the Jan. 3 raid, warning him not to unleash security services or colectivos against opponents.
- Cabello, named in the U.S. narco‑trafficking indictment used to justify Maduro’s capture and now carrying a $25 million reward, retains sway over military, intelligence and militia networks that could disrupt the transition.
- Interim leader Delcy Rodríguez has moved to consolidate authority, installing loyalists and appointing Major General Gustavo Gonzalez to run the DGCIM as part of a broader security reshuffle.
- Rodríguez’s outreach has included a meeting in Caracas with CIA Director John Ratcliffe, even as rights groups say political‑prisoner releases are progressing slowly under processes overseen by Cabello.
- Associated Press documents show the DEA listed Rodríguez as a 2022 “priority target” appearing in multiple investigations since at least 2018, though she has not been publicly charged with a crime.