Overview
- President Donald Trump and U.S. officials said a large-scale overnight operation captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores and flew them out of Venezuela, with Attorney General Pam Bondi saying they will face charges in U.S. courts.
- Nobel laureate María Corina Machado hailed the "hour of freedom" and urged that opposition figure Edmundo González Urrutia immediately assume his constitutional mandate as president.
- Trump said Vice President Delcy Rodríguez had been sworn in, a claim not announced by Caracas, while Rodríguez demanded proof of life for Maduro and Flores.
- Trump questioned Machado’s support inside Venezuela and signaled an ongoing U.S. role until a "proper transition" is in place.
- Analysts cited Machado and González as leading candidates to guide a transition, and the U.S. had previously recognized González as the legitimate winner of the disputed 2024 election, yet control on the ground remains unsettled.