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3d ago

U.S. Strikes Hit Venezuela as Trump Says Maduro Is Captured and Flown Out

U.S. officials say he will face criminal charges in the United States, with foreign governments urging restraint.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro holds a copy of the Venezuelan constitution while he speaks during a meeting with members of the Venezuelan diplomatic corp after their arrival from the United States, at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela January 28, 2019. Miraflores Palace/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Nicolás Maduro, born in 1962, served as Venezuela's president after Hugo Chávez's death in 2013
President Donald Trump listens during a news conference with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on December 29, 2025,
Government supporters display posters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (right) and former president Hugo Chavez in downtown Caracas, Venezuela, on Saturday, January 3, 2026, after US President Donald Trump announced that Maduro had been captured and flown out of the country.

Overview

  • Overnight explosions and airstrikes targeted sites in Caracas that Venezuelan authorities acknowledged, while Vice President Delcy Rodríguez demanded proof of life for Nicolás Maduro.
  • Trump announced that U.S. forces seized Maduro and removed him from the country, though independent confirmation of his custody and operational details remains unverified.
  • Senator Mike Lee said Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed him Maduro would be brought to the United States to stand trial under preexisting federal charges.
  • International responses included an EU call for restraint and a Russian condemnation of a sovereignty breach, with questions persisting over legal authority and Venezuela’s political succession.
  • Local reports described strikes on military sites including Fuerte Tiuna and fires in the capital, and a PDVSA executive said La Guaira port was damaged though oil facilities were unaffected.