Overview
- Overnight strikes hit military and strategic sites in Caracas and nearby states, with residents reporting explosions, aircraft overflights, smoke and power outages, while casualties and damage remain unclear.
- Venezuela denounced a “grave military aggression,” declared a state of exception and mobilization, and senior officials requested proof of life as they said they did not know the president’s location.
- Trump said the mission was conducted with U.S. law‑enforcement participation and promised further details at a Mar‑a‑Lago briefing, without specifying agencies or destinations.
- International reaction split sharply, with Russia, China, Cuba, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia condemning the action as a sovereignty violation, Argentina and Ecuador praising it, and the EU urging restraint.
- Reports that Maduro and his wife were transferred to U.S. custody, including claims of transport via the USS Iwo Jima or to New York, remained uncorroborated by independent sources.