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BREAKING: U.S. Strikes Venezuela UPDATE: Maduro Captured, Trump Says

Posted on | January 3, 2026 | Comments Off on BREAKING: U.S. Strikes Venezuela UPDATE: Maduro Captured, Trump Says

UPDATE 5 a.m. ET: BIG BIG BIG NEWS:

The U.S. has struck Venezuela and captured its President Nicolas Maduro, who has been taken out of the country, President Donald Trump said on Saturday. . . .
“The United States of America has successfully carried out a large scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the country,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.

Wow. The regime is over in Venezuela.

UPDATE 5:27 a.m. ET: Not to pat myself on the back or anything, but my very first post noted claims that there were U.S. ground forces involved — i.e., this wasn’t just air strikes — and now officials have confirmed to CBS News that Maduro was captured by elite Delta commandos of U.S. Army Special Forces.

UPDATE 8 a.m. ET: “Proof of life,” as they say:

*** PREVIOUSLY ***

Went to bed early Friday, woke up at 3 a.m. and checked my phone to discover that the U.S. military is striking Venezuela:

The U.S. military is conducting strikes against Venezuela, U.S. officials confirmed to Fox News Saturday morning.
At least seven explosions could be heard in Venezuela’s capital city of Caracas early Saturday morning, according to reports.
Low-flying aircraft were seen flying over Caracas at about 2 a.m. local time on Saturday, according to The Associated Press.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a Notice to Air Missions at 1 a.m. EST on Saturday prohibiting all U.S. aircraft from operating “at all altitudes within Venezuelan airspace.”
The report comes as the U.S. military has been targeting alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said Thursday that his government was open to negotiating an agreement with the United States after months of American military pressure targeting drug trafficking networks tied to his government.

Very few confirmed details at this point — “fog of war” and all that — but there are some claims that there are actually U.S. ground forces involved.

UPDATE 4 a.m. ET: Reuters reports:

The U.S. has carried out strikes inside Venezuela, a U.S. official said, as explosions rocked the capital Caracas following months of threats by President Donald Trump against Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro.
The Venezuelan government said attacks also took place in the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira, prompting Maduro to declare a national emergency and mobilize defense forces.
Blasts, aircraft and black smoke could be seen across Caracas from about 2 a.m. (0600 GMT) for roughly 90 minutes, according to Reuters witnesses and images circulating on social media.
Across the city, Venezuelans expressed shock and fear as they captured video of billowing smoke and bright orange flashes in the sky. “My love, oh no, look at that,” said one woman in a video, gasping at blasts in the distance.
A power outage affected the southern area of the city, near a major military base, witnesses said.
Trump has repeatedly promised land operations in the South American oil producer, which Maduro has led since 2013.
The U.S., Venezuela’s opposition and various other nations say Maduro rigged an election last year to stay in power.
Trump has not publicly detailed his aims but has privately pressured Maduro to flee the nation, Reuters has reported. Trump said on Monday it would be “smart” for Maduro to leave power.
The Pentagon referred questions to the White House, which declined to comment.
The Venezuelan government in its statement said the goal of the attack is for the United States to take possession of the country’s oil and minerals. It added that the United States “will not succeed” in taking the resources.
The U.S. has made a major military buildup in the region, including an aircraft carrier, warships and advanced fighter jets stationed in the Caribbean.
Trump has sought a “blockade” of Venezuelan oil, expanded sanctions against the Maduro government and staged more than two dozen strikes on vessels the U.S. alleges were involved in trafficking drugs in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.
Last week, Trump said the United States had hit an area in Venezuela where boats are loaded with drugs, marking the first known time Washington has carried out land operations in Venezuela since the pressure campaign began.
He did not say whether those strikes were carried out by the CIA or not. Other media outlets have reported that the spy agency was behind them.
Trump has accused Venezuela of flooding the U.S. with drugs, and his administration has for months been bombing boats originating in South America that it alleges were carrying drugs. Many nations have condemned the attacks as extrajudicial killings and Maduro’s government has always denied any involvement with drug trafficking.

UPDATE 4:25 a.m. ET: Notice the helicopters visible in this video:

Are those missile-launching Apaches? Or are they carrying U.S. Special Forces commandos? Meanwhile, good work by CBS News:

President Trump gave the U.S. military the green light to conduct land strikes in Venezuela days before the actual operation occurred, according to two U.S. officials who spoke to CBS News under condition of anonymity to discuss national security matters.
Military officials discussed conducting the mission on Christmas Day, but U.S. airstrikes in Nigeria against ISIS targets took precedence, the sources said.
The days following Christmas opened more potential strike windows to U.S. military officials but the operation was held due to weather conditions. The officials said the U.S. military wanted weather conditions that were advantageous to mission success. . . .
Maduro, 63, has maintained his grip on power in Venezuela since 2013, when he became president following the death of longtime leader Hugo Chávez.
Maduro has survived several serious threats to his hold on the presidency, most recently in 2024, when he stood for election for a third term. The Venezuelan government declared Maduro the victor, a result that was denounced by opposition leaders and international observers, who accused the regime of stealing votes.
The U.S. recognized the opposition candidate, Edmundo González, as the winner, and imposed sanctions against elections officials for allegedly rigging the outcome.
Despite the global outcry, Maduro was sworn in for his third term in January. . . .
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado told CBS News in mid-December she was “absolutely” supportive of President Trump’s strategy in the country.
“We, the Venezuelan people, are very grateful to him and to his administration, because I believe he is a champion of freedom in this hemisphere,” Machado said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”
At the time, the president’s strategy was limited to attacks on suspected drug boats, the seizure of an oil tanker and economic and diplomatic pressure, but not land strikes.
Asked if she’d welcome U.S. military action in Venezuela, Machado did not rule it out, saying: “I will welcome more and more pressure so that Maduro understands that he has to go.”
A former lawmaker who was disqualified from running in Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election, Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this year, and collected the prize in Norway after a risky waterborne exit from Venezuela. She dedicated the prize to Mr. Trump. . . .

Read the whole thing.

UPDATE 4:40 a.m. ET: The beauty of secondary explosions:



 

Category: Military, Venezuela

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