U.S. special operations forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro, in an overnight operation on Jan. 3, and flew them out of the country to face criminal charges in the United States.
Trump said he would provide more details about the operation at a press conference at 11 a.m. EST at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.
Maduro Captured From Military Fort
Nahum Fernández, the leader of Maduro’s ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela, told The Associated Press that Maduro and his wife were at their residence in the Fort Tiuna military complex in the Venezuelan capital Caracas at the time of the U.S. operation.
“That’s where they bombed. And, there, they carried out what we could call a kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country,” Fernández said.
Low-flying aircraft and explosions were reported at Fort Tiuna, as well as numerous other locations along Venezuela’s northern coast on Saturday, as the operation played out.
In an interview with Fox News in the hours after the raid, Trump said the special operations forces who conducted the raid “rehearsed and practiced like nobody’s ever seen,” and had built a model version of the location they raided.
“He was in a house that was more like a fortress than a house. It had steel doors. It had what they call the safety space, where it’s, you know, solid steel all around,” Trump said.
“He didn’t get that space closed. He was trying to get into it, but he got bum rushed so fast that he didn’t get into that. We were prepared.”
Mission Had Extensive Air Support
As Trump spoke with Fox News, he described numerous military aircraft that supported the operation.
“It was very complex, extremely complex, the whole maneuver, the landings, the number of aircraft, which were a massive number, the number of helicopters, different type of helicopters, different type of fighter jets,” Trump said.
US Pressure Campaign Preceded Raid
The U.S. government named Maduro in a criminal indictment in March 2020, accusing him of leading a narcotics trafficking ring with a connection to Colombia’s left-wing FARC guerrillas.
U.S. military forces had amassed around Venezuela in recent months, as part of Operation Southern Spear. That effort had seen dozens of lethal strikes on what U.S. officials said were drug boats operating in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.
Leading up to the capture mission, Trump had directed U.S. forces in the region to help enforce a blockade of oil tankers coming in and out of Venezuela.
Trump Offered Maduro Chance to Step Down: Vance
Trump and Maduro had spoken by phone prior to the Jan. 3 operation.
“Maduro is the newest person to find out that President Trump means what he says,” Vance said.
“Kudos to our brave special operators who pulled off a truly impressive operation.”
In Maduro’s absence, the leadership of Venezuela would fall to Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez under the Venezuelan Constitution. However, it is unclear if that has taken place.
Rodriguez, in a statement after the U.S. strike, demanded proof of life of Maduro and his wife.
