US strikes Venezuela and says its leader Nicolas Maduro and wife captured and flown out of the country

The United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and flew him out of the country in an extraordinary overnight operation accompanied by a series of attacks, following months of escalating pressure from the Trump administration on the oil-rich South American nation.

President Donald Trump said on Fox News late Saturday (AEDT) that the US had decided the next steps for Venezuela, adding: “We will be very involved in that.”

Ahead of the planned news conference, Mr. Trump also told the conservative broadcaster that he had watched Mr. Maduro’s capture live.

“I mean, I literally watched it like I was watching a television show. And if you saw the speed and the violence,” Mr. Trump said in a telephone interview.

“We watched every aspect”

He added that the strike was “a sign that we will not be pushed.”

The legal authority for the attack was not immediately clear. The dramatic American military action that deposed a country’s incumbent leader was reminiscent of the US invasion of Panama in 1990, exactly 36 years ago, that led to the surrender and capture of its leader Manuel Antonio Noriega.

A spokesman said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was “deeply alarmed” by the strike because it could create a “dangerous precedent”.

While France, Russia and China condemned the incident, the European Union called for moderation and respect for international law.

U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, will face charges following the indictment in New York. In a social media post, Ms. Bondi promised that the couple “will soon face the full wrath of American justice in American courts on American soil.”

Mr. Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on charges of “narco-terrorism” conspiracy, but his wife was not previously known to be so and it was unclear whether Ms. Bondi was referring to a new indictment. Mr Trump said the couple were aboard the US warship Iwo Jima and were heading to New York, where they will face investigation.

Venezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fernández told The Associated Press that Mr. Maduro and Ms. Flores were at their home in Ft. Tiuna military base when they were captured.

“They bombed the place,” he said. “And there they carried out what we might call the kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country.”

Multiple explosions were heard in the early hours of Saturday (around 5pm AEDT) and low-flying planes scoured the Venezuelan capital. Mr. Maduro’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military facilities, calling it an “imperialist attack” and urging citizens to take to the streets.

Since the whereabouts of the Venezuelan leader are unknown, the vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, will assume power according to Venezuelan law. Although Maduro and his wife made a statement after the attack demanding proof that they were alive, there was no confirmation about the incident.

“Mr. Maduro was captured with his wife and flown out of the country. This operation was carried out together with the US Law Enforcement Agency,” Mr. Trump said.

US Vice President JD Vance said early on Sunday (AEDT) that Venezuela was ignoring overtures to reach a deal, adding that captured leader Nicolas Maduro was “the latest person to learn that President Trump means what he says”.

“The President has offered multiple exits, but has been very clear throughout the process: drug trafficking must be stopped and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States,” Mr. Vance said in a post on X.

Mr. Vance also doubled down on the U.S. justification that Maduro is on the run from U.S. law, saying: “You cannot escape justice for drug trafficking in the United States because you live in a palace in Caracas.”

What caused the attacks?

The attack lasted less than 30 minutes and explosions (at least seven explosions) sent people into the streets while others reported what they saw and heard on social media.

Ms. Rodríguez, the vice president, said some Venezuelan civilians and members of the military had been killed, without giving figures. Mr. Trump said some U.S. forces were injured in the attacks but he believed “nobody was killed.”

It was not known whether there would be further actions in the future, but Trump said in his post that the attacks were carried out “successfully.”

The White House did not immediately respond to questions about where Mr. Maduro and his wife were flying.

Maduro last appeared on state television on Friday at a meeting with a delegation of Chinese officials in Caracas.

The strike followed the Trump administration’s months-long pressure campaign against Venezuela’s leader, including a massive build-up of American forces in waters off South America and attacks on boats accused of transporting drugs in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean. Last week, the CIA was behind a drone strike on a docking area believed to be used by Venezuelan drug cartels; This was the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the United States began attacks in September.

According to the Trump administration, the number of known boat attacks as of Friday, US time, was 35 and the death toll was at least 115. Mr. Trump said the United States was engaged in a “gunfight” with drug cartels and justified the boat attacks as necessary to stop the flow of drugs into the United States.

Mr. Maduro has denounced U.S. military operations as a thinly veiled effort to remove him from power.

Some streets are filling up in Caracas

The Venezuelan government responded to the attack with a call to action: “People to the streets!”

Gunmen and uniformed members of civilian militias took to the streets of the Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party.

At a pro-Maduro protest in the capital, Caracas Mayor Carmen Meléndez joined the crowd demanding Maduro’s return.

“Maduro, wait, the people are rising!” the crowd chanted. They also said: “We are here, Nicolás Maduro. If you can hear us, we are here!”

In other parts of the city, the streets remained empty after the attack and citizens absorbed the events. Some areas remained without electricity, but vehicles moved freely.

“How do I feel? I’m scared like everyone else,” said Caracas resident Noris Prada, sitting on an empty street looking at his phone. “Venezuelans woke up in fear, many families could not sleep.”

Video from Caracas and an unidentified coastal city showed trails and smoke blurring the landscape as repeated silent explosions lit up the night sky. Other images showed cars passing on the highway as explosions illuminated the hills behind them. The videos have been verified by the Associated Press.

While smoke rose from the hangar of a military base in Caracas, electricity was cut off at another military facility in the capital.

The Venezuelan government’s statement said Maduro “ordered the implementation of all national defense plans” and declared a state of emergency that gave him the authority to suspend people’s rights and expand the role of the armed forces.

The website of the US Embassy in Venezuela, which has been closed since 2019, called on American citizens to shelter in place.

Reaction begins to emerge

The FAA warned all commercial and private U.S. pilots that airspace over Venezuela and the small island nation of Curacao just off the country’s coast is off limits “due to flight safety risks associated with ongoing military activities.”

The Armed Services committees in both houses of Congress, which have jurisdiction over military matters, have not been notified of any action by the administration, according to a person familiar with the matter who was granted anonymity to discuss the matter.

Lawmakers from both political parties in Congress expressed deep reservations and openly objected to U.S. attacks on boats suspected of drug smuggling near the Venezuelan coast; Congress has not specifically approved an authorization for the use of military force for such operations in the region.

Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he saw no evidence that would justify Trump attacking Venezuela without Congressional approval and demanded an immediate briefing from the administration on its “plan to stabilize the region and the legal justification for that decision.”

Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the military action and capture of Maduro marked “a new dawn for Venezuela” and that “the tyrant is gone.” He posted X hours after the strike. His boss, Rubio, reposted a post from July stating that Maduro “is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government.”

Cuba, a supporter of Maduro’s government and a long-time foe of the United States, called on the international community to respond to what President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez called a “criminal attack.”

“Our peace zone is being brutally attacked,” he said on channel X. Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemned the attacks.

Argentinian President Javier Milei praised his close ally Trump’s claim that Maduro was caught using the political slogan he often uses to celebrate right-wing advances: “Long live freedom, dammit!”