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U.S. President Donald Trump announced Saturday that the United States has captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in what he described as a "large scale strike" carried out in conjunction with U.S. law enforcement, marking a dramatic escalation in the months-long confrontation between Washington and Caracas.
"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 wrote in a post on social media early Saturday morning.
The announcement came hours after multiple explosions rocked the Venezuelan capital and three other states around 2:00 AM local time, striking key military installations including Fort Tiuna, the country's largest military complex, and La Carlota Air Base in central Caracas.
In a brief phone interview with NYT, Trump celebrated success of the mission to capture Maduro. "A lot of good planning and lot of great, great troops and great people," Trump said, adding, "It was a brilliant operation, actually."
The NYT asked if Trump had sought congressional authority before the U.S. military, along with law enforcement personnel, engaged in a "large-scale strike," as he put it on social media: "We'll discuss that," he said, adding, "We’re going to have a news conference."
A U.S. official speaking to the NYT also confirmed that there were no American casualties in the operation while not commenting on Venezuelan casualties.
Regarding Maduro's swift capture, sources inside the Venezuelan opposition told Sky News they believe it was a "negotiated exit."
Trump said he would hold a news conference at 11:00 AM at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida to provide additional details about the operation. The president did not specify where Maduro and his wife had been taken or provide information about casualties from the strikes.
Witnesses in Caracas reported hearing at least seven explosions accompanied by low-flying aircraft, air raid sirens, and plumes of smoke rising from military facilities across the capital. Residents described blasts strong enough to shake windows and cause brief power outages in several neighborhoods.
Eyewitnesses reported particularly heavy and sustained explosions at Fort Tiuna, a sprawling military base in central Caracas that houses Venezuela's top military brass and many senior government officials. "The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes in the distance," said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker.
Videos circulating on social media showed bright flashes, columns of smoke, and fire rising from multiple locations throughout the city. Residents across various neighborhoods rushed into the streets following the strikes.
The Venezuelan government confirmed that attacks struck civilian and military installations in Caracas and the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira, though Maduro's whereabouts remained unclear in the immediate aftermath before Trump's announcement.
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