What we learned – summary
It has been a huge day of news and developments after the dramatic US attack on Caracas and the capture of Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife. We’ll be starting a new blog soon to bring you the latest news. Here’s everything you need to know about what happened today.
Maduro is now being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, according to US media reports. A plane believed to have been carrying Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, landed in New York on Saturday evening.
The White House’s official rapid response account on X posted a video earlier which appeared to show Maduro handcuffed and escorted by agents at the US Drug Enforcement Administration offices. In the video, Maduro, who is wearing a black hooded top and hat, walks down a hallway with a carpet that says “DEA NYD”. He can be heard saying “Goodnight” and “Happy new year”.
Donald Trump said “We’re going to run the country [Venezuela] until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition” during a press conference about the attack on Venezuela. He has not given further details.
The US is going to be “very strongly involved” in Venezuela’s oil industry after the military operation, Trump said. “We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it.”
Trump said his administration had not spoken to Venezuela’s exiled opposition leader María Corina Machado. He said he did not think she would be able to return to lead Venezuela, saying: “She does not have the support in Venezuela. She is a very nice woman but she does not have the support.”
Venezuela’s supreme court has ordered vice-president Delcy Rodríguez to assume the role of acting president in Maduro’s absence.
Asked about Trump’s comment that the US will “run” Venezuela temporarily, US defense secretary Pete Hegseth told CBS News: “President Trump sets the terms … But it means the drugs stop flowing. It means the oil that was taken from us is returned, ultimately, and that criminals are not sent to the United States.”
The UN security council was due to hold an emergency meeting on Monday.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, is deeply alarmed by the US military action in Venezuela, his spokesperson has said, and considered the US intervention “a dangerous precedent”.
The New York Times reported that at least 40 people, including civilians and soldiers, were killed in Saturday’s attack. The estimate came from a senior Venezuelan official who spoke on the condition of anonymity
This blog is now closing, you can follow our continued live coverage here.
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Florida's Venezuelan community celebrates Maduro's capture
Hundreds of people from the Venezuelan community in Doral, South Florida gathered on Saturday to celebrate the capture of Nicolás Maduro by US troops, waving the Venezuelan flag and chanting “liberty”.
Associated Press spoke to those who turned out, including some who hope they will be able to return home and reunite with their families.
David Nuñez told AP he fled to the US six years ago after being persecuted in Venezuela for his political activism. He has not seen his daughters — ages 8 and 17 — since then.
“The most important thing is that we’re going to be able to be with our families soon,” Nuñez said. “At least for me, I haven’t seen my daughters in six years so I have a lot of mixed feelings. I’ve cried a lot. I’m really happy because I know that I’m going to be able to return to Venezuela very soon.”
Roughly half the population of Doral is of Venezuelan descent, and people began to gather as soon as news broke.
“We’re like everybody — it’s a combination of feelings, of course,” Alejandra Arrieta, who came to the US in 1997, told AP. “There’s fears. There’s excitement. There’s so many years that we’ve been waiting for this. Something had to happen in Venezuela. We all need the freedom.”
Trump said earlier on Saturday that the US will “run” Venezuela until there can be “a safe, proper and judicious transition”, but did not give further details.
About 8 million people have fled Venezuela since 2014, with the majority hosted in Latin American and Caribbean countries, though many have also made treacherous journeys to the US.
In South Florida, deep-seated concerns among the Venezuelan community about Trump’s immigration crackdowns gave way to celebrations after Maduro was deposed, AP reported.
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Maduro 'perp walked'
The White House’s official rapid response account on X has posted a video of what appears to be ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro handcuffed and escorted by DEA agents.
In the video, Maduro, who is wearing a black hooded top and hat, walks down a hallway with a carpet that says “DEA NYD”. He can be heard saying “Goodnight” and “Happy new year”.
The video was posted on X alongside the text “Perp walked” – where an individual who has been arrested is escorted in front of media so they can be photographed.
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Venezuela court orders Delcy Rodriguez to temporarily assume presidency
Venezuela’s Supreme Court late on Saturday ordered the vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, to become the country’s interim leader, after the US seized president Nicolás Maduro and whisked him out of the country.
According to multiple reports, the high court ruled that Rodriguez “assume and exercise, in an acting capacity, all the attributes, duties and powers inherent to the office of President ... to guarantee administrative continuity and the comprehensive defense of the nation.”
The judges stopped short of declaring Maduro permanently absent from office, a ruling that requires holding elections within 30 days.
In case you missed it earlier, the Guardian’s senior international correspondent Julian Borger has written analysis on what he has framed as the ‘Putinzation’ of US foreign policy. Trump is no longer bending the rules, writes Borger, he is demolishing them, with consequences far beyond Caracas.
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‘Blast smashed the entire roof of my house’
Twelve hours after the US attack on Caracas, locals are reflecting on what happened in the capital. Agence France-Presse has spoken to people about their experience early on Saturday morning, when many were awoken by the traumatic sound of explosions and aircraft flying overhead.
Alpidio Lovera, a 47-year-old resident, who ran to a hill with his pregnant wife and other residents to escape the strikes said: “Psssh, first we saw the flash and then the explosion.”
His sister Linda Unamuno, 39, burst into sobs as she recalled a nightmarish night.
“The blast smashed the entire roof of my house,” she said.
Unamuno’s first thoughts were that La Guaira was experiencing another natural disaster, 26 years ago after a landslide of biblical proportions swept away 10,000 people, many of them washed out to sea.
“I went out, that’s when I saw what was happening. I saw the fire from the airstrikes. It was traumatising,” she sobbed, adding she “wished it on no-one.”
Alirio Elista, a pensioner whose water tank was damaged in the strikes, said those who cheered the US intervention for bringing down the unpopular Maduro “don’t know what they’re talking about.”
He said he believed news of Maduro’s capture was “fake” – despite Donald Trump having posted a picture of him blindfolded and handcuffed on a US warship.
Maduro operation disrupts hundreds of flights across Caribbean
The US military operation that captured Nicolás Maduro and flew him out of the country early on Saturday has disrupted Caribbean travel at a busy travel time for the region.
No airline flights were crossing over Venezuela on Saturday, according to FlightRadar24.com. And major airlines cancelled hundreds of flights across the eastern Caribbean region and warned passengers that the disruptions could continue for days after the Federal Aviation Administration imposed restrictions.
Flights were cancelled to and from Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Aruba and more than a dozen other destinations in the Lesser Antilles island group that lies north of Venezuela. The airlines are waiving change fees for passengers who have to reschedule their flights this weekend.
'President Trump sets the terms': Hegseth speaks about next steps
The US defense secretary Pete Hegseth has spoken to CBS News about the US operation in Venezuela and what happens next.
Trump earlier said the US was going to “run” Venezuela “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition”.
Asked about Trump’s comments, and whether this would mean US troops on the ground, Hegseth responded:
Well, it means we set the terms. President Trump sets the terms. And ultimately, he’ll decide what the iterations are of that. But it means the drugs stop flowing. It means the oil that was taken from us is returned, ultimately, and that criminals are not sent to the United States.
Hegseth told CBS the capture of Maduro was “the most sophisticated, most complicated, most successful joint special operations raid of all time”.
Hegseth, who was among the Trump officials who oversaw the operation, also appeared alongside the president at a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, earlier on Saturday. During the press conference, Trump said the US would run Venezuela “with a group” and would be “designating various people” in charge while pointing to Hegseth, as well as the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio; and the joint chiefs of staff chair, Gen Dan “Razin” Caine, behind him.
Hegseth was also asked whether the Trump administration would seek approval for a full-scale US intervention to stabilise Venezuela – and whether he believed, legally, that was necessary. He responded:
Well, we’re postured. As the president said, the blockade continues: no oil going in and out, no drug boats allowed to traffic in the Caribbean or the Eastpac. We’re still poised there. This was a law enforcement exercise. It was the Department of War in support of the Department of Justice pulling out an indicted person who ultimately will face justice. And [US secretary of state] Marco [Rubio] was clear that this is not something you notify Congress about beforehand, but were there to be more extensions to this, of course, we’ll keep Congress involved. They’re our partners, and we would do.
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Maduro lands in New York before helicopter transfer amid high security
Hello, this is Rebecca Ratcliffe in Bangkok, taking over from my colleagues in London. We’ll be bringing you the latest developments after the capture of Venezuelan leader Maduro by US troops.
Images from agencies appear to show the journey made by Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, as they were flown into the US.
A plane believed to have been carrying the couple landed at Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburgh, New York on Saturday evening. Maduro was escorted off the plane surrounded by FBI agents, according to a report by AFP.
Maduro was then taken by helicopter to the Westside Heliport in Manhattan, arriving just before 7pm according to the New York Times.
Heavy security awaited Maduro in Manhattan, images showed. He was due to be taken to the offices of the US Drug Enforcement Administration, then to the Metropolitan Detention Center, a federal facility in Brooklyn, according to US media. Rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs was held at the same facility during his trial last year, as were other high profile prisoners including Ghislaine Maxwell.
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At least 40 killed in attack on Caracas: report
The New York Times has reported that at least 40 people, including civilians and soldiers, were killed in Saturday’s US attack on Venezuela. The estimate comes from a senior Venezuelan official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The victims reportedly include a woman called Rosa González, who was killed when her three-story apartment complex was hit by a strike. Another resident was reportedly severely injured.
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US oil giants have so far remained silent on Donald Trump’s claim that they are primed to spend “billions and billions of dollars” rebuilding the Venezuelan oil industry following the ouster of Nicolás Maduro.
Chevron, the only US oil company still operating in Venezuela, committed only to following “relevant laws and regulations” after the US president suggested American energy multinationals would be central to his plans for the country.
Venezuela’s vast oil reserves – reputedly the world’s largest – will be modernized and exploited, Trump claimed in interviews and a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate. US oil firms will invest heavily to reconstruct “rotted” infrastructure, ramp up production and sell “large amounts … to other countries”, he told reporters, adding: “We’re in the oil business.”
“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies – the biggest anywhere in the world – go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure and start making money for the country,” the president said. The firms would be “reimbursed”, he added, without providing more detail.
ExxonMobil, the biggest US oil company, and ConocoPhillips, another major player, did not respond to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for Chevron said: “Chevron remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of our employees, as well as the integrity of our assets. We continue to operate in full compliance with all relevant laws and regulations.”
Mark Carney: 'Canada calls on all parties to respect international law'
In response to today’s events, Canada’s PM, Mark Carney, wrote on X: “One of the first actions taken by Canada’s new government in March 2025 was to impose additional sanctions on Nicolás Maduro’s brutally oppressive and criminal regime – unequivocally condemning his grave breaches of international peace and security, gross and systematic human rights violations, and corruption. Canada has not recognised the illegitimate regime of Maduro since it stole the 2018 election. The Canadian government therefore welcomes the opportunity for freedom, democracy, peace, and prosperity for the Venezuelan people.
“Canada has long supported a peaceful, negotiated, and Venezuelan-led transition process that respects the democratic will of the Venezuelan people. In keeping with our long-standing commitment to upholding the rule of law, sovereignty, and human rights, Canada calls on all parties to respect international law. We stand by the Venezuelan people’s sovereign right to decide and build their own future in a peaceful and democratic society.
“Canada attaches great importance to resolution of crises through multilateral engagement and is in close contact with international partners about ongoing developments. We are first and foremost ready to assist Canadians through our consular officials and our embassy in Bogotá, Colombia, and will continue to support Venezuelan refugees.”
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Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, arrives in US federal custody at Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York ahead of his scheduled court appearance at Manhattan federal court.
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Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few but what I’d really like to talk about is my disastrous predecessor and some pathetic city mayors,” is what Winston Churchill didn’t say during Britain’s war against Adolf Hitler.
On Saturday, Donald Trump fancied himself at his most Churchillian as he hailed the derring-do of US military heroes who toppled Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro in an audacious overnight operation.
But far from the gravitas of London’s cabinet war rooms or the White House’s situation room, Trump was luxuriating at his winter retreat, the gilded Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, where he whiles away the days playing golf and the evenings playing DJ.
And while Trump talked at length about the capture of Maduro and vague plans to “run” Venezuela in a case of the American empire strikes back, he could not resist upending his moment of glory by airing familiar grievances, from his legal treatment to frustrations with specific officials and a perceived lack of credit for his past actions.
Wearing a dark suit, white shirt and blue tie, the president claimed Maduro had sent “savage and murderous gangs” into the US which, with a weave of the Trump brain, led to a digression on crime in Washington DC, then the role of the national guard, and then how the national guard is doing great work in Memphis and New Orleans.
Suddenly, with a global audience on tenterhooks for the future of Latin America, we were here: “We also helped, as you know, in Chicago and crime went down a little bit there. We did a very small help because we had no working ability with the governor. The governor was a disaster and the mayor was a disaster.”
Democratic members of the US Congress said senior officials of president Donald Trump’s administration had misled them during recent briefings about plans for Venezuela by insisting they were not planning regime change in Caracas.
Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democrats’ leader in the Senate, said he had been told in three classified briefings that the administration was not pursuing regime change or planning to take military action in Venezuela.
“They assured me that they were not pursuing those things,” Schumer said on a call with reporters.
“Clearly they’re not being straight with the American people.”
Schumer said he had not been briefed by Saturday afternoon and called for the administration to fill in all lawmakers by early next week.
“They’ve kept everyone in the total dark,” he added.
Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate armed services committee, said: “No serious plan has been presented for how such an extraordinary undertaking would work or what it will cost the American people.
“History offers no shortage of warnings about the costs – human, strategic, and moral – of assuming we can govern another nation by force.”
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Nicolás Maduro ‘has arrived in New York’
A plane believed to be carrying Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, has landed near Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York.
Maduro is expected to be taken by helicopter to the city where he will be processed and transported to the Metropolitan Detention Center prison, officials told NBC News.
They added the Venezuelan president is to appear in court by Monday evening.
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Venezuela’s oil exports, which had fallen to a minimum amid president Donald Trump’s announced blockade of all sanctioned tankers going in and out of the country’s waters, are now paralysed as port captains have not received requests to authorise loaded ships to set sail, four sources close to operations told Reuters.
Trump said on Saturday that an “oil embargo” on the country was in full effect.
Several vessels that have recently loaded crude and fuel bound for destinations including the US and Asia have not set sail, while others that had waited to load have left empty, according to monitoring data.
No tankers were loading on Saturday at the country’s main oil port of Jose, TankerTrackers.com said.
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The UK’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, has backed a transition of power in Venezuela.
He said his Labour administration would “shed no tears” over the end of Nicolás Maduro’s regime and said Britain would discuss the “evolving situation” with American counterparts over the coming days.
Starmer said in a statement: “The UK has long supported a transition of power in Venezuela.
“We regarded Maduro as an illegitimate president and we shed no tears about the end of his regime.
“I reiterated my support for international law this morning.
“The UK government will discuss the evolving situation with US counterparts in the days ahead as we seek a safe and peaceful transition to a legitimate government that reflects the will of the Venezuelan people.”
Starmer earlier refused to be drawn on whether the US military action broke international law, saying he wanted to talk to president Donald Trump, with whom he had not spoken on Saturday morning, and allies to “establish the facts”.
About 500 UK nationals are in Venezuela and work is continuing to “safeguard” them, the prime minister said, while the UK’s Foreign Office advised against all travel to the country.
“As you know, I always say and believe we should all uphold international law, but I think at this stage, fast-moving situation, let’s establish the facts and take it from there,” Starmer told broadcasters.
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Summary: the day so far
It’s been an incredibly dramatic day so far but a confusing one, in the US and Venezuela, as the world watches the aftermath of a lightning military strike overnight that resulted in Nicolás Maduro being captured by US forces and taken to an American aircraft carrier in handcuffs. The toppled Venezuelan president was en route to New York early on Saturday, where the Trump administration has promised to bring him up in court, indicted on drug trafficking and other federal criminal offenses. He could arrive later the same day, even. Donald Trump claims the US is now running Venezuela, with the remaining regime’s cooperation – a claim sharply contrasted by Maduro’s vice-president, talking on TV from Caracas a little earlier.
Here’s where things stand:
The United Nations security council is due to hold an emergency meeting on Monday as a result of the United States attacking Venezuela early on Saturday and snatching up its president, Nicolás Maduro, holding him en route to New York where it will confront him with federal criminal charges related to drug trafficking and weapons.
Nicolás Maduro’s vice-president in Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, a loyalist, has appeared on television and radio there, from the capital Caracas, contradicting Donald Trump’s description of her now being president and cooperating with the US. She said Maduro was Venezuela’s “only” president and that Venezuela would not be colonized.
Rodríguez appears to be in Caracas. This followed hours of rumors that she might have been in Russia or parts unknown, but not in Venezuela.
Donald Trump called Cuba a failing nation, and US secretary of state Marco Rubio called the communist-run island, from which his parents fled to the US in the 1950s, a “disaster”. Both hinted that they could reprise their action in Venezuela in Cuba, but made no direct threats.
Trump was asked about his current thoughts on Russian president Vladimir Putin and the ongoing war perpetrated by that country in Ukraine. Trump said he was “not thrilled” with Putin and called the war a bloodbath.
Donald Trump said he and his administration have not talked to Venezuela’s exiled opposition leader María Corina Machado since the capture of Maduro. He took on a dismissive tone and said she would not run Venezuela as she did not have the necessary support or respect in the country. It was unclear whether he was talking about the Venezuelan regime or the general population. Machado won the latest Nobel Peace prize.
United Nations secretary general António Guterres said the Trump administration was setting a “dangerous precedent” with its unilateral action inside Venezuela. He later said he thought the US had probably breached the founding charter of the UN.
At a press conference in Florida, Trump said that US oil companies will take control of Venezuela’s state oil operation. There has been no confirmation of anything like this from US oil companies, nor how such an arrangement would work.
Donald Trump claimed at his press conference earlier that the United States is “going to run” Venezuela for the time being. He gave no specific details about how that might happen, later implying the remains of the Maduro regime were cooperating with US leadership – something soon after contradicted by Venezuela’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez.
Trump posted a picture on his Truth Social platform that he states is “Nicolas Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima”, which appeared to show the captured Venezuelan president in handcuffs, black goggles and headphones, clutching a water bottle, expressionless.
The US Department of Justice unsealed a fresh version of a federal criminal indictment of Nicolás Maduro. He was indicted by the US in 2020. The superseding indictment now includes his wife and son.
Trump confirmed that the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were heading to New York. Trump told Fox News on Saturday that Maduro and his wife were taken to a ship after their capture by US forces and were headed to the US city.
US attorney general Pam Bondi said the deposed Venezuelan leader and his wife would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
The United States is going to be “very strongly involved” in Venezuela’s oil industry after the operation to capture Maduro, Trump told Fox News on Saturday. He said: “We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it.”
The US vice-president JD Vance hailed what he called a “truly impressive operation” in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of Maduro. Posting on social media as he reshared Trump’s post about the action, Vance wrote: “The president offered multiple off-ramps, but was very clear throughout this process: the drug trafficking must stop, and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States.”
The US secretary of state Marco Rubio said in a post on X that Maduro is “under indictment for pushing drugs in the United States”. The Republican US senator Mike Lee said on Saturday that Rubio had told him that he “anticipates no further action in Venezuela now that Maduro is in US custody”.
Venezuela’s government urged citizens to rise up against the US assault and said Washington risked plunging Latin America into chaos with “an extremely serious” act of “military aggression”. “The entire country must mobilise to defeat this imperialist aggression,” it added. It accused the US of launching a series of attacks against civilian and military targets in the South American country, after explosions rocked its capital, Caracas, before dawn on Saturday.
Explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday. In its statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that the city had come under attack, as had three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
Venezuela has accused the US of trying to “seize control” of the country’s resources, in particular its oil and minerals. The country has called on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
The president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council, saying on social media that Venezuela had come under attack.
UK prime minister Keir Starmer has reacted to Donald Trump’s military action in Venezuela saying: “The UK was not involved in any way in this operation.” He added that “we should all uphold international law”. France said the US military operation that resulted in the capture of Maduro went against the principles of international law.
Russia has demanded “immediate” clarification about the circumstances of the capture of Maduro during an attack ordered by Trump. Earlier, Venezuela’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the US needed to provide “proof of life” for Maduro.
Venezuelan allies Russia, Cuba and Iran were quick to condemn the strikes as a violation of sovereignty. Tehran urged the UN security council to stop the “unlawful aggression”. Among major Latin American nations, Argentina’s president Javier Milei lauded Venezuela’s new “freedom” while Mexico condemned the intervention and Brazil’s president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said it crossed “an unacceptable line”.
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Leaning on Fortune here, briefly, for some context about the oil. As the magazine points out in this article: Trump has repeatedly said he wanted the Venezuelan oil back that was expropriated from American operators during George W Bush’s second term. During his press conference, he called it the “largest theft of property in the history of our country”.
Democratic congressman Seth Moulton, a member of the House armed services committee, said on CNN a little earlier that Trump was now “trying to steal” Venezuela’s oil.
He also balked at the White House suggestion that Congress was not told about the US military action in Venezuela beforehand because of fear of leaks. He said his committee, for one, hadn’t leaked under Trump. He accused the White House of lying to the committee, having, he said, told them he was not interested in regime change in Venezuela or a US military intervention in Venezuela. “Every step of the way, he and [Marco] Rubio have lied about what is going on here,” Moulton said.
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Venezuela’s ambassador to the United Nations, Samuel Moncada, has echoed other leaders and geopolitics experts today in saying that the US’s unilateral military action in Venezuela and capture of the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro, breaches the founding charter of the UN.
Specifically the section of the charter that states: “All members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.”
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, put out a statement via his spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, that said, Reuters reports:
The Secretary-General continues to emphasize the importance of full respect – by all – of international law, including the UN Charter. He’s deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected.
The US ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz, has posted on X that what the US has done is “not regime change, this is justice”.
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United Nations to hold emergency security council meeting
The UN security council is due to meet on Monday as a result of the United States attacking Venezuela early on Saturday and snatching up its president, Nicolás Maduro, holding him en route to New York where it will confront him with federal criminal charges related to drug trafficking and weapons.
Colombia, backed by Russia and China, requested the meeting of the 15-member council, diplomats said, and Reuters just reported. There had earlier been a post on X about it by the Associated Press, but we had been awaiting confirmation.
The UN security council, based in New York, has met twice – in October and December – over the escalating tensions between the US and Venezuela.
Donald Trump said on Saturday that Washington would run Venezuela, with the cooperation of the remains of Maduro’s regime – a claim sharply contradicted by Maduro’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, from Caracas a short while ago, as the situation became only murkier.
Venezuela’s UN ambassador, Samuel Moncada, wrote to the UN security council on Saturday:
This is a colonial war aimed at destroying our republican form of government, freely chosen by our people, and at imposing a puppet government that allows the plundering of our natural resources, including the world’s largest oil reserves,.
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Donald Trump earlier declared that US oil giants are primed to spend “billions and billions of dollars” on the Venezuelan oil industry.
But none of those companies have commented on the US president’s claims that they plan to invest heavily in the country after the capture by US forces early on Saturday of the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro.
Chevron, the only major US oil company currently authorized to operate in Venezuela, stated it was following “all relevant laws” on Saturday.
“Chevron remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of our employees, as well as the integrity of our assets,” a spokesperson said. “We continue to operate in full compliance with all relevant laws and regulations.”
Trump suggested US oil firms will “fix” Venezuela’s vast market, enabling the ramp-up of production. “We’re in the oil business,” he said during his press conference at Mar-a-Lago. “We’ll be selling large amounts of oil to other countries.”
He did not elaborate on how any such plans could be manifested.
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The UN security council will hold an emergency meeting on Monday to discuss the situation in Venezuela, according to an Associated Press post on X. We await details.
Several international leaders have been calling today for the global body to hold such a meeting, at its headquarters in New York, after the military intervention in Venezuela overnight and the capture by US forces of the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro.
Maduro is handcuffed on an American aircraft carrier, currently on its way to New York, where it could arrive as early as today. The US has pledged that Maduro will appear in federal court in the US to face criminal charges related to drug trafficking.
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The German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said a little earlier that Nicolás Maduro had “led his country to ruin”, after the US snatched the Venezuelan leader out of the country during a raid on Caracas overnight.
Merz noted Germany had not recognised the last Venezuelan election in 2024 as it was “rigged” and that Maduro had “played a problematic role in the region”, including by “entangling Venezuela in the drug trade”, Agence France-Presse reports.
But he also said that the legal aspects of the US actions were “complex”, and in general “the principles of international law must apply in relations between states”.
Merz added:
Political instability must not be allowed to arise in Venezuela now.
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Here is more from Venezuela’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez.
She has condemned the capture of Nicolás Maduro by the US, calling it an “unprecedented military aggression”, and demanded the “immediate release” of the dictator and his wife, Cilia Flores.
She delivered a televised address a few hours after the US president, Donald Trump, said at a press conference that Rodríguez had held a lengthy conversation with the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and that she was “essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again”.
Maduro’s vice-president, who has been in office since 2018, nonetheless maintained the critical tone adopted by all members of Maduro’s cabinet since the first reports of the US’s overnight bombardment.
“The government of the US launched an unprecedented military aggression against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. It constitutes a terrible stain on the development of bilateral relations through that military operation,” she said.
She added that Venezuela “will never again be anyone’s colony – neither of old empires, nor of new empires, nor of empires in decline”.
Rodríguez also echoed an argument repeatedly made by Maduro before his capture: that they believe the real objective of the four-month-long US military pressure had never been a supposed “war on drugs”, but rather “regime change” and the “seizure of our energy, mineral and natural resources”.
The vice-president said the “Venezuelan people … are outraged by the illegal and illegitimate kidnapping of the president and the first lady”.
“We call on the Venezuelan people to remain calm and to face this together, in perfect national unity. Let this popular, military and police fusion become a single body as we enter this crucial phase of defending our sovereignty and our national independence,” she said.
Rodríguez also urged other countries to unite, warning that “what they did to Venezuela today, they can do to anyone. This brutal use of force to bend the will of peoples can be done to any country.”
The Guardian has whisked up an express episode of the Politics Weekly America podcast, with our Latin America correspondent, Tom Phillips, explaining the latest about Venezuela.
Have a listen here.
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Venezuela's Rodriguez rejects Trump portrayal of regime
Reports coming through now from Nicolás Maduro’s vice-president in Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, that contrast sharply from the portrayal given by Donald Trump at the presidential press conference in the US earlier.
There, Trump said he understood she’d be sworn in as president of Venezuela, after the US captured and spirited away Maduro, and that she had, essentially, agreed to cooperate with the US because she had no “choice”.
Now Rodríguez, a staunch loyalist of Maduro, has appeared on state television and across radio stations in there, saying that Maduro “is Venezuela’s only president”.
She described Maduro as having been kidnapped and called for him and his wife to be freed.
Rodríguez spoke on state television from Caracas with her brother, national assembly head Jorge Rodríguez, interior minister Diosdado Cabello, and the foreign and defense ministers, Reuters reports.
Rodríguez called for calm and unity to defend the country amid Maduro’s “kidnapping” and said Venezuela will never be the colony of any nation.
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Venezuela's Delcy Rodríguez appears to be in Caracas
Wire reports are coming in that Delcy Rodríguez is in Venezuela.
There have been hours of rumors that Nicolás Maduro’s vice-president may not have been in the country, and even that she may be in Russia. She had been speaking by telephone on state television but her whereabouts were not made public.
Then Donald Trump said he understood she’d been sworn in as president of the country to replace Maduro, but without giving details.
Now news agencies are reporting that she’s in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. Reuters just reported that she has just been seen on TV alongside other leading politicians, and her brother.
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At a gathering of Venezuelan exiles in Valencia, Spain, the only
subject of conversation was the events in Caracas overnight.
Since the beginning of the day, WhatsApp groups and cellphones have been going off constantly. As usual in Venezuelan family meetings, all of the conversations crossed, people interrupted each other, and theories were thrown into the air constantly.
The celebratory mood paused for a moment when Donald Trump brushed off the suggestion that Nobel peace prize-winning opposition leader María Corina Machado could play a role as, at least, a potential interim leader.
“I think it would be very tough for her to be the leader. She doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country,” Trump told reporters at the presidential press conference earlier. “She’s a very nice woman, but she doesn’t have the respect.”
There was a moment of disappointed silence before one of those
gathered rationalised the comments away, saying: “He probably said that regarding the military forces inside the country, not the people.”
Then the celebrations continued.
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Here’s an excellent, short video explainer from our Latin America correspondent, Tom Phillips, who has called the US intervention in Venezuela overnight “one of the most dramatic moments in Latin American history”.
Tom said that he’s never seen anything like this in 25 years reporting on the continent and it is the most dramatic US military action since the invasion of Panama in 1989, and a surprise.
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And the US president was also asked at the press conference about how he could justify capturing Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro when he stunningly pardoned the former president of Honduras in December.
Juan Orlando Hernández was freed from a US prison after having been sentenced to 45 years behind bars for allegedly creating “a cocaine superhighway to the United States”, shocking many.
And this as the Trump administration was bombing boats in the Caribbean Sea that it was claiming, but not proving, were all “narco terrorism” shipments of illegal drugs bound for the US from Venezuela. The pardon received bipartisan criticism.
At the press conference today, Trump said the Honduran had been “unfairly persecuted” by the Biden administration and, turning to his habit of referring to himself in the third person, said: “The man that I pardoned was treated like the Biden administration treated a man named Trump.”
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Meanwhile, just to catch up on some loose ends, Donald Trump was asked at the press conference why running a country in South America was consistent with his “America first” mantra.
The US president said: “Well, I think it is, because we want to surround ourselves with good neighbors. We want to surround ourselves with stability … with energy. We have tremendous energy in that country. It’s very important that we protect it,” he said, undoubtedly referring to Venezuelan oil.
“We need that for ourselves, we need that for the world and we want to make sure we can protect it,” he said.
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US secretary of state Marco Rubio made ominous remarks relating to Cuba, the country of his roots and towards whose regime he has a deep antipathy. The Trump administration did not say today that it will reprise its action in Venezuela in Cuba, but it didn’t say it would not, either.
Rubio said in response to the topic coming up in the press question-and-answer session: “I mean, I just gave you a statement a few minutes ago about, you know, when the president speaks you should take him seriously. Suffice it to say, you know, Cuba is a disaster.”
He went on: “It is run by incompetent, senile men and, in some cases, not senile, but incompetent. Nonetheless, it has no economy, it’s in total collapse … all the guards that helped protect [Venezuela’s captured leader] Maduro, their spy agency, they were all full of Cubans. This poor island took over Venezuela.
“ … So, yeah, if I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned, at least a little bit.”
Trump added that as far as the US is concerned, Venezuela is still under an oil embargo and Venezuelan oil will not be allowed to reach Cuba.
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'Cuba is a failing nation and we want to help the people,' says Trump
Cuba came up at the press conference, a country very closely allied with Venezuela and immediately on a lot of people’s minds after the US action in South America overnight, wondering if the US would be audacious enough to attempt to make a similar intervention.
Donald Trump said it is “an interesting case”.
“Cuba, as you know, is not doing very well right now. That system has not been a very good one for Cuba. The people there have suffered for many, many years and I think Cuba is going to be something we’ll end up talking about, because Cuba is a failing nation right now, very badly failing, and we want to help the people.”
He went on: “It’s very similar in the sense that we want to help the people in Cuba, but we also want to help the people who were forced out of Cuba and living in this country. Do you want to say something about that, Marco?”
Trump ceded the podium to the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, the former Republican senator of Florida (and presidential candidate who ran against Trump for the 2016 nomination and lost). Rubio is a Cuban American who was born in Miami to parents who fled Cuba in the 1950s before Fidel Castro came to power but regard themselves as having escaped communism. Rubio is deeply hostile to the Cuban regime.
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'I'm not thrilled with Putin,' says Donald Trump at end of Venezuela press conference
The presidential press conference has just ended and Donald Trump and his small senior entourage have exited the stage at his Mar-a-Lago residence and club in Florida, leaving behind a lot of unanswered questions.
Russia, according to the news wires, has denied that the Venezuelan vice-president and Nicolás Maduro’s presumed successor, Delcy Rodríguez, is in Russia, which was been a rumour all morning.
Trump said she had just been sworn in as the new president of Venezuela and will be cooperating with the US, statements which are unverified elsewhere.
The last question of the press conference concerned Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, and the war in Ukraine.
Trump claimed that progress was being made on negotiations towards peace, without giving further details, and he called the war “a bloodbath” and said “I’m not thrilled with Putin” and that Russia “is killing too many people”.
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Trump says administration has not talked to Venezuela's exiled opposition leader María Corina Machado
Donald Trump just said he and his administration have not talked to Venezuela’s exiled opposition leader María Corina Machado today. He took on a dismissive tone at the question from the reporters gathered at Mar-a-Lago for this ongoing press conference.
“I think it would be very difficult for her” to return to lead Venezuela, the US president just said, in response to a reporter’s question.
“She does not have the support in Venezuela; she is a very nice woman but she does not have the support,” he said. The presser now bounces to the next topic. We’ll come back in a moment to what Trump and Rubio just said about Cuba.
Trump’s now being asked about “boots on the ground” in Venezuela. He said a US military presence will only be in relation to sorting out Venezuela’s oil industry. Again, no further detail. Trump is about to take the last question.
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Donald Trump said his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has talked with the Venezuelan vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, today and mentions that she agreed to work with the US.
The US president said she has already been sworn in as president. A few hours ago there were reports that she was in Russia, so the situation remains unclear at this moment and the press conference question-and-answer session with Trump is now bouncing around various semi-related topics.
As fragments of fact, as opposed to pure rhetoric and vague statements, come through we’ll piece them together.
“She’s, I guess, the president. She had a long conversation with Marco and said we’ll do what you need. She had no choice,” Trump just said of Rodríguez.
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Trump is now being asked about US presence in Venezuela and what he means about “running the country”. He hasn’t illuminated this point yet.
“We’re designating people, we are talking to people,” the US president said. He’s now lapsed back into platitudes, as the press pool waits its turn to ask more question as the public seeks specifics.
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United Nations secretary general condemns US action
The presidential press conference in Florida continues, with the chair of the joint chiefs talking about the operation itself overnight, and our live feed continues. But just as Trump was beginning the presser, the United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, had issued a statement via his spokesperson, so now seems a good time to bring that to our readers, via the Reuters news agency.
The secretary general is deeply alarmed by US military action in Venezuela, his spokesperson has said, and considered the US intervention “a dangerous precedent”.
A number of nations have called for an emergency meeting of the UN security council, in New York, today, as a result of the US’s unilateral action.
The UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said:
The secretary general continues to emphasize the importance of full respect – by all – of international law, including the UN charter. He’s deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected.
The UN charter is the founding document of the global body. More on this shortly.
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Donald Trump is reading from notes on paper in front of him on the podium at the press conference in Florida. He’s flanked on his right by the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and on his left by the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth.
The US president just warned those currently in government in Venezuela, in the absence of Nicolás Maduro, that “the US retains all military options” for further action in that South American country.
“All political and military figures in Venezuela must understand: what happened to Maduro will happen to them” if they defy US desires in the country for a leadership that serves the people, Trump said.
He said the “dictator and terrorist” Maduro “is finally gone”.
Standing to Hegseth’s left is the most senior military figure in the US, the chair of the joint chiefs of staff, Dan Caine. He is now addressing the public about the operation to snatch Maduro.
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'US oil companies will fix the badly broken infrastructure', says Donald Trump
Trump said Maduro’s leadership was “both horrible and breathtaking”.
“We want peace, liberty and justice for the great people of Venezuela, and that includes many from Venezuela that are now living in the United States and want to go back to their country, it’s their homeland,” the US president said.
“We can’t take a chance that somebody else takes over Venezuela that doesn’t have the good of the Venezuelan people in mind [after] decades of that. We’re not going to let that happen.”
He continued: “We’re there now … We’re going to stay until such time as a proper transition can take place.”
He then added, about Venezuela’s vast oil reserves: “We’re going to have our very large US oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country and we are ready to stage a second and much larger attack if we need to do so. So we were prepared to do a second wave.” Trump said the US military was prepared to make a second wave of attacks in the latest action overnight into Saturday but that was not needed.
The details of how or on what authority or with what kind of agreements, if any, that the US intends to “run” Venezuela in transition are unclear at this time.
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Trump: 'We're going to run the country'
The US president has claimed at the press conference now under way in Florida that the United States is going to run Venezuela for the time being, although it’s unclear how that would be done.
“We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump said. He has given no details.
He just called Maduro a dictator and a drug kingpin.
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Donald Trump begins press conference by praising US operation in Venezuela
Donald Trump has begun his press conference by praising the US operation in Venezuela overnight.
“This was one of the most stunning attacks and effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history,” the US president said.
“No nation in the world could achieve what America achieved yesterday, or frankly, in such a short period of time. All Venezuelan military capacities were rendered powerless as the men and women of our military, working with US law enforcement, successfully captured Maduro in the dead of night.”
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Here’s the US president to begin the press conference. Tune in.
Donald Trump posts image of Nicolás Maduro on his social media
As we continue to await the presidential press conference from Florida that was due to begin 30 minutes ago, we can bring you another development.
Donald Trump has posted a picture on his Truth Social platform that he states is “Nicolas Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima”.
It appears to show the captured Venezuelan president in handcuffs and with, possibly, sensory-deprivation accessories, including wrap-around sun goggles and headphones. Maduro is expressionless, his right hand gripping a small plastic water bottle and wearing a grey sweatshirt and sweat pants.
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According to María Corina Machado’s statement, Edmundo González Urrutia, who is in exile in Spain, “must immediately assume his constitutional mandate and be recognised as commander-in-chief of the national armed forces by all its officers and soldiers”.
“Today we are ready to assert our mandate and take power. Let us remain vigilant, active and organised until the democratic transition is achieved – a transition that needs all of us,” she wrote. “To Venezuelans inside our country: be ready to carry out what we will soon communicate through our official channels.”
It remains unclear what will happen next in Venezuela, when – or if – González Urrutia will return to the country, or whether he will take office as president-elect.
Machado ended her statement by declaring: “Venezuela will be free. We walk hand in hand with God, until the end,” wrote the former congresswoman, who, like other rightwing leaders in the region, frequently invokes God in her speeches and posts.
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Here is more of that statement from Venezuela’s main opposition leader, María Corina Machado, who is not in the country, having gone into exile for her own safety after the last election.
She said: “From today, Nicolás Maduro faces international justice for the atrocious crimes committed against Venezuelans and against citizens of many other nations. Faced with his refusal to accept a negotiated exit, the United States government has fulfilled its promise to enforce the law,” wrote the former congresswoman, who has long publicly supported US intervention to remove Maduro from power.
“We are going to restore order, free political prisoners, build an exceptional country and bring our children back home. We have fought for years, we have given everything, and it has been worth it. What had to happen is happening,” she added.
The conservative Machado enjoys broad popular support in Venezuela and was barred by the Maduro regime from running in the 2024 election, instead backing the retired diplomat Edmundo González Urrutia. The opposition later gathered voting records showing González Urrutia had won the election, but Maduro refused to concede defeat and remained in power. More to follow.
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As we await the presidential press conference, which is now behind the originally signaled schedule, we can bring you a statement issued by Machado.
Venezuela’s main opposition leader, María Corina Machado, celebrated the capture of the dictator Maduro by the US and said the opposition was “ready to assert our mandate and take power”.
Machado has been outside Venezuela since undertaking a clandestine 5,500-mile journey that involved passing through multiple land checkpoints, being rescued after 12 hours in rough Caribbean waters aboard a flimsy boat by a team led by a former US special forces soldier, and then flying on a private jet to Oslo, Norway, to receive the Nobel peace prize.
Posting from an undisclosed location, Machado wrote to Venezuelans that “the time for freedom has arrived”. More to follow.
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Department of Justice releases new indictment against Nicolás Maduro and others
We have a copy of the fresh indictment against Nicolás Maduro, his wife, son and others, and you can read it here.
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Donald Trump to hold press conference after Venezuelan president captured during strike
Donald Trump is about to hold a press conference about the events that unfolded in Venezuela overnight.
The US president will helm the meeting at his resort and residence Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, where he has been over the festive period.
The out-of-town traveling press pool that follows the president around will be present and we will bring you the news. You can also follow the event live in a feed we’ll put at the top of this blog as it gets under way, any minute now.
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The US has filed a fresh indictment against captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, now including his wife, Cilia Flores, and others.
Filed in federal court in New York, it begins: “For over 25 years, leaders of Venezuela have abused their positions of public trust and corrupted once-legitimate institutions to import tons of cocaine into the United States. NICOLAS MADURO MOROS, the defendant, is at the forefront of that corruption and has partnered with his co-conspirators to use his illegally obtained authority and the institutions he corroded to transport thousands of tons of cocaine to the United States.”
It continues: “ … the defendant, now sits atop a corrupt, illegitimate government that, for decades, has leveraged government power to protect and promote illegal activity, including drug trafficking.”
It also lists among the defendants Maduro’s son, naming him as Nicolas Ernesto Maduro Guerra, “aka Nicolasito, aka The Prince”.
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Matthew Schmidt, an associate professor of homeland and national security and international affairs at the University of New Haven, said that while “no one is bemoaning the end of Nicolás Maduro’s rule, the manner in which he was removed is deeply destabilizing and carries serious costs for US legitimacy”.
The Connecticut professor added in his email to the Guardiant: “Acting on a thin, politically contested 2020 indictment risks undermining America’s ability to credibly argue international law in Ukraine, Israel-Palestine, and future claims against Iran. The real question is whether this action was worth the long-term damage to US legitimacy”.
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Israel has welcomed the removal of Nicolás Maduro from power, the state’s foreign minister said just earlier.
Israel welcomes the removal of the dictator who led a network of drugs and terror and hopes for the return of democracy to the country and for friendly relations between the states,”
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar posted on X.
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Summary of the day so far
Here is a summary of some of the key events from today’s blog on US strikes on Venezuela and the capture of its leader, Nicolás Maduro:
Donald Trump has confirmed that the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are heading to New York. Trump told Fox News on Saturday that Maduro and his wife were taken to a ship after their capture by US forces and are headed to the US city.
Earlier, US attorney general Pam Bondi said the deposed Venezuelan leader and his wife would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
The United States is going to be “very strongly involved” in Venezuela’s oil industry after the operation to capture Maduro, Trump told Fox News on Saturday. He said: “We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it.”
The US vice-president, JD Vance, hailed what he called a “truly impressive operation” in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of Maduro. Posting on social media as he reshared Trump’s post about the action, Vance wrote: “The president offered multiple off-ramps, but was very clear throughout this process: the drug trafficking must stop, and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States.”
In a statement on X, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Maduro is “under indictment for pushing drugs in the United States”. Republican US Senator Mike Lee said on Saturday that Rubio had told him that he “anticipates no further action in Venezuela now that Maduro is in US custody”.
Venezuela’s government urged citizens to rise up against the US assault and said Washington risked plunging Latin America into chaos with “an extremely serious” act of “military aggression”. “The entire country must mobilise to defeat this imperialist aggression,” it added. It accused the US of launching a series of attacks against civilian and military targets in the South American country, after explosions rocked its capital, Caracas, before dawn on Saturday.
Explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday. In its statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that the city had come under attack, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
Venezuela has accused the US of trying to “seize control” of country’s resources, in particular its oil and minerals. Th country has called on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
In the early hours of Saturday the president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council, saying on social media that Venezuela had come under attack.
UK prime minister Keir Starmer has reacted to Donald Trump’s military action in Venezuela saying: “The UK was not involved in any way in this operation.” He added that “we should all uphold international law”. France said the US military operation which resulted in the capture of Maduro went against the principles of international law.
Russia has demanded “immediate” clarification about the circumstances of the capture of Maduro during an attack ordered by Trump. Earlier, Venezuela’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the US needed to provide “proof of life” for Maduro.
Venezuelan allies Russia, Cuba and Iran were quick to condemn the strikes as a violation of sovereignty. Tehran urged the UN security council to stop the “unlawful aggression.” Among major Latin American nations, Argentina’s President Javier Milei lauded Venezuela’s new “freedom” while Mexico condemned the intervention and Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said it crossed “an unacceptable line.”
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President Donald Trump told Fox News that he had watched the raid in real time on a video feed and seen a US military team break through steel doors in “a matter of seconds.”
“I’ve never seen anything like it actually,” he said, adding that no American troops were killed. But he suggested some were injured when their helicopter was hit.
Trump said that Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, had been taken to the USS Iwo Jima and were being transferred to New York where they were indicted on narco-trafficking charges in 2020.
Trump also suggested that the administration would continue to target Venezuelan government officials if they stay loyal to Maduro.
“If they stay loyal, the future is really bad, really bad for them,” he said. “I’d say most of them have converted.”
Various US international affairs experts have been warning all morning that just because Maduro has been removed does not mean that his regime is certain to fall, he has inner circle leaders eager to succeed him.
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France says military operation behind Maduro's capture goes against international law
The United States’ military operation which resulted in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro went against the principles of international law, said French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot on Saturday.
Barrot wrote on X:
The military operation that led to the capture of Nicolás Maduro violates the principle of not resorting to force, that underpins international law.
France reiterates that no lasting political solution can be imposed from the outside and that only sovereign people themselves can decide their future.
JD Vance hails 'truly impressive operation' in Venezuela and says 'stolen oil must be returned to US'
Tiago Rogero is the Guardian’s South America correspondent, based in Brazil.
The US vice-president, JD Vance, hailed what he called a “truly impressive operation” in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of the dictator Nicolás Maduro.
Posting on social media as he reshared Donald Trump’s post about the action, Vance wrote:
The president offered multiple off-ramps, but was very clear throughout this process: the drug trafficking must stop, and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States.
Maduro is the newest person to find out that President Trump means what he says. Kudos to our brave special operators who pulled off a truly impressive operation.
The vice-president invoked two of the main arguments the US has used to justify its four-month-long military pressure on Venezuela: a supposed “war on drugs” and the “return” to the US of oil allegedly stolen by the South American country.
Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, but, after years of mismanagement and corruption under the Chavista regime, and severe economic damage from US sanctions, its production falls far short of its potential.
While the US for months relied solely on the purported “war on drugs” to justify the military buildup and the attacks on boats that have killed 116 people, the Maduro regime has consistently said Trump was ultimately after Venezuela’s oil.
The US president acknowledged that this was part of his goals several weeks ago, when the US seized the first oil tanker and Trump announced a “total blockade” of sanctioned vessels, saying it would remain in place until Venezuela “returned” to the US “all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us”.
He later said: “We had a lot of oil there. As you know, they threw our companies out, and we want it back,” a remark widely understood as a reference to the Venezuelan government’s decision to nationalise the oil industry in 1976, which affected US companies such as Exxon and Mobil – which merged in 1999 – and Gulf Oil, now part of Chevron, the only US company still authorised to operate in the country.
In 2007, Maduro’s predecessor and mentor, Hugo Chávez, took control of the remaining oil operations still run under private arrangements. ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips rejected the new contractual terms and, as a result, had their assets expropriated and were forced to leave the country. Chevron agreed to remain.
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US indictment against Maduro from 2020 - full pdf
Here is a pdf embed of the indictment for Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro that dates from 2020, with some updates.
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Maduro and his wife will be transported to New York, says Trump
Donald Trump has confirmed that the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are heading to New York. Trump told Fox News on Saturday that Maduro and his wife were taken to a ship after their capture by US forces and will be transported to New York.
Earlier, US attorney general Pam Bondi said the deposed Venezuelan leader and his wife would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York.
Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
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The US forces that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday suffered a few injuries and no deaths, President Donald Trump told Fox News.
Trump also said that the US had waited four days for “better weather” for the operation.
Trump says US will be 'very strongly involved' in Venezuela oil industry
The United States is going to be “very strongly involved” in Venezuela’s oil industry after the operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump told Fox News on Saturday.
He said:
We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it.
Independent conflict monitor Acled says that while the full extent of casualties in Venezuela remains unclear, the US strikes on the country already “stands out as the largest US military operation in Latin America since the 1989 invasion of Panama”.
Tiziano Breda, senior analyst for Latin America at Acled, has shared the following analysis:
The timing is not a coincidence – it appears to be aimed at undercutting the anniversary of [Nicolás] Maduro’s most recent term in office.
What happens next hinges on the response of Venezuela’s government and armed forces.
So far, they’ve avoided direct confrontation with US forces, but deployments on the streets point to efforts to contain unrest. A smooth transition remains unlikely, and the risk of resistance from pro-regime armed groups – including elements within the military and Colombian rebel networks active in the country – remains high.
Richard Luscombe is a reporter for Guardian US based in Miami, Florida.
Democratic Florida congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, co-chair of the bipartisan congressional Venezuela democracy caucus, welcomed Nicolás Maduro’s capture, but said she was alarmed by Donald Trump’s decision to take action unilaterally.
She said in a statement:
The capture of the brutal, illegitimate ruler of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who oppressed Venezuela’s people, is welcome news for my friends and neighbors who fled his violent, lawless, and disastrous rule.
However, cutting off the head of a snake is fruitless if it just regrows. Venezuelans deserve the promise of democracy and the rule of law, not a state of endless violence and spiraling disorder. My hope is it offers a passage to true democracy and liberation. This action offers beleaguered Venezuelans a chance to seat their true, democratically elected president, Edmundo González.
I’ll demand answers as to why Congress and the American people were bypassed in this effort. The absence of congressional involvement prior to this action risks the continuation of the illegitimate Venezuelan regime.
Sam Jones is Madrid correspondent for the Guardian.
Yolanda Díaz, Spain’s leftwing labour minister and deputy prime minister, said the US had violated both the UN charter and international legality, adding:
We roundly condemn this imperialist attack on Venezuela. The world is less safe and less free since Trump and the international hate movement began acting with impunity. We will always be on the side of international law and peace.
Her comments came after Spain’s socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said his government was “closely monitoring” the situation in Venezuela. He added:
We call de-escalation and for responsible actions. International law and the principles of the UN charter must be respected.
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Camille Rodríguez Montilla has shared reaction from on the ground in Caracas, Venezuela:
Ricardo Sans, an engineer who lives in the mountains surrounding Caracas, was woken up close to 2am by a loud noise:
I jumped to the ground because I heard a vibration. I now realize it might have been the rumble of the helicopters.
In the dark, he managed to see four to six helicopters flying over his house. His bedroom window overlooks Caracas city from a high point.
When I got out of bed, I saw smoke coming from two points that I could clearly distinguish: somewhere near El Cuartel de La Montaña, where Chavez’s remains rest, and Fuerte Tiuna, a military site.
I called my daughter and close friends in Margarita and Barquisimeto. I immediately thought it was what most of Venezuela had been waiting for, and it was indeed so.In fear, I thought it might be a general chaos in the city, but then realized it seemed to be in specific spots.
Electricity and water are working correctly, but the internet failed briefly after. Since then, everything has been in absolute calm. I have only heard a hen and birds chirping since then.
He can still see a cloud over the city, especially towards the eastern part of Caracas.
Anays, a doctor, said:
About 2am, my husband woke me up because of the loud noises. Then, my close friend called to tell me that the electricity was no longer working at her place, nearby.
Anays’ friend lives in Cumbres de Curumo, an upper-middle-class neighbourhood in southern Caracas, where defence minister Vladimir Padrino López allegedly lives. Anays said:
After the explosions, we could still hear and see some of the planes flying over the city until at least 5 am.
Anays’ husband went to nearby supermarkets and pharmacies that were supposed to be open 24/7 to try to get some supplies:
Everything was closed; I’m guessing they were afraid of looting. Since then, the streets are empty, and everything is quiet.
Chile’s leftwing president, Gabriel Boric, also condemned the US actions in Venezuela and issued a “call to seek a peaceful solution to the grave crisis affecting the country”.
Boric wrote on social media:
Chile reaffirms its commitment to the basic principles of international law, such as the prohibition of the use of force, non-intervention, the peaceful settlement of international disputes and the territorial integrity of states.
The Venezuelan crisis must be resolved through dialogue and with the support of multilateralism, not through violence or foreign interference.
Boric is due to hand over power in March to the far-right president-elect José Antonio Kast, who has repeatedly welcomed US military pressure on Venezuela.
Brazil's Lula says US bombardment of Venezuela and capture of Maduro 'cross an unacceptable line'
Tiago Rogero is the Guardian’s South America correspondent, based in Brazil.
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the US bombardment of Venezuelan territory and the capture of the dictator Nicolás Maduro “cross an unacceptable line”, amounting to a “grave affront to Venezuela’s sovereignty and yet another extremely dangerous precedent” for the international community.
In a post on social media, the leftwing leader added that the action “recalls the darkest moments of [US] interference in Latin America and the Caribbean”, in an apparent reference to the dozens of US military interventions in the region – including Brazil, through its support for the 1964 coup that ushered in a bloody two-decade-long military dictatorship – over the past two centuries.
Lula said the international community, through the UN, “must respond vigorously to this episode”, adding that “Brazil condemns these actions” but remains available to “promote dialogue and cooperation”.
In recent months, the Brazilian president has repeatedly offered to act as a mediator between Donald Trump and Maduro. A few weeks ago, he called the Venezuelan dictator in the first gesture of rapprochement after their already distant relationship broke down when Brazil refused to recognise the result of the 2024 election, widely believed to have been rigged by Maduro.
Even so, Lula joined other leftwing leaders in the region, including Colombia’s Gustavo Petro and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum, in openly criticising the US intervention. He wrote:
Attacking countries, in blatant violation of international law, is the first step towards a world of violence, chaos and instability, where the law of the strongest prevails over multilateralism.
Updated
Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, has denounced “criminal attacks” by the US on Venezuela. In a post on X, he wrote:
Cuba denounces and urgently demands the reaction of the international community against the criminal attack by the US on Venezuela.
Our #ZonaDePaz is being brutally assaulted. State terrorism against the brave Venezuelan people and against Our America. Homeland or Death We Shall Overcome!
Below are some more images coming in via the newswires today:
Natricia Duncan is the Guardian’s Caribbean correspondent.
Neighbouring Guyana said it is monitoring the situation. “The security architecture is fully active,” President Irfaan Ali told local media.
He added:
The Guyana defence force and the security forces are monitoring the situation and Guyanese should be reassured that the government is working to ensure the safety and security of our citizens.
Early on Saturday, Ali convened a meeting with the defence board, the national security architecture, regional commanders and other senior security officials.
Guyana and Venezuela have been in a tense, longstanding feud over land and maritime borders.
What we know so far
Here is the latest on what we know so far about US attacks on Venezuela and the capture of its leader Nicolás Maduro:
US attorney general Pam Bondi says deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, will face criminal charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
In a statement on X, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Maduro is “under indictment for pushing drugs in the United States”. Republican US Senator Mike Lee said on Saturday that Rubio had told him that he “anticipates no further action in Venezuela now that Maduro is in US custody”.
Earlier, Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that the US had “captured” Venezuela’s dictator, Maduro, and his wife, and flown them out of the South American country after a pre-dawn assault on Caracas and the surrounding region.
Venezuela’s government accused the US of launching a series of attacks against civilian and military targets in the South American country, after explosions rocked its capital, Caracas, before dawn on Saturday.
In a statement, Venezuela’s government urged citizens to rise up against the assault and said Washington risked plunging Latin America into chaos with “an extremely serious” act of “military aggression”. “The entire country must mobilise to defeat this imperialist aggression,” it added.
Explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday. In its statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that the city had come under attack, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
Venezuela has accused the US of trying to “seize control” of country’s resources, in particular its oil and minerals. Th country has called on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
In the early hours of Saturday the president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council, saying on social media that Venezuela had come under attack.
UK prime minister Keir Starmer has reacted to Donald Trump’s military action in Venezuela saying: “The UK was not involved in any way in this operation.” He added that “we should all uphold international law”.
Russia has demanded “immediate” clarification about the circumstances of the capture of Maduro during an attack ordered by Trump. Earlier, Venezuela’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the US needed to provide “proof of life” for Maduro.
Updated
At a year-end state department press conference, secretary Marco Rubio pointed to US complaints and goals regarding Nicolás Maduro and Venezuela.
He said:
We have a regime that’s illegitimate that cooperates with Iran, that cooperates with Hezbollah, that cooperates with narco-trafficking and narco-terrorist organizations inclusive, not just protecting their shipments and allowing them to operate with impunity, but also allows some of them to control territory, the ELN and the FARC-D. They have open camps that they control territory inside of Venezuela. That is our national interest, and that is what this is focused on.
That’s what we have been focused on the entire time, because that is the threat to the national interest of the United States.
Do we consider Maduro legitimate? No. [But] it’s not me. A grand jury in New York in the southern district of New York was presented evidence and came back with an indictment, not just against Maduro, by the way, but against a bunch of people in his government, for narco-trafficking.
Rubio said that until President Donald Trump started doing something about these narco-trafficking links “nobody disputed that Maduro and his regime was in cahoots with narco-traffickers, not to mention the fact that they unleashed Tren de Aragua gangs on the United States they’ve unleashed a mass migration event, perhaps the largest in history – 8 million people have left Venezuela since 2014, destabilizing all the countries in the region”.
Updated
US attorney general confirms Maduro will face criminal charges after indictment in New York
US attorney general Pam Bondi says the deposed Venezuelan leader, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, will face criminal charges after an indictment in New York.
Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
Maduro was indicted in 2020 in New York, but it was not previously known that his wife had been.
Here is Bondi’s full statement:
Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York.
Nicolás Maduro has been charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices against the United States.
They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts.
On behalf of the entire US DOJ [Department of Justice], I would like to thank President Trump for having the courage to demand accountability on behalf of the American people, and a huge thank you to our brave military who conducted the incredible and highly successful mission to capture these two alleged international narco traffickers.
Updated
Starmer says UK not involved and he believes 'we should all uphold international law'
UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has reacted to Donald Trump’s military action in Venezuela saying: “The UK was not involved in any way in this operation.”
He added: “I want to establish the facts first. I want to speak to President Trump. I want to speak to allies. I can be absolutely clear that we were not involved ... and I always say and believe we should all uphold international law.”
In other reaction from UK politicians, Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey said: “Keir Starmer should condemn Trump’s illegal action in Venezuela. Maduro is a brutal and illegitimate dictator, but unlawful attacks like this make us all less safe. Trump is giving a green light to the likes of Putin and Xi to attack other countries with impunity.”
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said: “The American actions in Venezuela overnight are unorthodox and contrary to international law - but if they make China and Russia think twice, it may be a good thing. I hope the Venezuelan people can now turn a new leaf without Maduro.”
Green Party leader Zack Polanski said: “The PM and Foreign Secretary should be condemning this illegal strike and breach of international human rights law. After years of arming a genocide and worshipping the ‘special relationship’, Trump now believes he can act with impunity.”
Updated
Rubio says Maduro is 'under indictment for pushing drugs in the United States'
US secretary of state Marco Rubio has issued a statement.
He posted on X:
Maduro is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is not the legitimate government. Maduro is the head of the Cartel de Los Soles, a narco-terror organisation that has taken control of the country. And he is under indictment for pushing drugs in the United States.
Updated
Maduro to stand trial in US, senator says
Republican US Senator Mike Lee said on Saturday that US secretary of state Marco Rubio had told him Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro was arrested by US forces to stand trial on criminal charges in the United States.
“He [Rubio] anticipates no further action in Venezuela now that Maduro is in US custody,” Lee wrote on X after a call with Washington’s top diplomat.
Updated
Russia calls for 'immediate clarity' on Maduro's whereabouts
Russia has demanded “immediate” clarification about the circumstances of the reported US abduction of Venezuelan President Maduro during an attack ordered by President Donald Trump.
The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement:
We are extremely alarmed by reports that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife were forcibly removed from the country as a result of today’s US aggression. We call for an immediate clarification of the situation.
Earlier, Venezuela’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the US needed to provide “proof of life” for Maduro.
Domestic US political reaction is beginning to come in. My colleague Edward Helmore has the latest:
New Jersey senator Andy Kim, a Democrat, posted on X that US secretary of state Marco Rubio and secretary of defence Pete Hegseth “looked every senator in the eye a few weeks ago and said this wasn’t about regime change. I didn’t trust them then and we see now that they blatantly lied to Congress”.
Senator Kim accused Donald Trump of rejected a “constitutionally required approval process for armed conflict because the administration knows the American people overwhelmingly reject risks pulling our nation into another war”.
Kim, a former state department employee under the Obama administration, said the overnight strikes in Venezuela “doesn’t represent strength. It’s not sound foreign policy. It puts Americans at risk in Venezuela and the region, and it sends a horrible and disturbing signal to other powerful leaders across the globe that targeting a head of state is an acceptable policy for the US government”.
He warned that the strikes “will further damage our reputation – already hurt by Trump’s policies around the world – and only isolate us in a time when we need our friends and allies more than ever”.
Updated
Colombian president urges meeting of UN security council over strike against Venezuela
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has said his country is seeking a meeting of the UN security council.
Writing on X, Petro said Colombian forces were being deployed to the border, and all available support forces will be deployed in the event of a massive influx of refugees. He wrote:
The Colombian embassy in Venezuela is active and responding to calls for assistance from Colombians in Venezuela. As members of the United Nations security council, we seek to convene the council.
Petro said “the government of Colombia rejects the aggression against the sovereignty of Venezuela and of Latin America. Internal conflicts between peoples are resolved by those same peoples in peace”.
He said that “the principle of the self-determination of peoples” should be respected and invited “the Venezuelan people to find the paths of civil dialogue and their unity”. He added:
Without sovereignty, there is no nation.
Russia has condemned the US military action in Venezuela on Saturday, saying there was no tenable justification for the attack and that “ideological hostility” had prevailed over diplomacy, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Venezuela is Russia’s most important ally in South America, though the Kremlin has stopped short of offering assistance to Caracas in the event of a conflict with the US.
The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement:
This morning, the United States committed an act of armed aggression against Venezuela. This is deeply concerning and condemnable.
The pretexts used to justify such actions are untenable. Ideological hostility has triumphed over businesslike pragmatism.
The statement did not mention Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, whom US President Donald Trump claimed was captured during Saturday’s military action on the South American country.
“We reaffirm our solidarity with the Venezuelan people,” Russia’s statement said, adding there were no reports of Russian citizens injured in US strikes.
Christopher Sabatini, senior fellow for Latin America at Chatham House, has shared some analysis of the latest events in Venezuela and says attacks by the US have prompted many questions:
This isn’t a surprise. Though the narrative around the US rationale for the escalation and attacks off the coast of Venezuela has changed over time (anti-narcotics, removal of Maduro, regime change) this step was almost inevitable after the six-month escalation failed to generate internal dissent that could prompt Maduro’s removal or regime change.
It looks for now that the US focused on key military infrastructure: Tiuna Fort, an unoccupied military barracks, several airfields and bases. Will this be enough to provoke a regime change alone? Or will it need to continue. Frankly while some US special operations forces could land in Venezuela to support targeted strikes a full military invasion is unlikely. Can these strikes go on indefinitely?
According to surveys, US citizens are opposed to the use of its military in Venezuela. And any strikes inside Venezuela now will likely force a vote in Congress under the War Powers Act.
But assuming even if there is regime change-of some sort, and it’s by no means clear even if it does happen that it will be democratic-the US’s military action will likely require sustained US engagement of some sort. Will the Trump White House have the stomach for that?
Updated
Venezuelan state-run energy company PDVSA’s oil production and refining were normal on Saturday and its most important facilities had suffered no damage from US attacks to extract President Nicolás Maduro according to an initial assessment, two sources with knowledge of the company’s operations told Reuters.
The port of La Guaira near capital Caracas, one of the country’s largest but one which is not used for oil operations, was reported to have sustained severe damage, one of the sources said.
The Guardian’s Caribbean correspondent, Natricia Duncan, and Kejan Haynes in Trinidad and Tobago have shared a bit more in regards to Trinidad and Tobago’s statement on Venezuela:
Trinidad and Tobago has issued a statement today distancing itself from the ongoing military operations in Venezuela. The statement from the country’s foreign affairs ministry said:
Trinidad is NOT a participant in any of these ongoing military operations. Trinidad and Tobago continues to maintain peaceful relations with the people of Venezuela.
Last month, it was revealed that the country had approved the installation of a US military radar facility, stoking fears that the Caribbean could be drawn into the escalating crisis between the US and Venezuela.
The country’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, claimed the radar installation in the country, which is only seven miles away from Venezuela at its closest point, is part of a counter-drug trafficking strategy
Persad-Bissessar has consistently expressed strong support for the US military buildup in the Caribbean.
Intergovernmental organisation, the Caribbean Community (Caricom) have released a statement saying that conference of heads of government of caricom met early on 3 January after reports of military action in Venezuela.
It shared that Caricom “is actively monitoring the situation which is of grave concern to the region with possible implications for neighbouring countries”.
“Caricom will continue to update the people of the region as more information is received,” it added.
Trinidad and Tobago 'not a participant in ongoing military operations' in Venezuela, says PM
Trinidad and Tobago were not involved in any of the ongoing military operations against Venezuela, its prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, has confirmed.
In a post on social media today, Persad-Bissessar wrote:
Earlier this morning, Saturday 3rd January 2026, the United States commenced military operations within the territory of Venezuela.
Trinidad and Tobago is NOT a participant in any of these ongoing military operations. Trinidad and Tobago continues to maintain peaceful relations with the people of Venezuela.
Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro has previously accused Persad-Bissessar as having “revealed a hostile agenda against Venezuela since taking office, including the installation of US military radars to target vessels transporting Venezuelan oil”.
In the past, Persad-Bissessar praised US strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific.
Updated
Here are some more images coming out of Venezuela today:
Updated
Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani said on Saturday that Rome and its diplomatic representation in Caracas were monitoring any developments of the situation in Venezuela with particular attention to the Italian community in the country.
Tajani said in a post on X that Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni was being kept constantly informed and that the foreign ministry’s crisis unit was operational.
Reuters reports that Italy’s ambassador in Venezuela said on Saturday on Italy’s state TV Rai that about 160,000 Italians currently live in the country, most of them with dual passports, as well as some who are there for reasons of work and tourism.
Germany’s foreign ministry on Saturday said it was watching the situation in Venezuela with great concern and a crisis team was to meet later for further discussion.
A written communication obtained by Reuters said the ministry was in close contact with the embassy in Caracas and a crisis team would meet later on Saturday.
Sam Jones, who is the Madrid correspondent for the Guardian, has shared a longer statement from the Spanish foreign ministry:
Spain calls for de-escalation and moderation, and for action to be conducted in accordance with international law and the principles of the UN charter.
In this regard, Spain is prepared to offer its good offices to achieve a peaceful and negotiated solution to the current crisis.
Spain reiterates that it has not recognised the results of the 28 July 2024 elections and has always supported initiatives to achieve a democratic solution for Venezuela. It also reiterates that it has welcomed, and will continue to welcome, tens of thousands of Venezuelans who have had to leave their country for political reasons and that it is prepared to assist in the search for a democratic, negotiated, and peaceful solution for the country.
As explosions hit Caracas, the Venezuelan government confirmed attacks had been made on the capital, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
The Guardian video team has shared this footage of aircraft flying low over Caracas as explosions hit the Venezuelan capital:
Venezuelan vice-president demands immediate 'proof of life' of Maduro and his wife
Speaking on Venezuela TV, the vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, appears to confirm the capture of Nicolás Maduro. She demands immediate “proof of life” of Maduro and the first lady Cilia Flores.
Trump describes US attack on Venezuela as a 'brilliant operation'
Speaking to the New York Times (NYT) via a short telephone interview today about the US attack on Venezuela and the mission to capture its president, Donald Trump celebrated what he described as a “brilliant operation”.
According to the publication, Trump said:
A lot of good planning and lot of great, great troops and great people.
It was a brilliant operation, actually.
Asked if he had sought congressional authority for the operation and what is next for the South American country, the US president told the NYT that he would address those questions during his press conference at Mar-a-Lago.
Updated
In a defiant video that was posted online, Venezuela’s defence minister, Vladimir Padrino López, accused the US of launching a “deplorable” and “criminal” regime change operation and said the “barbaric” invading forces had “desecrated our sacred land”.
“This invasion represents the greatest outrage the country has ever suffered,” Gen Padrino López declared, adding that Venezuelan authorities were still trying to calculate how many civilians had been killed or injured during helicopter attacks in urban areas.
Venezuela’s defence chief called on citizens and soldiers to unite to resist the foreign “invasion”. He said:
They have attacked us but they will not vanquish us … we will form an indestructible wall of resistance. Our vocation is peace, but our heritage is the fight for freedom.
Updated
What we know so far
If you are coming to the blog now or are after the latest updates in one handy post, here is a summary of everything we know so far about the US attack on Venezuela:
Donald Trump has claimed the US has “captured” Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, and flown them out of the South American country after a pre-dawn assault on Caracas and the surrounding region.
Venezuela’s government accused the US of launching a series of attacks against civilian and military targets in the South American country, after explosions rocked its capital, Caracas, before dawn on Saturday.
In a statement, Venezuela’s government urged citizens to rise up against the assault and said Washington risked plunging Latin America into chaos with “an extremely serious” act of “military aggression”. “The entire country must mobilise to defeat this imperialist aggression,” it added.
Explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday. In its statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that the city had come under attack, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
Venezuela has accused the US of trying to “seize control” of country’s resources, in particular its oil and minerals. Th country has called on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
In the early hours of Saturday the president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council, saying on social media that Venezuela had come under attack.
Updated
Iran on Saturday condemned Saturday’s attacks on Venezuela, after Caracas accused the United States of being behind explosions that rocked the capital.
According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the Iranian foreign ministry in a statement said it “strongly condemns the American military attack on Venezuela and the flagrant violation of the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country”.
Iran’s statement was put out before Donald Trump’s Truth Social post confirming that the US had conducted “a large scale strike” on Venezuela (see 9.31am GMT).
Venezuela defence minister says country will resist presence of foreign troops
Venezuela will resist the presence of foreign troops, defence minister Vladimir Padrino said in a video early on Saturday, reports Reuters, as Donald Trump said Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro had been captured and flown out of the country.
A US attack on the country in the early morning struck civilian areas, Padrino said, and Venezuela is compiling information about dead and injured people.
Sam Jones is Madrid correspondent for the Guardian.
Sources in Spain’s socialist-led coalition government confirmed an air attack had taken place in Venezuela, saying:
We are gathering information. Spain’s foreign minister, José Manuel Albares, has already spoken to Spain’s ambassador in Venezuela and all staff there are safe.
We can only confirm that we are talking about an air attack.
Trump claims Maduro 'captured and flown out of the country'
US president Donald Trump claims that the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife have been “captured and flown out of the country”.
In a Truth Social post shared only moments ago, Trump wrote:
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. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement. Details to follow. There will be a News Conference today at 11 A.M., at Mar-a-Lago. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP.
The Guardian has been unable to independently verify this report.
Updated
Here are some more images from Venezuela coming in via the newswires today:
The US embassy in Venezuela has released a statement on its website saying it is aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas. The US embassy in Bogotá, Colombia, is also warning US citizens not to travel to Venezuela.
In its statement, the US embassy in Venezuela advises US citizens not to travel to the South American country and “strongly” advises those already there to “shelter in place and depart immediately when it is safe to do so”.
Updated
Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, has published what he claims is a list of the bombed installations in Venezuela. They include the Cuartel de la Montaña barracks in Caracas, a military base that is home to the mausoleum of Nicolás Maduro’s mentor, Hugo Chávez.
The mausoleum is one of the most sacred places of their political movement, Chavismo, which has governed Venezuela in an increasingly authoritarian fashion since Chávez first came to power in 1999. Chávez’s remains were taken there after he died of cancer in 2013.
The Reuters news agency says it has been told by a US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, that the US carried out strikes inside Venezuela on Saturday.
The unnamed official did not provide details. As mentioned earlier, the White House and Pentagon did not immediately respond to request for comment on Saturday morning.
Venezuela’s government urges its citizens to rise up against apparent US assault
Venezuela’s government has urged its citizens to rise up against the apparent US assault after the president Nicolás Maduro declared a nationwide state of emergency.
“The entire country must mobilize to defeat this imperialist aggression,” it said.
Updated
What we know so far
Here is what we know so far:
Explosions, loud noises and low-flying aircraft were heard in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas in the early hours of Saturday amid reports that Donald Trump had ordered the attack.
In the early hours of Saturday the president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, claimed on social media that Venezuela had come under attack. “Right now they are bombing Caracas … bombing it with missiles,” Petro wrote on X, calling for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council.
In a statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that Caracas had come under attack, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
Venezuela rejects “military aggression” by the US, the government of president Nicolás Maduro said in a statement early Saturday.
Venezuela has accused the US of trying to “seize control” of country’s resources, in particular its oil and minerals. The country has called on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro “ordered all national defence plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance”, according to a statement on Saturday.
The explosions come after a five-month US pressure campaign against Maduro, which many analysts believe is designed to topple the Venezuelan leader. Since August, Donald Trump has ordered a massive military buildup off Venezuela’s northern coast and conducted a series of deadly airstrikes on supposed “narco boats”. The White House and Pentagon did not immediately respond to request for comment on Saturday morning.
Updated
Here are some of the latest images coming through from Venezuela:
Venezuela accuses US of trying to 'seize control' of country's resources
Venezuela’s authoritarian government has accused the US of risking plunging Latin America into chaos with “an extremely serious” act of “imperial aggression” after Donald Trump reportedly ordered strikes against the South American country.
Explosions, loud noises and low-flying aircraft were heard in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas in the early hours of Saturday amid reports that Trump had ordered the attack. In a statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that Caracas had come under attack, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
“The only objective of this attack is to seize control of Venezuela’s strategic resources, in particular its oil and minerals,” it said, calling on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
Venezuela accuses US over attacks
Venezuela rejects “military aggression” by the United States, the government of president Nicolás Maduro said in a statement early Saturday.
“People to the streets!” the statement said. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”
The statement added that President Nicolás Maduro had “ordered all national defence plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance”.
We’ll bring you more on this when we have it…
Updated
Venezuela’s government has now commented on the explosions, which it says were due to attacks on the country.
The attacks took place in Caracas and Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira states, the government says in a statement carried by Reuters.
My colleague and the Guardian’s Latin America correspondent Tom Phillips has more on the situation in Caracas:
Explosions, loud noises and low-flying aircraft have been heard in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, amid reports that Donald Trump had ordered strikes against the South American country.
In the early hours of Saturday the president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, claimed on social media that Venezuela had come under attack. “Right now they are bombing Caracas … bombing it with missiles,” Petro wrote on X, calling for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council.
Soon after CBS News reported that Trump had had ordered the attacks - including on military facilities.
At least seven explosions were heard about 2am local time and people in various neighbourhoods rushed to the street, the Associated Press reported.
“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes in the distance,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing smoke pouring from two key military installations in Caracas: the La Carlota military airfield at the heart of the city and the Fuerte Tiuna military base where Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, Nicolás Maduro, has long been thought to live.
Venezuela’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The explosions come after a five-month US pressure campaign against Maduro, which many analysts believe is designed to topple the Venezuelan leader. Since August, Donald Trump has ordered a massive military buildup off Venezuela’s northern coast and conducted a series of deadly airstrikes on supposed “narco boats”.
The White House and Pentagon did not immediately respond to request for comment on Saturday morning.
Colombian president calls for emergency UN security council meeting
The president of neighbouring Colombia is claiming on social media that Venezuela is under attack.
“Right now they are bombing Caracas … bombing it with missiles,” Gustavo Petro wrote on X, calling for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council.
He added: “Colombia since yesterday is a member of the United Nations Security Council and must be convened immediately. Establish the international legality of the aggression against Venezuela. The PMU is activated in Cúcuta and the operational plan at the border.”
Updated
Explosions reported in Caracas
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the developing situation in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela.
Witnesses have reported hearing explosions and aircraft in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday morning.
A southern area of the city, near a major military base, is reported to be without electricity.
We’ll bring you updates when we get them.
