President Donald Trump shared a video purporting to show throngs of Venezuelans “celebrating” the U.S. military’s recent capture of President Nicolas Maduro — but the footage actually dates from a year and a half ago.
The Republican president posted the video on Monday, two days after the U.S. Army’s Delta Force swooped into Caracas, seized Maduro and his wife and transported them to New York City to stand trial on narco-terrorism charges.
The video, which Trump reposted on Truth Social, shows a massive crowd of people gathered in between buildings and palm trees. Its caption states: “Millions of Venezuelans are celebrating the news of the collapse of the Maduro regime.”
The clip garnered thousands of likes and millions of views, and it was also shared by far-right influencer and InfoWars founder Alex Jones.
However, the footage is actually 17 months old. It was recorded in July 2024 according to Shayan Sardarizadeh, a journalist at BBC Verify, during a protest against Maduro, following the country’s presidential election that month, the outcome of which was widely disputed.
It’s not the first time the 79-year-old president has amplified misleading or outright fabricated videos.
During a May Oval Office meeting, Trump showed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa a clip purportedly showing the graves of hundreds of slain white farmers in the country. He insisted it was “evidence” of mass murder and a supposed genocide against white South Africans.
“Those are burial sites — over a thousand — of white farmers,” Trump said during the sit-down. “And those cars are lined up to pay love on a Sunday morning. Each one of those white things you see is a cross. And there's approximately a thousand of them. They're all white farmers.”
But, the video actually showed a tribute to a pair of farmers killed in South Africa in 2020, The Independent previously reported.
In September, the president shared an AI-generated video of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, in which Schumer stated that Democrats “have no voters anymore, because of our woke, trans bulls***.”
Trump’s surprise seizure of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, comes after a lengthy pressure campaign against the Maduro regime.
In recent months, the U.S. military launched strikes on over a dozen alleged drug boats near the country, and it has amassed an armada off the coast — the largest assembled in the region in decades. The administration also greenlit CIA operations inside Venezuela and authorized the seizure of oil tankers departing the nation.
Trump has accused Maduro of trafficking drugs into the U.S., a charge that Maduro denies. In response, he’s claimed the U.S. is attempting to fabricate “a new eternal war” and steal Venezuela' s vast oil reserves. Maduro appeared in court in New York City for the first time on Monday.
Following his capture of the Venezuelan president, Trump said the U.S. will “run” Venezuela for an indeterminate amount of time, adding that American oil companies will “start making money for the country.”
On Monday, Delcy Rodriguez, the former vice president, was sworn in as president of Venezuela. She initially condemned the U.S. seizure of Maduro as a violation of international law but later offered to cooperate with the U.S. government.
Trump's military operation, which included deadly airstrikes on Caracas, sparked fierce backlash from Democratic lawmakers and world leaders, many of whom characterized it as a flagrant breach of the law.
“He is starting an illegal war with Venezuela that Americans didn’t ask for and has nothing to do with our security,” Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy wrote on X.
“Maduro’s illegitimate election does not give the president the power to invade without congressional approval, nor does it create a national security justification,” Murphy added. “That contention is laughable.”
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wrote on X: "Bombings on Venezuelan territory and the capture of its president cross an unacceptable line."
Multiple legal experts also described Trump’s actions as blatantly illegal and criminal.
Many Republicans, meanwhile, applauded the military operation.
"Nicolas Maduro wasn’t just an illegitimate dictator; he also ran a vast drug-trafficking operation. That’s why he was indicted in U.S. court nearly six years ago for drug trafficking and narco-terrorism," Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton posted on X. "I commend President Trump and our brave troops and law-enforcement officers for this incredible operation."
On Monday, Maduro and his wife pleaded not guilty to federal charges in a Manhattan court, with the deposed leader telling the judge, “I am innocent. I am a decent man.”
Prosecutors have charged Maduro with narco-terrorism conspiracy and Maduro and Flores with cocaine-importation conspiracy, possession, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices. Maduro was indicted on similar charges in 2020.
