The United States hit Venezuela with a “large-scale strike” early Saturday and said President Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country after months of stepped-up pressure by Washington — an extraordinary nighttime operation announced by President Donald Trump on social media hours after the attack.
The legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would face charges after an indictment in New York.
Trump announced the developments on Truth Social shortly after 4:30 a.m. ET (0930 GMT) and said he would host a news conference at 11 a.m. ET.
Trump says he proposed to the Mexican president that US take out cartels
Trump said the operation in Venezuela “wasn’t meant to be” a message to Mexico, but then he has proposed to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum that the U.S. “take out” cartels in her country and suggested the U.S. might take action.
“We’re very friendly with her, she’s a good woman. But the cartels are running Mexico. She’s not running Mexico. The cartels are running Mexico,” Trump said.
He said he’s asked Sheinbaum numerous times, “Would you like us to take out the cartels?” but she has said no.
“Something’s going to have to be done with Mexico,” Trump said.
Maduro and his wife are on a US warship, Trump says
Trump told Fox News that the couple were aboard the U.S. warship Iwo Jima and headed to New York, where they will face prosecution.
A supporter of President Nicolas Maduro holds a Venezuelan flad during a gathering near the Palacio de Miraflores in Caracas on January 3, 2026, after US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro after launching a “large scale strike” on the South American country.
Photo by Federico PARRA / AFP via Getty Images
Trump says US will decide on what’s next for Venezuela
President Donald Trump said in an interview Saturday morning that the United States will be making decisions on what is next for Venezuela after capturing the Latin American country’s president and flying him out of the country.
“We’ll be involved in it very much” as to who will govern the country, Trump said.
“We can’t take a chance in letting somebody else run and just take over what he left, or left off,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News hours after the capture.
Maduro was at his home when he was seized in US operation, party leader tells AP
Venezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fernández told The Associated Press that Nicolás Maduro and his wife were at their home within the Ft. Tiuna military installation when they were captured.
“That’s where they bombed,” he said. “And, there, they carried out what we could call a kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country.”
Vice President JD Vance says Maduro found out that Trump ‘means what he says’
Vice President JD Vance said in a statement on X: “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.”
Celebrations erupt in Venezuelan community in South Florida
In South Florida, Venezuelans celebrated the news of Maduro’s capture at a rally held outside a South American eatery.
People wrapped themselves in Venezuelan flags, ate fried snacks and cheered as music was playing at the event. At one point, the crowd chanted “Liberty! Liberty! Liberty!”
The rally took place in Doral, Florida, a city of 80,000 people surrounded by Miami sprawl and home to the largest Venezuelan community in the United States.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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