US Captures Venezuela's Leader and Wife for Prosecution

A Dramatic Shift in Venezuelan Politics

The United States carried out a bold military operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. This event marked a significant moment in the political landscape of South America and raised numerous questions about the role of the US in the region.

The operation took place on Saturday, following an intense campaign by the Trump administration against the autocratic leader of Venezuela. It was the most assertive American action to achieve regime change since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The details of this operation have sparked global attention and debate.

The Aftermath of the Capture

In the hours following Mr. Maduro’s capture, US President Donald Trump addressed reporters, outlining plans to use the leadership void to "fix" Venezuela's oil infrastructure and sell large amounts of oil to other countries. This statement highlighted the potential economic implications of the operation.

Venezuela's vice president called for the release of Mr. Maduro, asserting that he is the country's rightful leader. The deposed leader and his wife were taken from their home on a military base and transported aboard a US warship. They were set to face prosecution for a Justice Department indictment accusing them of participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy.

A plane carrying the former president landed late on Saturday afternoon in New York, marking a significant shift in the geopolitical dynamics of the region.

The US Presence in Venezuela

Mr. Trump stated that the US planned to run Venezuela until a transition of power could take place. He claimed the American presence was already in place, although there were no immediate signs of direct control over the country.

"We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," Mr. Trump said at a Mar-a-Lago news conference. His comments emphasized the strategic importance of the operation and served as a warning to any who might threaten American sovereignty or endanger American lives.

Protests and Reactions

Venezuelan state TV broadcast live images of small groups of Maduro supporters taking to the streets in Caracas in protest. The legal authority for the attack, which echoed the 1990 US invasion of Panama, remained unclear. The US government does not recognize Mr. Maduro, who last appeared on state television on Friday while meeting with a delegation of Chinese officials in Caracas.

Mr. Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on “narco-terrorism” conspiracy charges. However, the US justice department released a new indictment on Saturday of Mr. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, accusing them of a role in narco-terrorism conspiracy.

International Reactions and Concerns

US attorney general Pam Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple would "soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts." Mr. Trump mentioned that the couple were aboard the US warship Iwo Jima and headed to New York. He also posted a photo of Mr. Maduro blindfolded and in a sweatsuit aboard the ship on his Truth Social account.

Early on Saturday, multiple explosions rang out and low-flying aircraft swept through the Venezuelan capital. The attack lasted less than 30 minutes, with at least seven blasts sending people rushing into the streets. Some Venezuelan civilians and members of the military were killed, according to vice president Delcy Rodriguez, without giving a number.

Political Implications and Future Outlook

Mr. Trump claimed some US forces were injured in Venezuela but believed none were killed. Venezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fernandez told The Associated Press that Mr. Maduro and Ms. Flores were at their home within the Ft Tiuna military installation when they were captured. That’s where they bombed, he said, and described it as a kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country.

Under Venezuelan law, Ms. Rodriguez would take over from Mr. Maduro. However, she made clear during a Saturday appearance on state television that she did not plan to assume power. She called for Mr. Maduro’s release and pronounced him president.

The Role of the Opposition

Earlier, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said that the opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez should assume power, stating that he rightfully won the 2024 presidential election. The strike followed a months-long Trump administration pressure campaign on the Venezuelan leader, including a major build-up of American forces in the waters off South America and attacks on boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean accused of carrying drugs.

Military Actions and Drug Cartels

Last week, the CIA was behind a drone strike at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels—the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the US began strikes in September. As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes was 35, and the number of people killed at least 115, according to the Trump administration.

Mr. Trump said that the US is engaged in an "armed conflict" with drug cartels and has justified the boat strikes as necessary to stem the flow of drugs into the US.

Historical Context and Regional Tensions

Mr. Maduro has decried the US military operations as a thinly veiled effort to oust him from power. Venezuela’s ruling party has held power since 1999, when Mr. Maduro’s predecessor Hugo Chavez took office, promising to uplift poor people and later to implement a self-described socialist revolution.

Mr. Maduro took over when Mr. Chavez died in 2013. His 2018 re-election was widely considered a sham because the main opposition parties were banned from participating. During the 2024 election, ruling party-loyal electoral authorities declared him the winner hours after polls closed, but the opposition gathered overwhelming evidence that he lost by a more than 2-to-1 margin.

Public Reaction and Political Polarization

In a demonstration of how polarizing a figure Mr. Maduro is, people variously took to the streets to deplore his capture and celebrate it. Earlier, armed people and uniformed members of a civilian militia took to the streets of a Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party.

In other parts of the city, the streets remained empty hours after the attack, as residents absorbed events. Some areas remained without power, but vehicles moved freely.

Cuba, a supporter of the Maduro government and a long-time adversary of the United States, called for the international community to respond to what President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez called “the criminal attack.” Our zone of peace is being brutally assaulted,” he said on X.

He said he would be a bit concerned if he were a Cuban government official following the overnight US military operation in Venezuela. “If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned at least a little bit,” said Mr. Rubio, who has had a long preoccupation with both Venezuela and Cuba.

The US has had a long history of military interventions in Latin America, including its tacit support for the unsuccessful 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion led by Cuban exiles aimed at toppling Fidel Castro.