Reports have emerged detailing how the United States of America carried out the invasion and arrest of Venezuela‘s president, Nicolás Maduro.
According to the BBC, United States intelligence agencies spent months closely tracking the daily movements of President Nicolás Maduro before launching a covert military operation that culminated in his capture, senior American officials have disclosed.
Officials stated that surveillance teams, including a source within the Venezuelan government, monitored the president’s routines, residences and security arrangements. The intelligence-gathering phase laid the groundwork for a mission finalised in early December and code-named Operation Absolute Resolve.
The operation, described as one of the most significant US military interventions in Latin America since the Cold War, was planned in extreme secrecy. Congress was neither briefed nor consulted ahead of the action, with military leaders opting to restrict knowledge of the mission to a small circle in order to preserve surprise.
Elite US forces reportedly rehearsed the raid extensively, including training on a full-scale replica of Maduro’s Caracas compound. Although President Donald Trump initially authorised the operation several days earlier, officials said it was delayed due to unfavourable weather conditions.
The final order to proceed was issued at 22:46 EDT on Friday, shortly before midnight in Caracas. US forces then launched a coordinated assault involving air, land and sea units, completing the mission in just over two hours.
General Dan Caine, the United States’ most senior military officer, said personnel had remained on standby throughout the Christmas and New Year period, awaiting the precise conditions required to execute the operation.
Trump later confirmed that he monitored the raid from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida alongside senior advisers, including the CIA Director and the Secretary of State, rather than from the White House Situation Room.
The operation began with extensive aerial activity, with more than 150 aircraft — including bombers, fighter jets and reconnaissance planes — deployed overnight. Explosions were reported across parts of Caracas in the early hours, plunging sections of the city into darkness and prompting widespread alarm among residents.
Independent verification has identified multiple sites hit during the strikes, including a major airbase, a military airfield and the country’s principal port linking Caracas to the Caribbean. US officials said some targets included air defence systems and other strategic military installations.
As the strikes unfolded, special forces units, including members of the elite Delta Force, moved into the capital. Heavily armed troops entered Maduro’s compound shortly after 02:00 local time and encountered resistance, with at least one US helicopter sustaining damage.
Despite the exchange of fire, US officials said the forces advanced rapidly and secured both Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. No American fatalities were reported, though the extent of Venezuelan casualties remains unclear.
The capture has drawn sharp international criticism. Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva described the operation as setting a “dangerous precedent”, while several regional leaders condemned the use of force against a sitting head of state.
Within the United States, the decision to proceed without prior congressional authorisation has also prompted backlash. Senior Democratic figures accused the administration of acting recklessly, a claim rejected by the White House, which argued that advance notification could have compromised the mission.
By dawn on Saturday, helicopters carrying Maduro and his wife had departed Venezuelan airspace. They are expected to face criminal proceedings in New York, where Maduro was previously indicted on drug trafficking and related charges.
Announcing the outcome, Trump said the former Venezuelan leader would “face the full force of American justice”, marking a dramatic escalation in Washington’s long-running confrontation with Caracas.
