BREAKING | U.S. Launches Strikes on Venezuela; Trump Announces Capture of Maduro

President Donald Trump announced early Saturday that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife have been “captured and flown out of the country” following large-scale U.S. military strikes on Venezuela. The announcement sparked swift condemnation and concern from governments around the world.

According to U.S. officials, the operation was executed by the Army’s elite Delta Force unit. A Republican senator told CBS News that Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated Maduro will face criminal prosecution in the United States, where he was previously indicted. Rubio also suggested that no additional U.S. military actions in Venezuela are planned.

The Trump administration has long accused Maduro of drug trafficking and collaboration with organizations designated as terrorist groups—allegations that Maduro has consistently denied.

Saturday’s strikes come after months of heightened U.S. military activity in the region. American forces had recently deployed the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier and other warships to the Caribbean, seized two oil tankers near Venezuela, and conducted strikes on more than 30 boats alleged to be transporting narcotics. Trump also said the U.S. targeted “the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs.”