January 4, 2026
In a daring pre-dawn raid on January 3, 2026, U.S. special forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, marking one of the most audacious military operations in recent history. Codenamed Operation Absolute Resolve, the mission combined airstrikes on Venezuelan military targets with a helicopter-borne assault on Maduro’s fortified compound in Caracas. President Donald Trump announced the success shortly after, stating that the couple had been flown out of the country and transferred to U.S. custody in New York to face long-standing federal drug-trafficking and narco-terrorism charges.
The operation unfolded rapidly. Around 2:00 a.m. local time, U.S. forces launched airstrikes to neutralize air defenses across northern Venezuela. More than 150 aircraft—including bombers, fighters, and surveillance assets—provided cover. Helicopters from the elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (known as the Night Stalkers) then inserted operators from the U.S. Army’s 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (Delta Force) into the capital.
Delta Force, the military’s premier counterterrorism and hostage-rescue unit, led the ground assault. Operators breached Maduro’s heavily reinforced residence, overcoming steel doors and security measures. One helicopter took fire from ground defenses but remained operational, with U.S. forces returning fire defensively. A few American personnel sustained minor injuries, but there were no U.S. fatalities. FBI agents, including members of the Hostage Rescue Team, accompanied the raid to execute the formal arrest.
Preparation for the mission spanned months. Intelligence from CIA assets inside Venezuela provided detailed insights into Maduro’s routines, location, and habits. U.S. troops rehearsed extensively using a full-scale replica of his compound, similar to preparations for high-profile raids like the 2011 operation against Osama bin Laden. Trump gave final approval late on January 2, after delays for optimal weather conditions.
By 3:20 a.m. EST, Maduro and Flores were airborne, initially transferred to the USS Iwo Jima amphibious assault ship in the Caribbean. They arrived in New York later that day, where Maduro is detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. An unsealed indictment from the Southern District of New York charges them with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation, and related offenses, stemming from allegations of coordinating with armed groups to traffic drugs into the United States.
Trump described the operation as a law enforcement action against a “narco-state” leader, emphasizing a temporary U.S. role in managing Venezuela’s transition, including restoring oil production. Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has assumed interim leadership in Caracas, declaring a national emergency and demanding the couple’s immediate release. Streets in the capital remained largely quiet, with small government-organized protests.
The raid drew comparisons to the 1990 capture of Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega—exactly 36 years earlier—and echoes past Delta Force successes, such as the 2003 apprehension of Saddam Hussein and the 2019 elimination of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
International reactions were swift and divided: celebrations among Venezuelan opposition supporters and expatriates, sharp condemnations from allies like China and Russia over sovereignty violations, and broader concerns about precedents for intervening in foreign governments.
As Maduro awaits arraignment, the operation underscores the capabilities of U.S. elite forces while raising questions about long-term stability in Venezuela and the implications of direct U.S. intervention to apprehend a sitting head of state.
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