Former U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that the United States carried out a “large-scale strike” in Venezuela and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, Trump said Maduro had been flown out of the country following the operation, which he said was conducted alongside U.S. law-enforcement agencies. He added that further details would be provided at a news conference scheduled for 11 a.m. at Mar-a-Lago.
Venezuela earlier declared a national emergency after the reported strike on Caracas, following weeks of escalating tension as Trump intensified pressure on Maduro over alleged large-scale drug trafficking.
Maduro had said earlier in the week that he was open to talks with the United States on the drug allegations and oil issues, stating he was willing to meet “wherever and whenever they want.” In a Venezuelan state television interview, he declined to respond directly to Trump’s claim that the U.S. had previously struck a docking facility inside the country.
Trump had earlier accused Maduro of using oil revenues to support drug-related crime, and of allowing criminals and psychiatric patients to leave the country for the United States. He also said U.S. forces had struck a “dock area” used by alleged drug-smuggling boats, resulting in what he described as a major explosion.
Since September, the United States has reported carrying out 30 strikes on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Pacific and Caribbean. According to U.S. accounts, more than 110 people have died since the first reported attack on September 2.
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