President Donald Trump has issued a major warning to remaining power brokers inside Venezuela following the dramatic capture of longtime strongman Nicolás Maduro, delivering what allies describe as a blunt ultimatum: surrender or cooperate.
In the early hours of January 3, U.S. forces launched what officials described as a highly coordinated, limited-duration mission inside Venezuela. Airstrikes targeted key military and security infrastructure around the capital, while special operations units moved in on a safe house believed to be sheltering Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The couple was captured and swiftly removed from the country before being flown to New York, where Maduro is expected to face federal charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy and large-scale drug trafficking.