{"id":3802,"date":"2026-02-09T02:59:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T02:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/?p=3802"},"modified":"2026-02-09T02:59:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T02:59:07","slug":"trump-bombs-venezuela-us-captures-maduro-all-that-we-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/?p=3802","title":{"rendered":"Trump bombs Venezuela, US \u2018captures\u2019 Maduro: All that we know"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Trump bombs Venezuela, US \u2018captures\u2019 Maduro: All that we know<\/h1>\n<\/header>\n
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The Military Operation<\/b>\u00a0In the early hours of Saturday, January 3, 2026, the United States launched a massive military operation against Venezuela. At approximately 2:00 AM local time, residents in Caracas reported at least seven major explosions and the sound of low-flying aircraft.<\/p>\n

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According to reports, the strikes targeted several high-profile military and government sites, including:<\/p>\n

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    Fuerte Tiuna:<\/b>\u00a0Venezuela\u2019s primary military complex.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    La Carlota Airbase:<\/b>\u00a0Which was reportedly disabled during the bombing.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Miraflores Presidential Palace:<\/b>\u00a0Attacked during the initial wave.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    The Federal Legislative Palace<\/b>\u00a0and various other military installations across the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The Capture of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/b>\u00a0President Donald Trump confirmed via Truth Social that the operation was a success, stating that President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores were captured and \u201cflown out of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

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    While the Venezuelan government, represented by Vice President Delcy Rodr\u00edguez, has not officially confirmed the capture, they admitted to losing contact with Maduro and have demanded \u201cproof of life.\u201d U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that Maduro and Flores have already been indicted in the Southern District of New York on charges of narco-terrorism and cocaine importation conspiracy.<\/p>\n

    Context and Motivations<\/b>\u00a0The escalation follows months of tension and a significant U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean, spearheaded by the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group. The Trump administration has cited two primary justifications for the intervention:<\/p>\n

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      Counter-Narcotics:<\/b>\u00a0Trump has accused Maduro of leading the \u201cTren de Aragua\u201d gang and facilitating drug smuggling into the U.S., though Al Jazeera notes that U.S. intelligence agencies had previously found little evidence to support these specific claims.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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      Energy Interests:<\/b>\u00a0Recent statements from White House advisors, including Stephen Miller, have emphasized the importance of Venezuela\u2019s oil reserves\u2014the largest in the world\u2014suggesting that the U.S. intends to secure the industry.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Legal and International Fallout<\/b>\u00a0The operation is being compared to the historical captures of Manuel Noriega and Saddam Hussein, though those occurred during declared wars.<\/p>\n

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        Domestic Legality:<\/b>\u00a0Some U.S. lawmakers have questioned the lack of Congressional notification for such a significant \u201ckinetic action.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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        Global Response:<\/b>\u00a0Russia and Cuba have condemned the strikes as \u201cillegal aggression\u201d and a violation of national sovereignty. Neighboring Colombia expressed concern over the stability of the region, despite its own opposition to the Maduro regime.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        What Happens Next?<\/b>\u00a0A formal press conference is scheduled at Mar-a-Lago for 11:00 AM today to provide further details. In Venezuela, the political future is uncertain; while Delcy Rodr\u00edguez is constitutionally next in line, it remains unclear if the \u201cChavismo\u201d movement can maintain control without Maduro\u2019s presence.<\/p>\n

        \"Supporters<\/p>\n

        \"Pedestrians<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Trump bombs Venezuela, US \u2018captures\u2019 Maduro: All that we know The Military Operation\u00a0In the early hours of Saturday, January 3, 2026, the United States launched a massive military operation against … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3803,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-life-story"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3802","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3802"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3802\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3805,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3802\/revisions\/3805"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyreadin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}