President Donald Trump announced on social media that the United States had carried out a “major military strike” against Venezuela and captured its leader, President Nicolas Maduro.
President Trump made the announcement on his Truth social platform early Saturday morning, shortly after a large explosion was reported in Venezuela’s capital Caracas, marking a major escalation against the Latin American country.
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President Trump said Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, was also captured during the operation and that they were both “flew out of the country.” It remains unclear where Maduro and his wife were taken.
“This operation was conducted in coordination with United States law enforcement,” Trump wrote.
In a statement, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez called on the United States to issue Maduro’s “proof of life.”
Rodríguez told Venezuelan television by phone that he did know where Maduro and his wife were.
Phil Gunzon, an analyst with the Caracas-based Crisis Group, compared Maduro’s reported capture to the ouster of Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega on January 3, 1990, also orchestrated by the United States.
“This is not legal,” Ganzón said of Maduro’s detention, but added that it was not a concern for Venezuela at this point.
Earlier, President Maduro reportedly declared a national emergency in response to the attack, which the Venezuelan government called a “military invasion.”
The government said attacks occurred Saturday in the capital, Caracas, as well as in the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira. Venezuela also accused the United States of launching the attack with the aim of seizing Venezuela’s oil and mineral resources and vowed that such efforts “will not succeed.”
Explosions could be heard and plumes of smoke could be seen in Caracas early Saturday morning after the attack.
Video footage obtained by Al Jazeera showed a fireball and thick smoke rising from a structure next to a body of water in Caracas early Saturday.
Al Jazeera’s Lucia Newman, reporting from Santiago, Chile, said sources said the explosion occurred near or around Fort Tiuna, a major military base in Caracas.
“Fort Tiuna is an important military base there. A series of explosions were reportedly heard throughout the area, followed by a power outage,” Newman said.
Following Maduro’s detention, Newman later said the development was “unprecedented, shocking and extraordinary.”
Caracas-based journalist Cici de Flavis told Al Jazeera that he heard a huge truck crash, followed by a violent shaking of the ground.
“The sky started to lighten. Then an orange fireball flashed. There have been no explosions since then, but you can still hear the planes flying overhead,” de Flavis told Al Jazeera.
The Associated Press reported that at least seven explosions and the sound of low-flying aircraft could be heard in the capital.
Images released by the Associated Press also showed smoke billowing from La Carlota airport following a series of explosions in the capital.
After the explosion, people were seen rushing to the streets in various areas. Some were visible far away from different parts of Caracas.
“The whole ground shook. It was terrible. I could hear explosions and planes in the distance,” Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, told The Associated Press, her voice shaking. She was on her way home from a birthday party and was walking briskly with two relatives.
“It felt like the air was hitting us.”
Tensions have been rising in Venezuela in recent weeks after President Trump threatened to launch attacks on targets linked to drug trafficking.
Earlier this week, President Trump also revealed that last week, the US campaign attacked the anchorage of an alleged Venezuelan drug ship, the first known attack on Venezuelan territory.
The US president has repeatedly threatened ground strikes against drug cartels in Latin America, labeling Venezuela a “narco-terrorist.”
He claimed, without providing evidence, that Venezuelan President Maduro is leading a human trafficking ring aimed at destabilizing the United States by flooding the country with drugs.
In an interview Thursday, President Maduro indicated that Venezuela was open to negotiating a deal with the United States to combat drug trafficking, although he remained silent about the reported CIA-led offensive on Venezuelan territory.
President Maduro also claimed in the interview that the United States is seeking to overthrow the Venezuelan government and gain access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves through months of Washington sanctions and a military pressure campaign.
Asked directly whether he would confirm or deny a U.S. attack on Venezuelan territory, Maduro said: “We may talk about this in the next few days.”
President Maduro said the Trump administration’s approach “makes clear” that the United States is “trying to impose itself” on Venezuela through “threats, threats and force.”
