President Donald J. Trump announced at around 9:30 a.m. UTC on January 3, 2026, that U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife during a large-scale military operation in Venezuela, flying them out of the country, as reported by JimLaPorta, FaytuksNetwork, Worldsource24, and Global_Mil_Info on X. Trump stated the operation targeted strategic sites including key military locations in Caracas and was conducted successfully, with a news conference scheduled for 11 a.m. at Mar-a-Lago, according to FaytuksNetwork and Worldsource24. Multiple accounts including spectatorindex confirmed U.S. strikes on Caracas targets alongside the capture. Caracas International Airport was seized by U.S. troops, per markito0171 on X. The New York Times reported via sentdefender that Maduro's location is unknown but some inner circle members are safe. Agusantonetti confirmed Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López is alive, refuting death reports. The U.S. Embassy in Bogota noted awareness of explosions around Caracas and reiterated travel warnings for U.S. citizens, as stated by AJEnglish. Visionergeo shared imagery of a training camp in Carmen de Uria used by Venezuelan collectives, FAES, and paramilitaries. These developments follow U.S. strikes on military bases and other sites reported earlier this morning.
