Several Venezuelan F-16s and Su-30s took off from El Libertador Air Base during the 29 minutes ending at 4:15 p.m. UTC on January 3, 2026, as telecommunications systems were destroyed in the Cerro El Volcan area on Caracas outskirts, according to X users intelFromBrian and Arr3ch0 citing coordinates 10.416374, -66.849306. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson posted a statement on X in the same period defending the U.S. special operations capture of Nicolás Maduro earlier today in Caracas as a justified action against his U.S.-indicted narco-trafficking, announcing President Donald Trump's address at 11 a.m. ET and upcoming congressional briefings after consultations with Secretaries Rubio and Hegseth. Opposition supporters celebrated in Caracas streets waving U.S. and Venezuelan flags, per X user EricLDaugh, while leader María Corina Machado stated Edmundo González must be sworn in as president, according to Faytuks on X. Paramilitary groups took to streets in Maduro's defense, as reported by AlertaMundoNews on X. Reuters sources indicated Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez fled to Russia, per X user Daractenus. Russia demanded Maduro and his wife's release, according to AlertaMundoNews. Canadian Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre congratulated Trump and called for González and Machado to take power, via his X post. U.S. Democrats criticized the operation, with Rep. Jim Himes questioning evidence and strategy, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen urging briefings, and Sen. Mark Warner warning of constitutional and global risks in a thread shared by ZcohenCNN on X. An RQ-170 drone landed in Ceiba, per SA_Defensa on X. These follow U.S. Delta Force raid confirmation and Machado's prior freedom declaration, per previous reports.
