Former United States President Donald Trump has claimed that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been captured following a US military operation inside Venezuela.
In a post on his Truth Social platform early Saturday, Trump said the United States “successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela,” adding that Maduro and his wife were apprehended and flown out of the country.
According to Trump, the operation marked the first direct US military action in Latin America since the 1989 invasion of Panama that led to the removal of military ruler Manuel Noriega.
The United States has long accused Maduro of presiding over what it describes as a “narco-state,” alleging that members of his family and close associates are involved in drug trafficking. Washington has also designated some affiliated groups as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
Reports indicate that the strikes included targets at the Mountain Barracks in Caracas, also known as the 4F Barracks. The site is a historic and symbolic complex that houses the remains of former Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez, whom Maduro succeeded as president in April 2013.
The Mountain Barracks serves as a memorial and ceremonial site and is regarded as a key ideological landmark of the Chavismo movement.
This comes weeks after US military launched airstrikes against terrorists in Northwest Sokoto State Nigeria.
