The U.S. has struck Venezuela and captured its President Nicolas Maduro, who has been taken out of the country, President Donald Trump said on Saturday.
The U.S. has not made such a direct intervention in Latin America since the invasion of Panama in 1989 to depose military leader Manuel Noriega.
“The United States of America has successfully carried out a large scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the country,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
The Reuters reports that there was no immediate confirmation from the Venezuelan government.
The U.S. has accused Maduro of running a “narco-state” and rigging an election.
The Venezuelan leader, who succeeded Hugo Chavez to take power in 2013, has said Washington wants to take control of its oil reserves, the largest in the world.
Read More: 40 people killed, 115 injured in New Year fire at Swiss bar, police say
The US has long accused Nicolás Maduro of leading an international drug trafficking organisation, something that Maduro denies.
Trump did not give more detail about how Maduro was captured or where he has been taken.
The Venezuelan government have not yet confirmed this.
The US had offered a $50m reward for information leading to the arrest of Maduro.
That, along with the huge military build-up in the region over the last few months, were interpreted in the region as encouragement for someone inside the country to turn against him.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.











Comments