Speaking at a Saturday press conference, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Dan Caine said the mission was the result of months of planning and rehearsals. He explained that US intelligence tracked Maduro closely to “understand how he moved, where he lived, where he traveled, where he ate, what he wore.”
Caine said US service members had been ready to act by early December but were awaiting “a series of aligned events,” including weather conditions. “Over the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s, the men and women of the United States military sat ready, patiently waiting for the right triggers to be met and the president to order us into action,” he said.
After weather conditions improved, Trump’s order triggered the launch of more than 150 US aircraft from 20 land and sea bases, alongside helicopters carrying an extraction force at low altitude. According to Caine, US forces used air, cyber and space capabilities to “create a pathway” and maintained “totally the element of surprise” as they entered Caracas.
US troops came under fire at Maduro’s compound shortly after 1:00 a.m. EST, with one helicopter hit but still operational, before forces moved inside the heavily guarded residence. Trump said, “They just broke in, and they broke into places that were not really able to be broke into, you know, steel doors that were put there for just this reason,” adding, “They got taken out in a matter of seconds.”
Caine said US Special Forces acted with “speed, precision and discipline” and apprehended Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who “gave up,” with assistance from Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Justice Department. The pair were flown out under protective fire and later landed aboard the USS Iwo Jima at 3:29 a.m. EST.
Following the operation, Trump said a US team including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth would “run” Venezuela during a transition period. “We’re not afraid of boots on the ground if we have to have,” Trump said, adding, “We’re there now. We’re ready to go again if we have to,” as US forces remain in the region.
