Where is Venezuela president Maduro? US officials reveal details of Caracas raid

Washington: US officials have revealed several details about the military strikes on Caracas and the subsequent capture of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

What did US officials say?

Talking to the media, the officials revealed that Maduro and his wife were dragged from their bedroom during the overnight US military raid. The couple were asleep at their official resident inside the heavily guarded Ft Tiuna military complex in Caracas when the US raid took place.

What has Trump said?

Trump has praised the US military units involved in the operation. The US president said Maduro had been captured taken from what he described as a fortress, terming the apparent absence of US deaths as “amazing”, although he acknowledged some US soldiers were injured. 

Talking to the media about Saturday’s attack, Trump stated that no American lives were lost in the operation. He informed that he watched the operation live, describing it as if he were watching a television show. He mentioned that it was dark is Caracas when the attack started and that the US forces had waited four days for clear weather before launching the operation.

Trump said the US soldiers had weapons for every situation. The soldiers entered a place that was almost impossible to penetrate. There were steel doors, which were breached in an instant. He emphasized that his soldiers are incredible and have conducted some of the best operations in the world.

Trump said that the Maduro and his wife are aboard a US warship and are expected to reach New York on Monday.

What about the future of Venezuela?

Speaking to the media, Trump said that the future of Venezuela after this operation would be decided soon. 
“The ‍United States is going to ‌be ‘very strongly involved’ in Venezuela’s oil industry in the wake of the operation ⁠to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas ⁠Maduro,” he said.
 “We ‌have the greatest ‍oil companies in ‍the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to ⁠be very much involved in it,” he added.
Earlier, following the airstrikes, Trump took to social media to announce that the US military has taken Maduro and his wife into custody.

"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 statement on social media.

What do we know about the US strikes?

Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, was rocked by several explosions during the early hours of Saturday as US president Donald Trump announced that the American military had carried out a “large-scale strike”. As the explosions rang out, residents ran out of their homes and gathered in the streets. The sudden blasts caused panic in the city and raised serious concerns about the safety of citizens. People sought refuge in safer places with their families. There was chaos in the surrounding areas.

What is the significance of the operation?

Saturday’s military amounts to the removal of a sitting president without a declared war or full-scale invasion. This operation by the US military has few parallels in recent decades. This operation has been compared to the actions against Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden. 

According to experts, Saturday’s events are comparable to the 1989 US operation to seize Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega. Similar to Maduro, Noriega had claimed victory in controversial elections and was accused of drug trafficking by Washington.