近距离内射合集

WASHINGTON 鈥� In a lightning military strike, the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicol谩s Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and spirited them out of the country to face justice in the 近距离内射合集 States.

Now President Donald Trump says the U.S. is 鈥済oing to run鈥� Venezuela until a transition of power can take place, but it's not clear what that will mean on the ground in the South American country.

The overnight operation left Venezuela reeling, with its leadership uncertain and details of casualties and the impact on its military still to emerge. Much is still unknown about how the U.S. ouster of Maduro will ricochet across the country and the region.

Here鈥檚 what we know 鈥� and what we don鈥檛.

Rising US pressure, then an overnight attack

Explosions rang out and low-flying aircraft swept through Venezuela鈥檚 capital, Caracas, early Saturday. At least seven blasts were heard in an attack that lasted less than 30 minutes. The targets appeared to include military infrastructure.

Venezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fern谩ndez said Maduro and Flores were captured at their home within the Ft. Tiuna military installation outside Caracas.

Venezuelan officials said people had been killed, but the scale of casualties was unclear.

The attack followed months of escalating pressure by the Trump administration, which has built up naval forces in the waters off South America and since early September has carried out deadly strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean. Late last month, the CIA carried out a drone strike at a docking area alleged to have been used by drug cartels.

Trump says the US will run Venezuela, but how is unclear

Trump said during a news conference Saturday the U.S. would run the country and gestured to officials arrayed behind him, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and said they鈥檇 be the ones doing it 鈥渇or a period of time.鈥�

Trump claimed the American presence was already in place, although across Venezuela's capital there were no signs that the U.S. had taken control of the government or military forces.

Trump claimed that Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodr铆guez had been sworn in as president shortly before he spoke to reporters and added she had spoken with Rubio.

鈥淪he is essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again. Very simple,鈥� Trump said.

But during a televised address after Trump's news conference, Rodriguez made no mention of talking to Rubio, of taking over the presidency or of cooperating with the U.S. State television has not shown a swearing-in ceremony and during her address, a ticker at the bottom of the screen identified her as the vice president.

Instead, she demanded the U.S. free Maduro, called him the country鈥檚 rightful leader and said what was happening to Venezuela 鈥渋s an atrocity that violates international law.鈥�

Rodriguez left open the door for dialogue with the U.S., while seeking to calm ruling party supporters.

鈥淗ere, we have a government with clarity, and I repeat and repeat again 鈥� we are willing to have respectful relations,鈥� she said, referring to the Trump administration. 鈥淚t is the only thing we will accept for a type of relationship after having attacked (Venezuela).鈥�

Armed individuals and uniformed members of a civilian militia took to the streets of a Caracas neighborhood long considered a stronghold of the ruling party. But in other areas of the city, the streets remained empty hours after the attack. Parts of the city remained without power, but vehicles moved freely.

Trump offered no details on what U.S. leadership in Venezuela would mean or specify whether it would involve more military involvement.

The State Department did not immediately respond to questions about how the U.S. would run Venezuela, what authority it would use to administer it or whether it would involve any American personnel 鈥� either civilian or military 鈥� on the ground in Caracas or other areas of Venezuela.

The future of Venezuela's oil infrastructure

Trump mentioned the country's oil infrastructure repeatedly during the news conference. He suggested there would be a substantial U.S. role in Venezuela's oil industry, saying that U.S. oil companies would go in and fix the broken infrastructure.

And Trump said the U.S. would use revenues from oil sales to pay for running the country.

鈥淲e鈥檙e going to get reimbursed for everything that we spend,鈥� he said.

The US charges against Maduro

According to an indictment made public Saturday, Maduro is charged alongside his wife, his son and three others. Maduro is indicted on four counts: narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices.

Authorities allege powerful and violent drug trafficking organizations, such as the Sinaloa Cartel and Tren de Aragua gang, worked directly with the Venezuelan government and then sent profits to high-ranking officials who helped and protected them in exchange.

Maduro and his wife were initially taken to a U.S. warship and then flown by plane to New York on Saturday afternoon.

It was not immediately clear when they would make their first court appearance or where they would be detained.

How the US operation played out

Trump gave some details of the operation during a Saturday morning interview on 鈥淔ox and Friends," and he and Caine went into more depth during the news conference.

Trump said a few U.S. members of the operation were injured but he believed no one was killed.

He said Maduro was 鈥渉ighly guarded鈥� in a presidential palace akin to a 鈥渇ortress鈥� and he tried to get to a safe room but wasn鈥檛 able to get there in time.

Trump said U.S. forces practiced the operation ahead of time on a replica building, and the U.S. turned off 鈥渁lmost all of the lights in Caracas,鈥� although he didn鈥檛 detail how they accomplished that.

Caine said the mission had been 鈥渕eticulously planned鈥� for months, relying on work by the U.S. intelligence community to find Maduro and detail how he moved, lived, ate and what he wore.

The mission involved more than 150 aircraft launched across the Western Hemisphere, Caine said. Helicopters came under fire as they approached 鈥渢he target area,鈥� he said, and responded with 鈥渙verwhelming force.鈥�

Questions over legality

The U.S. does not recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, and the legal implications of the strike under U.S. law were not immediately clear.

The Trump administration maintains that Maduro is not the legitimate leader of Venezuela and claims he has effectively turned Venezuela into a criminal enterprise at the service of drug traffickers and terrorist groups.

Mike Lee, a U.S. senator from Utah, said on X that the action 鈥渓ikely falls within the president鈥檚 inherent authority under Article II of the Constitution to protect U.S. personnel from an actual or imminent attack.鈥�

But some Democrats were more critical.

Sen. Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat, said in a statement, 鈥淧resident Trump鈥檚 unauthorized military attack on Venezuela to arrest Maduro 鈥� however terrible he is 鈥� is a sickening return to a day when the 近距离内射合集 States asserted the right to dominate the internal political affairs of all nations in the Western Hemisphere.鈥�

How opposition leader Machado figures in Trump's plans

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Mar铆a Corina Machado had intended to run against Maduro in the 2024 presidential election, but the government barred her from running for office. She went into hiding and wasn't seen for nearly a year.

Trump said Saturday that he hadn't been in touch with Machado and said it would be 鈥渧ery tough鈥� for her to lead Venezuela.

鈥淪he doesn鈥檛 have the support within or the respect within the country. She鈥檚 a very nice woman, but she doesn鈥檛 have the respect,鈥� Trump said.

Lawless reported from London. Associated Press Writer Danica Kirka in London contributed to this story.