Amid debris, Caracas residents express fear for the future after US strikes in Venezuela
In the aftermath of US airstrikes early Saturday, residents of Caracas awoke to streets littered with debris and visible signs of explosions.
One resident, a surgeon who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons, shared video with CNN showing shattered building walls, punctured vehicles and fragments he identified as missile shrapnel.
As Venezuelans cautiously take stock of the destruction, many are grappling with apprehensions about who will govern the country.
“Sooner rather than later, there will have to be some kind of rapprochement between the bloc led by María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia — who many consider the legitimate president — and the US government,” the doctor said.
Another Caracas resident, who also requested anonymity, said civilians’ fear is palpable. “We cannot let our guard down because you can always be put in prison for dissenting with the government in any way,” she told CNN.
She said overall anxiety now mostly centers on what a transition would look like.
The woman said she thought Machado, the opposition leader who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, would be at the helm. But in a news conference earlier, US President Donald Trump said Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, was being sworn in.
“She is a terrifying figure of the government,” the Caracas resident said of Rodríguez. “She’s the head of many of the most oppressive tactics that have been applied to Venezuelans.”
“I don’t know how much sense it makes to remove Maduro but leave them in charge — or her in charge,” she said.
She cited the vice president’s brother, National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez, saying, “I don’t see that making much sense.” She added that she is also “terrified” of Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello because of his involvement with the military.