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Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife have reportedly arrived in New York after U.S. forces seized them from their home in an extraordinary military operation.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have arrived at New York’s Stewart Air National Guard Base, a federal official told CNN.
Following Maduro’s capture, President Donald Trump said the U.S. will run Venezuela for now and earlier shared a photograph of Maduro in handcuffs en route to New York, where he has been indicted with several offenses, including Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy.
“We are going to run the country until such time that we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump vowed at a press conference Saturday from his residence in Mar-a-Lago, where he also suggested that the U.S. would rely on revenue from oil sales to pay for running the country.
“We’re not afraid of boots on the ground,” Trump added.
The president was pressed by reporters about who would be running Venezuela during the transition period and offered few details on who exactly would be in charge.
Gen. Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, revealed the mission, called “Operation Absolute Resolve,” was a months-in-the-making.
More than 150 aircraft, including several fighter jets, helicopters and bombers, launched from 20 different points after Trump gave the order Friday night, with service members from across the military branches.
With reporting from Rosali Hernandez in Caracas
When could Maduro appear in court?
Deposed Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro could appear in court as soon as Monday.
A 25-page document from federal prosecutors in New York City claims Maduro, his wife and Venezuelan officials have “abused their positions of public trust and corrupted once-legitimate institutions to import tons of cocaine into the United States.”
The four-count indictment, unsealed hours after Donald Trump announced the capture of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, claims the Venezuelan president and his family enriched themselves with a “cycle of narcotics-based corruption.”
Maduro and Flores are expected to make an initial appearance on the charges in Manhattan federal court as soon as Monday.
Rhian Lubin, Alex Woodward3 January 2026 22:21
Pictured: Defense Department aircraft reportedly carrying Maduro lands in New York
A Defense Department aircraft believed to be carrying captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife has landed at New York’s Stewart Air National Guard Base.
President Donald Trump earlier said that Maduro was being transported via a U.S. Navy vessel USS Iwo Jima.
Trump shared a photograph of Maduro aboard the ship in handcuffs.
Maduro and wife Cilia Flores were dragged from their bedroom during the operation that took place late Friday and into the early hours of Saturday, according to CNN.
A plane allegedly carrying Maduro lands at New York’s Stewart Air National Guard Base (AFP via Getty Images)
Department of Defense aircraft arrives with Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores at Stewart Air National Guard Base (Getty Images)
Nicolas Maduro en route to the U.S. (@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social)
Rhian Lubin3 January 2026 22:15
NEW: Maduro and his wife arrive in New York
Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife have reportedly arrived in New York after U.S. forces seized them from their home in an extraordinary military operation.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have arrived at New York’s Stewart Air National Guard Base, a federal official told CNN.
Rhian Lubin3 January 2026 21:57
In pictures: Maduro supporters in Caracas burn the American flag in protest
Supporters of captured president Nicolas Maduro in Caracas have been pictured burning the American flag in protest against the U.S. military action in the country.
Maduro supporters set fire to an American flag in Caracas (Getty Images)
A man holds up a burning US flag in Caracas (Getty Images)
Supporters of Maduro react to news of his capture (Getty Images)
Rhian Lubin3 January 2026 21:40
Venezuelan VP denies Trump’s claims she plans to help US run the country
Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodriguez denied the Trump administration’s claims that she plans to help the U.S. government run the country, despite President Donald Trump saying earlier she is “essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again.”
“There is only one president in this country, and his name is Nicolas Maduro Moros,” Rodriguez said in remarks Saturday.
She said Venezuela’s government is open to resuming a relationship with the Trump administration, but only within the framework of international and Venezuelan law.
“That is the only type of relationship I will accept, after they have attacked and militarily assaulted our beloved nation,” she said.
Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodriguez (AFP via Getty Images)
Alex Woodward, Rhian Lubin3 January 2026 21:20
What happens next in Venezuela?
President Donald Trump said an interim “group” with top administration officials will “run” the country for “a period of time” until the United States determines a “peaceful and just transition” can take place.
That group appears to include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
What happens next after a series of escalating attacks and threats of regime change hinges on the responses from Venezuelan officials, regional governments and armed forces in an increasingly volatile situation amid the possibility of further American intervention.
Alex Woodward breaks it down…
Alex Woodward3 January 2026 21:00
Venezuelans deeply concerned over Trump plan for US to run the country
Venezuelans expressed deep concern over Donald Trump’s shock statement that the US was planning to “run the country” and his apparent endorsement of Maduro’s second-in-command Delcy Rodriguez as an interim leader of that transition.
“They have not clarified the legal, political or the temporal framework of this leadership – who’s going to lead?” asked Maria Corina Roldan Robles, a Venezuelan political analyst currently based in Chile.
She said they were concerned that instead of US cooperating with opposition figures like Nobel Prize winner Maria Corina Machado or Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who was recognised as winning the 2024 elections, it appeared they were going for “Chavismo under a different leadership”.
In the press gathering Mr Trump dismissed Machado as lacking “support or respect” to take over. He did not even mention Gonzalez in the extraordinary statement, despite the fact that the Venezuelan opposition leader was recognised by the Biden administration as the “president-elect” in the wake of the 2024 vote.
Supporters of Maduro react to the news in Caracas (AFP via Getty Images)
Instead Trump confirmed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had had a lengthy conversation with Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro’s vice president who Robles said was “one of the most central pillars of the regime that governed alongside Maduro”.
Trump said she had already been sworn in as interim leader and was “essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again.”
The concern in Venezuela is that the US had been positioning Rodriguez as a “person that could be considered for a transition” months go, Robles added.
Ana Maria Diez, the head of the Coalition of Venezuela a union of civil society organisations and an advisor on UN mechanism said that while people were celebrating the capture of Maduro, there were growing fears about Trump’s intentions towards Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
People in Venezuela are deeply concerned over Trump plan for US to run the country (AFP via Getty Images)
“President Trump has repeatedly referred to ‘our oil’ when speaking of Venezuelan resources. It is important to remind him that these resources belong to the Venezuelan people, who need humanitarian aid and the reconstruction of the country now more than ever, not the rule of outsiders,” she told The Independent.
She added that there was no “power vacuum” in the country now that Maduro was gone, as in 2024 they “overwhelmingly voted and elected Edmundo González Urrutia as president, who should be sworn in as soon as possible to govern the country.”
“We appreciate and welcome American investment, but not the rule of our country.”
Rosali Hernandez in Caracas & Bel Trew3 January 2026 20:40
Sen. Jack Reed condemns Trump’s military action as a ‘profound constitutional failure’
Senator Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, has shredded the Trump administration for launching military action on Venezuela in what he described as a “profound constitutional failure.”
“Last night, President Trump waged war on a foreign nation without authorization, without notification, and without any explanation to the American people,” Reed said in a lengthy statement. “Whatever comes next, President Trump will own the consequences.”
“Initially, the White House claimed the purpose of the raid was to capture Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas. Now, the President has claimed the United States will “run” Venezuela, and that the objective of this operation is to seize control of Venezuela’s oil reserves. This is ludicrous,” Reed continued. “No serious plan has been presented for how such an extraordinary undertaking would work or what it will cost the American people.”
“This has been a profound constitutional failure. Congress – not the President – has the sole power to authorize war,” said Reed. “Pursuing regime change without the consent of the American people is a reckless overreach and an abuse of power.”
Smoke rises from Fort Tiuna, the main military garrison in Caracas, Venezuela (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Rhian Lubin, Alex Woodward3 January 2026 20:20
Keir Starmer: ‘We shed no tears about the end of Maduro’s regime’
Keir Starmer has said the UK regards Nicolas Maduro as an “illegitimate President” and “shed no tears about the end of his regime.”
The UK prime minister shared a statement Saturday in response to the Trump administration’s military action in Venezuela and said the UK government supports a transition of power in the South American country.
“I reiterated my support for international law this morning,” Starmer said. “The UK government will discuss the evolving situation with US counterparts in the days ahead as we seek a safe and peaceful transition to a legitimate government that reflects the will of the Venezuelan people.”
Kate Devlin, Rhian Lubin3 January 2026 20:00
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani calls U.S. action on Venezuela ‘an act of war’
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has called the U.S. strikes on Venezuela and the capture of Nicolas Maduro and his wife “an act of war.”
Mamdani, who was sworn into office just three days ago, shared a damning statement ahead of Maduro going into federal custody in his city.
Rhian Lubin3 January 2026 19:45