Maduro in New York detention center as Trump says US will ‘rule’ Venezuela

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was in a New York jail hours after US special forces arrested him and flew him out of his country, which Donald Trump said would come under effective US control.

The US president’s announcement followed a pre-dawn blitz in which commandos seized Maduro and his wife, while airstrikes hit locations in and around Caracas.

A US government plane carrying Maduro landed at a military base shortly after midnight and was flown by helicopter to New York, where the pair were to stand trial on drug and arms trafficking charges.

The White House released a video of Maduro X, handcuffed and in sandals, being escorted by federal agents through a US Drug Enforcement Administration unit in New York.

“Good night, happy new year,” the 63-year-old leftist can be heard saying in English.

Despite the success of the dangerous raid, what happens next is extremely uncertain.

Trump said he was “appointing people” from his cabinet to lead Venezuela, but did not elaborate.

In another surprise move, Trump indicated that US troops could be deployed, saying Washington is “not afraid of boots on the ground”.

But he appeared to dismiss the possibility of the country’s opposition taking power and said he could work with Maduro’s vice president, Delci Rodriguez.

One aspect that became clearer was Trump’s interest in Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.

“We’re going to have the very big oil companies of the United States … come in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly damaged infrastructure,” he said.

“We will sell large quantities of oil.”

US-backed opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who won last year’s Nobel Peace Prize, posted on social media that “the hour of freedom has arrived”.

He demanded that the opposition candidate for the 2024 elections, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, assume the presidency “immediately”.

But Trump has been surprisingly cool on expectations that Machado could become Venezuela’s new leader, saying she has no “support or respect” there.

Instead, he’s touting Rodriguez, saying she’s “essentially willing to do whatever we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again.”

Rodriguez poured cold water on that, demanding Maduro’s release and pledging to “defend” the country.

Late Saturday, Venezuela’s Supreme Court ordered Rodriguez to assume presidential powers “in an active capacity.”

Reflecting the confusion, Trump indicated that US involvement was likely for the long term.

“We will stay until the right transition is made,” he said.

Venezuela’s ally China said it “strongly condemned” the US operation, while France warned a solution could not be “imposed from outside”.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected”.

At Venezuela’s request, the UN Security Council will meet on Monday to discuss the crisis, the Somali presidency of the council told AFP.

The Venezuelans had been bracing for attacks as US forces spent months massing off the coast.

Residents of Caracas were awakened by explosions and the sound of military helicopters around 02:00 (06:00 GMT). Airstrikes hit a major military base and an air base, among other locations, for nearly an hour.

Reading: US to ‘run’ Venezuela after ‘capture’ Maduro in midnight raid

The top US military officer, General Dan Kane, said 150 aircraft were involved in the operation, supporting troops who moved in to arrest Maduro with the help of months of information on his daily habits — down to “what he ate” and the pets he kept.

Maduro and his wife “gave up” without a fight and there was “no loss of US life,” he said.

Venezuelan authorities have not yet released details on the casualties. But Trump told the New York Post that “many” Cubans in Maduro’s security detail had been killed.

Within hours of the operation, Caracas had fallen eerily quiet, with police stationed outside public buildings and the smell of smoke wafting through the streets.

The US and many European governments have not recognized Maduro’s legitimacy, saying he stole the 2018 and 2024 elections.

Maduro — in power since 2013 after leftist mentor Hugo Chavez took over — has long accused Trump of seeking regime change in order to control Venezuela’s oil reserves.

Trump has offered many justifications for aggressive policy toward Venezuela, at times highlighting illegal immigration, drug trafficking and oil.

However, in the past he has shied away from openly calling for regime change.

Several members of Congress quickly questioned the legality of the operation. But key Trump ally Mike Johnson, the top Republican in the House of Representatives, said it was “justified.”