Visualizing the US assault on Venezuela

A dramatic new phase of President Donald Trump’s showdown with Venezuela started Saturday, when the United States launched a large-scale series of strikes – followed hours later by Trump’s announcement that Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro had been captured by US forces, and removed from the country.

Here’s what we can say about the daring raid, dubbed Operation Absolute Resolve by US authorities, using verified video and images from the scene, satellite imagery, and other open-source information.

Although planning for the attacks had been secretly underway since December, speaking at a Saturday news conference from his Mar-a-Lago club, Trump said Saturday that he made the final decision to strike at 11:46 p.m. Venezuela time (10:46 p.m. ET) the previous day
US hits several locations in Venezuela

The attack was carried out in the early hours of Saturday, January 3.

As blasts reverberated through Caracas and the surrounding cities, a separate mission to seize Venezuelan leader Maduro was also underway, according to Trump, speaking at a Saturday news conference from his Mar-a-Lago club.

The president said US military helicopters touched down at 2:01 a.m. local time, as Maduro attempted to enter a steel shelter but was unable to close the door before he was detained by US forces.