Former United States President Donald Trump has claimed that Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife have been captured and flown out of the country following what he described as a large-scale U.S. operation.
Trump made the claim in a post on his Truth Social account on Saturday.
According to him, the United States “successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolás Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the country.”
He added that the operation was conducted in conjunction with U.S. law enforcement agencies, while promising to release more details soon.
Trump also announced that he would be addressing a news conference at 11 a.m. at Mar-a-Lago.
The development comes months after the U.S. government raised the reward to $50 million for information leading to Maduro’s arrest over alleged involvement in international drug trafficking.
In 2020, during Trump’s first administration, the United States indicted Maduro and several senior Venezuelan officials on drug-related and corruption charges.
As at the time of filing this report, Trump’s claims have not been independently verified, and official responses from Venezuelan authorities were yet to be obtained.