Where Is Nicolas Maduro? Donald Trump's Big "Warship" Revelation

US President Donald Trump announced today that Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro had been captured by US forces in a covert operation, removed from Venezuelan territory, and was now aboard an American warship en route to New York to face prosecution.

Trump said that the Venezuelan head of state had been seized in a military raid and was being transported on the USS Iwo Jima. 

"They're on a ship but they'll be heading into New York. The helicopters took them out," Trump told Fox News in a telephone interview.

"He was in a fortress," Trump said. "You know, that we had nobody killed was amazing," he said, adding that a "couple of guys were hit, but they came back and they're supposed to be in pretty good shape."

The US President said he personally watched the operation unfold in real time.

"I watched it, literally, like I was watching a television show," he told Fox News. "If you would have seen the speed, the violence."

The operation, he said, showed that Washington was "not going to be pushed around."

"We'll be involved in it very much," Trump said, adding that the United States would not allow "anyone to take over where he left off."

Charges Announced

Shortly after Trump's remarks, the US Attorney General, Pam Bondi, confirmed that Maduro and Flores had been indicted in the Southern District of New York.

In a statement posted on X, Bondi said Maduro had been charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy and possession of machine guns and destructive devices, conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices against the United States

She said both Maduro and Flores would "soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts."

Maduro and senior figures in his government had previously been indicted in the United States in 2020 on narco-terrorism charges. What was new - and immediately contested - was the claim that Flores herself had been indicted, and whether the charges announced reflected a new indictment or an unsealed or expanded version of earlier cases.

What Happened In Venezuela

Nahum Fernandez, a senior figure in the ruling party, told the Associated Press that Maduro and Flores were at their residence within the Fort Tiuna military complex -- one of the most heavily guarded installations in Caracas -- when the attack began.

"That's where they bombed," Fernandez said. "And there, they carried out what we could call a kidnapping of the president and the first lady of the country."

Residents of Caracas reported at least seven explosions. Low-flying aircraft swept across the capital. Social media quickly filled with videos showing tracer fire, smoke plumes, and flashes of lightning up in the night sky. The footage was later verified by international news agencies.

Smoke was seen rising from a military hangar in the capital. Another military installation lost power. In at least some neighbourhoods, electricity was cut, though traffic continued to move on major roads.

The strike itself, Trump said, lasted less than 30 minutes.

Casualties And Immediate Aftermath

Venezuela's vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, said that both civilians and members of the Venezuelan armed forces had been killed in the operation, though she did not provide a number.

In a statement issued after the attack, Rodriguez demanded proof of life for Maduro and Flores. Under Venezuela's constitution, she would assume power if the president were confirmed incapacitated or removed, though there was no immediate announcement that she had formally taken over.

The Venezuelan government declared a state of emergency, granting sweeping powers to suspend civil rights and expand the role of the armed forces. Officials accused the United States of attacking both civilian and military infrastructure, calling the strike an "imperialist attack."