The country has declared a state of emergency over the attack on the country. The authorities accused the US of military aggression.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that the U.S. conducted an operation in Venezuela, President Nicolas Maduro and his wife were captured and taken out of the country. He also announced his press conference on the matter on the evening of January 3.
Among the sites attacked are the Forte Tiuna area naval bases, Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda airbase, La Guaira naval base, La Carlota military airbase, Isla Margarita island in the southern Caribbean Sea, the house of Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, the former military museum and now the mausoleum of the late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez in Cuartel de La Montaña, the Historic Center, and the Venezuelan Parliament.
The possible death of the country’s Minister of Defense, whose house was shelled, is reported.
Explosions were heard near the headquarters of the Venezuelan Defense Ministry and General Staff, local publication Efecto Cocuyo reported.
Venezuelan armored vehicles were spotted on the streets of Caracas near the Miraflores presidential palace, social media said.
Explosions near a major military base in the southern part of Caracas caused a power outage, Reuters wrote.
The Venezuelan military is detaining anyone they spot near critical Caracas facilities, social media reports.
The airspace over Venezuela is completely closed.
Locals report shelling of Caracas and shootings in the city, media reports say.
Residents of Caracas are fleeing the city en masse amid explosions, media reports say.
Violent explosions were heard at Caracas International Airport and another smaller airport for military and private planes in the east, WSJ reported.
Caracas authorities recommend refraining from traveling around the city due to the drone attacks.
Amid these developments, Venezuela’s Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the US aggression against the country, and President Nicolas Maduro signed a decree declaring a state of emergency.
Venezuela’s armed forces are deployed to defend the country’s sovereignty, Foreign Minister Gil said. And added that the US attacked Venezuela to get its strategic resources.
The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee did not receive prior notice of military action on Venezuelan territory, CNN reported. However, CBS News sources citing U.S. officials said that President Trump has ordered strikes on targets inside Venezuela, including military installations.
According to Fox News, the White House confirmed that the U.S. is conducting strikes in Venezuela.
The U.S. Embassy in Colombia, which represents U.S. interests in Venezuela after the embassy in Caracas closes in 2019, issued an emergency message to U.S. citizens urging them not to visit Venezuela and for those in the country to “shelter in place” and leave the country immediately when it is safe to do so.
In the preceding months, the Donald Trump administration has repeatedly alleged the involvement of Venezuelan authorities in the drug trade and maintained sanctions pressure on the country. In mid-December 2025, Trump placed Venezuela’s leadership on the list of foreign terrorist organizations, accusing them of terrorism, drug trafficking and misappropriation of assets. At the same time, Nicolas Maduro in his New Year’s address expressed readiness for talks with the United States, including on American investments in the oil sector and cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking.
Venezuela ranks first in the world in terms of oil reserves. According to OPEC’s Annual Statistical Bulletin 2025, its reserves are estimated at 303.221 billion barrels. Saudi Arabia is in second place with 267.200 billion barrels, and Iran is in third place with 208.600 billion barrels.
