Local media channel in Caracas are reporting that airstrikes have targeted the home of Venezuela’s Minister of Defense, Vladimir Padrino López.

A V-150 “Commando” Armored Wheeled-Gun with the Venezuelan Army spotted near Miraflores Presidential Palace in the capital of Caracas.

A U.S. Air Force KC-135R “Stratotanker” Aerial-Refueling Tanker has just appeared on flight tracking to the south of Puerto Rico.

Some people need to realize, it doesn’t matter how weak the Venezuelan Armed Forces is, there is a possibility that Americans could be killed tonight in Venezuela, a high possibility if ground operations are indeed underway in Caracas. Pray for these men and women.

Footage claimed to show an attack helicopter, possibly an MH-6M Little Bird with the U.S. Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR), striking an unknown location with rockets tonight in Venezuela.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump ordered strikes on sites inside Venezuela including military facilities, U.S. officials told CBS News.

Additional footage of an attack helicopter with the U.S. Army or Marine Corps striking a site with rockets and its rotary autocannon near the Venezuelan capital of Caracas.

First statement by the Government under Venezuela’s Leader Nicolás Maduro:

“The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela rejects, repudiates, and denounces before the international community the extremely serious military aggression perpetrated by the current Government of the United States of America against Venezuelan territory and population in the civilian and military localities of the city of Caracas, capital of the Republic, and the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira. This act constitutes a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter, particularly its Articles 1 and 2, which enshrine respect for sovereignty, the legal equality of States, and the prohibition on the use of force. Such aggression threatens international peace and stability, specifically in Latin America and the Caribbean, and endangers the lives of millions of people.

The objective of this attack is none other than to seize Venezuela's strategic resources, particularly its oil and minerals, attempting to break the Nation's political independence by force. They will not succeed. After more than two hundred years of independence, the people and their legitimate Government remain steadfast in defense of sovereignty and the inalienable right to decide their own destiny. The attempt to impose a colonial war to destroy the republican form of government and force a "regime change," in alliance with the fascist oligarchy, will fail just like all previous attempts.

Since 1811, Venezuela has faced and defeated empires. When in 1902 foreign powers bombarded our coasts, President Cipriano Castro proclaimed: "The insolent boot of the foreigner has profaned the sacred soil of the Fatherland." Today, with the moral fortitude of Bolívar, Miranda, and our liberators, the Venezuelan people rise once again to defend their independence against imperialist aggression.
People to the streets

The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack. The people of Venezuela and its Bolivarian National Armed Forces, in perfect popular-military-police fusion, are deployed to guarantee sovereignty and peace. Simultaneously, the Bolivarian Diplomacy of Peace will raise the corresponding denunciations before the United Nations Security Council, the Secretary-General of that organization, CELAC, and the Non-Aligned Movement, demanding condemnation and accountability from the United States Government.

President Nicolás Maduro has ordered all national defense plans to be implemented at the appropriate time and circumstances, in strict adherence to the provisions of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Organic Law on States of Exception, and the Organic Law on National Security.

In this regard, President Nicolás Maduro has signed and ordered the implementation of the Decree declaring a State of External Commotion throughout the national territory, to protect the rights of the population, the full functioning of republican institutions, and to immediately proceed to armed struggle. The entire country must activate to defeat this imperialist aggression

Likewise, he has ordered the immediate deployment of the Command for the Comprehensive Defense of the Nation and the Comprehensive Defense Directorate Bodies in all states and municipalities of the country.

In strict adherence to Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, Venezuela reserves the right to exercise legitimate defense to protect its people, its territory, and its independence. We call on the peoples and governments of Latin America, the Caribbean, and the world to mobilize in active solidarity against this imperialist aggression.

As Supreme Commander Hugo Chávez Frías stated, “in the face of any circumstance of new difficulties, no matter how great, the response of all and every patriot… is unity, struggle, battle, and victory.”

Caracas, January 3, 2026

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has declared a state of emergency and ordered the implementation of all national defense contingencies, in response to tonight’s military operation against Venezuela by the United States.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump gave the Pentagon the “green light” to conduct land strikes in Venezuela days before the actual operation occurred, with officials discussing conducting the mission on Christmas Day, but airstrikes in Nigeria against ISIS targets took precedence, according to two U.S. officials who spoke to CBS News.

Strikes against the 4F Barracks in the mountains overlooking Venezuela’s capital of Caracas, which houses a museum and the Mausoleum of Venezuelan politician, revolutionary, and military officer Hugo Chávez.

Better footage showing some of the damage caused by airstrikes earlier against the Port of La Guaira to the north of Venezuela’s capital of Caracas.

Relatively quiet now in Venezuela. The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR) might have already went in and got out after completing whatever mission they carried out in Caracas, with the strikes appearing to be a cover for the operation by the 160th. Possibly the attempted arrest or assassination of Maduro and other officials in the Venezuelan Government.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s location is currently unknown, however, at least some members of his inner circle appear to be safe, according to two people with knowledge of the situation who spoke to The New York Times.

The Senate Armed Services Committee was not notified ahead of any potential military action taken tonight in Venezuela, a source familiar tells CNN.

Sites confirmed to have been targeted tonight in Venezuela:

-Fuerte Tiuna - Main Military Base in Caracas
-La Carlota - Main Airbase in Caracas
-El Volcán - Main Signal Antenna
-La Guaira Port - Main Port of Venezuela
-Higuerote Airport - Airbase in the State of Miranda

With many more sites likely to have also been struck, though still unconfirmed by sources on the ground in Venezuela.

Cuba’s Foreign Minister condemns tonight’s military operation by the United States against Venezuela.

The U.S. Embassy in Colombia has issued a shelter-in-place order for Americans currently in Venezuela.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump announces the successful capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in an operation tonight in Venezuela’s capital of Caracas.