By Admin 
US President Donald Trump’s first reaction came after the massive attack in Venezuela on Saturday (January 3, 2026). He has claimed that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife are under US capture and have been taken out of the country. America captured a sitting President from his own capital, which is rarely seen in current times. This action taken during Trump’s tenure is being compared to the American operations to capture Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden.
After Saddam Hussein and Laden, now Maduro
Senior security analysts have compared Venezuela’s claims of capturing Maduro to the US campaigns to capture Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden, which changed the face of entire regions. Venezuela’s Vice President has asked for proof of Maduro and his wife being alive. A big question amidst all this is that if Maduro is really removed from power, then what will happen next for Venezuela and the region?
Experts say that the most historical example of this is the operation launched by the US in 1989 to arrest Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega. Like Maduro, Noriega also claimed victory in the disputed elections. Washington had accused him of drug trafficking and he had to face heavy pressure from the US before removing him from power.
Manuel Noriega and Maduro have similar history: Expert
Analysts say the closest historical example is the US operation to arrest Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega in 1989. Like Maduro, Noriega claimed victory in disputed elections, accused Washington of drug trafficking and faced intense US pressure before removing him from power. Noriega’s arrest followed a conventional battle in which Panamanian forces were quickly defeated.
This time there has been a tremendous difference in America’s approach. According to BBC experts, evacuating the current president and his wife from Caracas without a ground attack would prove to be a bigger operation than Noriega’s arrest. This kind of precise action was taken by America in the capital of a country, which is very sensitive from security point of view.
Nick Patton Walsh, CNN’s chief of international security affairs, said this American action is reminiscent of the campaign against Osama bin Laden and the arrest of Saddam Hussein. He called it the most massive foreign military intervention of Trump’s presidency and said that this shows the extent to which President Trump believes in freedom to act at the global level.
US Attorney General Bondi said, ‘Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been sued in the Southern District of New York. Maduro has been charged with conspiracy to commit drug-related terrorism (narco-terrorism), conspiracy to import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to commit crimes against the United States. He will soon have to face justice in American courts.
What’s next for Venezuela?
If Maduro is forcibly removed from power, the consequences within Venezuela are uncertain. Supporters of US intervention argue that it would pave the way for a democratic transition, which could allow opposition leaders like María Corina Machado or Edmundo González, opposition candidate in the disputed 2024 elections, to take power.
Criminal gangs, Colombian guerrilla groups and drug trafficking networks are active in large parts of the country. Even in the absence of Maduro, these will not disappear overnight. The most likely outcome is neither immediate democracy nor civil war, but instability, power struggles, and negotiations with military elites.