How the operation to take out Venezuela's Maduro unfolded

The order came at 10:46pm ET on Friday night, along with a message from President Trump: "Good luck and godspeed."The big picture: Trump's order sent 150 aircraft into the skies, triggered a stunning raid on Nicolás Maduro's fortified compound, and ended with the Venezuelan leader blindfolded on a U.S. battleship and the future of his country entirely uncertain, but seemingly in Trump's hands.The planning began months earlier, with special forces soldiers training on a replica of Maduro's home, the CIA laying the groundwork in Venezuela, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller advocating for action from Washington.Here's what we know about how the operation came together, based on public statements from Trump and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, and interviews with sources familiar with the details.How the night unfoldedHelicopters carrying an "extraction force" of U.S. special forces and FBI agents skimmed just 100 feet over the Caribbean Sea, with an array of fighter jets, bombers and drones overhead, launched from 20 bases on land and sea.As the choppers closed in on Maduro's compound, the aircraft overhead took out air defense systems in their path. Trump said the U.S. also cut the power, blanketing the area in darkness.The helicopters came under fire as they reached the "target area," Caine said. One was hit but remained flyable. And then U.S. boots hit the ground. Smoke billows from Ft. Tiuna, a large military base in Caracas that was struck during the U.S. attack. Photo: AFP via Getty ImagesThe time was 1:01am. The extraction force was being fed real-time intelligence from colleagues on the ground and in the air as they closed in on Maduro.Meanwhile, Trump was watching a live feed from Mar-a-Lago, with a team that included Caine, Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. The president said the arriving U.S. force faced "a lot of gunfire" but managed to breach "the opposition" and enter the compound. Trump claimed Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, tried to flee to a steel-reinforced safe room but were apprehended before they could reach it.The team had practiced in case they'd needed to blow the steel door, and even brought along blowtorches, he said. It took "47 seconds, they say, on average."That proved unnecessary. Maduro and Flores were in custody. Now it was time to get out. The aftermath of U.S. strikes at Fort Tiuna in Caracas. Photo: "Satellite image ©2026 Vantor."Additional helicopters arrived to aid the exfiltration, while fighter jets and drones "provided overhead coverage and suppressive fire," Caine said."There were multiple self defense engagements as the force began to withdraw out of Venezuela," the general continued. No U.S. troops were killed in the mission, but Trump confirmed "a few" were wounded. The Venezuelan casualties aren't yet known. "The force was over the water at 3:29am," per Caine. At 4:21am, Trump informed the world, via Truth Social. Later, the White House and Trump shared an image of a blindfolded Maduro aboard the USS Iwo Jima. President Trump shared this photo via Truth Social of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on board USS Iwo Jima on Saturday. Photo: President Trump's Truth Social pageThe preparationsA small CIA team spent months on the ground in Venezuela tracking Maduro's locations and habits, a source familiar with the operation told Axios.That work began in August, and provided "extraordinary insight into Maduro's pattern of life that made grabbing him seamless," the source said.Caine said the U.S. knew "where he lived, where he traveled, what he ate, what he wore... his pets."Meanwhile, according to Trump, U.S. special forces were practicing on a replica of Maduro's "fortress.""They actually built a house which was identical to the one they went into, with all the safes, all the steel all over the place," he told Fox News on Saturday.The operation nearly took place four days earlier but was called off due to weather, according to Trump. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who discussed Venezuela with Trump on Thursday, told Axios the operation "has been formulating" for the past couple of weeks."Over the weeks through Christmas and New Year's, the men and women of the United States military sat ready, patiently waiting for the right triggers to be met and the president to order us into action," Caine said. Gen. Caine speaks alongside Trump at the press conference on Saturday. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty ImageFor months, plan A had remained that Maduro would step down voluntarily, multiple Trump advisers told Axios.Trump told Fox News on Saturday that he'd spoken to Maduro multiple times, including one week ago. "I said you have to give up, you have to surrender."Maduro was prepared to negotiate, but not to evacuate. Trump gave the order.How we got hereBefore he even took office last year, Trump and his advisers let Maduro know they wanted him to leave office.The plan for regime change "grew organically" over nearly a year as Trump began to focus more and more on Venezuela, beginning with a decision in the spring about whether to approve a license for Chevron to bring Venezuelan oil into the United States, a U.S. official told Axios.In August, the administration increased its bounty to $50 million for information leading to Maduro's arrest on drug trafficking charges. Soon after, the U.S. began sending a massive array of warships, spy planes, fighter jets, bombers, drones, and U.S. Marines to the waters off Venezuela. Then came the attacks on alleged drug boats off Venezuela and Trump's public disclosure that he'd authorized CIA covert operations.More recently, the U.S. seized two tankers carrying Venezuelan oil and Trump announced a blockade.Around Christmas, one Trump adviser told Axios that "Maduro is trying to act like everything is ok with him. And it's not." Maduro dances on stage during a ceremony in Caracas on Dec. 10. Photo: Jesus Vargas/Getty ImagesThe growing consensus for direct action in the West Wing was shaped in part by Rubio's longtime antagonism toward Venezuela and its ally Cuba, for which Venezuelan oil is a crucial lifeline.Another factor was Miller, who has advocated for years for a more robust military presence in the Caribbean to stop human smuggling and mass immigration."People think Marco is the one who wants to bomb. Stephen is much more inclined," a Trump adviser told Axios before the operation.In the weeks leading up to Trump's order, there were regular calls between Rubio, Miller, Hegseth, and Ratcliffe, a source familiar with those discussions said. "They had consistent meetings and phone calls, sometimes even daily… often meeting both with the president and separately."What's nextThe military's plan to capture Maduro appeared much more finely tuned than the political planning for who, exactly, would replace him.Trump announced the U.S. was "going to be running" the country — but it was unclear whether that would happen via dictates from Washington or with a U.S. political and military presence on the ground.Trump told the NY Post that it would depend on Maduro's vice president, Delcy Rodríguez. She spoke by phone with Rubio on Saturday and Trump said Maduro's heir apparent seemed "willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again."Soon afterward, Rodríguez held a press conference alongside Venezuela's defense minister and other officials, in which she declared that Maduro remained the legitimate president and Venezuela would be "nobody's slave and nobody's colony." Venezuelan VP Delcy Rodríguez. Photo: Federico Parra/AFP via GettyEngagement with the current officeholders in Caracas will continue, but the U.S. military will also "remain postured" in case Trump decides another attack is necessary, a U.S. official told Axios.Meanwhile, the administration plans to consult with oil executives about expanding Venezuela's output, the official said. Trump's declared embargo "will remain in effect," and the strikes on alleged drug boats will continue.As for Maduro, "he will face trial and American justice."Colin Demarest contributed reporting.