Venezuelans Celebrate as Maduro Is Captured by U.S. Forces

By COLlive reporter

Venezuelans across the globe took to the streets following a U.S. military operation in Venezuela and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Maduro has been in power since 2013, when he succeeded longtime Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez, presiding over a period marked by economic decline despite the country’s vast oil wealth.

He and his wife were captured by elite U.S. forces amid airstrikes and power outages, with no American fatalities.

They now face federal charges of narco-terrorism, cocaine trafficking, and weapons crimes from a 2020 indictment, linked to ties with Colombian guerrillas. They are being held in New York.

Venezuelans in Miami, Florida; Chile; Peru; Ecuador; and Madrid, Spain, donned Venezuela’s national colors and waved flags hours after President Donald Trump announced that Maduro and his wife had been flown out of the country following an overnight U.S. military operation.

Ecstatic crowds also gathered in Santiago, Chile, where one child held a sign reading “Somos Libres,” meaning “We Are Free.”

The demonstrations reflected the scale of Venezuela’s diaspora, which has grown dramatically during Maduro’s years in power, as millions fled what critics describe as an economic collapse marked by hyperinflation and widespread food shortages.

Since 2017, roughly 8 million people have fled Venezuela, making it one of the world’s largest displacement crises, according to the U.N. Refugee Agency.

Venezuelan workers at the main shul at 770 Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights shared the news with congregants who arrived on Shabbos morning.

“My country is free!” one of them said. “Maduro was handcuffed and taken to the United States.”

One member of the Jewish community in Caracas, who was visiting New York, said he was overjoyed to hear the news. His only regret, he added, was not being in Venezuela when it happened.

“We have been waiting for this moment for a long time,” he said.

Venezuela has closely aligned itself with the anti-Israel camp.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar wrote in a statement: “Israel congratulates the operation of the United States, led by President Trump, who acted as the leader of the free world.

“In this historic moment, Israel stands with the freedom-loving Venezuelan people, who have suffered under the illegal tyranny of Maduro.

“Israel celebrates the removal of the dictator who led a network of drugs and terrorism and hopes that democracy returns to the country and friendly relations between the states.

“The people of Venezuela deserve to exercise their democratic rights. South America deserves a future free from the axis of terrorism and drugs.”

The Hamas terror organization, responsible for the October 7 massacre, condemned the move. Israel’s Foreign Ministry responded: “If Hamas opposes something you did, you can be sure you did something right.”

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