United States President Donald Trump is set to visit special operations troops on Friday who were involved in the January raid that led to the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
The visit will take place at Fort Bragg, where Trump will be joined by First Lady Melania Trump, according to the White House.
The operation, carried out in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, involved U.S. forces deploying by helicopter under cover of darkness to seize Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from a heavily guarded compound on January 3. Venezuelan authorities reported that 83 people were killed and more than 112 injured in the assault, which they said began with U.S. airstrikes on military installations.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president and first lady would meet military families and members of the special forces who conducted the mission, known as “Operation Absolute Resolve,” describing it as a success that brought “narco-terrorist Nicolas Maduro to justice.”
Maduro is currently being held in the United States and faces charges including drug trafficking. He has pleaded not guilty, and his next court appearance is scheduled for March 17 in New York.
Following Maduro’s removal, Trump approved former vice president Delcy Rodriguez to assume leadership, contingent on meeting U.S. demands related to oil access and reducing state repression.
The president has repeatedly praised the raid, citing it as evidence of American military strength and influence in Venezuela. Speaking at a rally in Iowa in January, Trump called the mission “spectacular” and lauded the personnel involved as exceptionally skilled and patriotic.
In a recent interview with NBC News, Trump also referred to a classified capability he described as the “discombobulate,” claiming it disabled Venezuelan equipment during the operation. “I’m not allowed to talk about it,” he said, adding that it rendered opposing equipment inoperable.