Caracas | In a dramatic turn of events, Venezuela’s Supreme Court of Justice has ordered Vice President Delcy Rodríguez to assume the role of interim president of the nation. The court’s Constitutional Chamber ruled late Saturday that Rodríguez must take over all presidential duties to “guarantee administrative continuity and the comprehensive defense of the Nation” during what it described as the “forced absence” of the head of state. This landmark ruling came just hours after sitting President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores were captured by U.S. forces during a massive military operation in Caracas and whisked away to American soil.
The capture, codenamed “Operation Absolute Resolve,” involved a lightning strike by U.S. forces early Saturday morning. According to statements from U.S. President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi, Maduro was taken from his fortified residence at the Fort Tiuna military base and flown to New York City. He now faces a litany of serious criminal charges, including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation, and weapons-related offenses. U.S. officials have alleged that Maduro led a state-sponsored drug trafficking ring that funneled massive quantities of narcotics into the United States.
While the Supreme Court has installed Rodríguez to maintain the country’s legal and administrative structure, she has publicly denounced the U.S. intervention, demanding “proof of life” for Maduro and insisting that he remains the legitimate leader of Venezuela. Meanwhile, the international community is deeply divided; while the U.S. administration claims the move was necessary to dismantle a criminal regime, the UN and several other nations have raised concerns over the violation of national sovereignty and international law. As Maduro awaits his first court appearance in a federal facility in Brooklyn, the eyes of the world are on Caracas, where the newly appointed interim president faces the daunting task of navigating a nation in the midst of its greatest political upheaval in decades.
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