U.S. Launches First Known Drone Strike Inside Venezuela
World
In early December, the United States carried out a drone strike on a coastal facility in Venezuela, marking the first known U.S. attack on a target inside the country rather than at sea.
The CIA conducted a drone strike on a port facility along Venezuela’s coast in early December, CNN reported, citing sources familiar with the operation.
According to the sources, the target was a remote pier believed by U.S. authorities to be used by the criminal group Tren de Aragua to store drugs and ship them by sea. No people were present at the site at the time of the strike, and no casualties were reported.
One CNN source said the strike was successful, destroying the pier and boats located there, but described it as largely symbolic, noting that it was only one of many port facilities used by Venezuelan drug traffickers.
CNN notes that this was the first known instance of the United States striking a target inside Venezuela, rather than in international waters.
President Donald Trump did not directly confirm the strike but said in a December 26 interview that the U.S. had destroyed a “major facility from which ships depart.” Two days later, he stated that the attack targeted “dock areas where vessels are loaded with drugs,” adding that boats and infrastructure were hit.
The CIA declined to comment.
U.S.–Venezuela relations have sharply deteriorated since Trump’s return to the White House. The U.S. administration does not recognize Nicolás Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate president and accuses his government of failing to adequately combat drug trafficking. Since the fall, the U.S. has carried out strikes against vessels at sea allegedly transporting narcotics. CNN reports that at least 95 people have been killed in those operations, though no previous attacks inside Venezuela had been publicly disclosed.
According to the sources, the target was a remote pier believed by U.S. authorities to be used by the criminal group Tren de Aragua to store drugs and ship them by sea. No people were present at the site at the time of the strike, and no casualties were reported.
One CNN source said the strike was successful, destroying the pier and boats located there, but described it as largely symbolic, noting that it was only one of many port facilities used by Venezuelan drug traffickers.
CNN notes that this was the first known instance of the United States striking a target inside Venezuela, rather than in international waters.
President Donald Trump did not directly confirm the strike but said in a December 26 interview that the U.S. had destroyed a “major facility from which ships depart.” Two days later, he stated that the attack targeted “dock areas where vessels are loaded with drugs,” adding that boats and infrastructure were hit.
The CIA declined to comment.
U.S.–Venezuela relations have sharply deteriorated since Trump’s return to the White House. The U.S. administration does not recognize Nicolás Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate president and accuses his government of failing to adequately combat drug trafficking. Since the fall, the U.S. has carried out strikes against vessels at sea allegedly transporting narcotics. CNN reports that at least 95 people have been killed in those operations, though no previous attacks inside Venezuela had been publicly disclosed.
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