Maduro sends first message from American prison

The son of ousted Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro has said his father is “well” in the United States, where he is imprisoned and facing trial on drug trafficking charges.

Nicolás Maduro Guerra, widely known as “Nicolasito,” cited a message from his father relayed through lawyers in a video published on January 10 by a party official, Caliber.Az reports, citing Colombian media.

“The lawyers have told us he is strong. He said we should not be sad, that ‘we are well, we are fighters’,” Maduro Guerra said, quoting his father.

He added that Maduro had “resisted all attempts to defeat him, even in the face of disproportionate force, but they did not succeed. He is strong.”

On January 3, 2026, the United States launched a major military and law‑enforcement operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, US officials said.

The mission, code‑named Operation Absolute Resolve, involved coordinated strikes, special forces deployment, and disabling Venezuelan air‑defence systems in and around Caracas. Maduro and Flores were taken into custody during a predawn raid and subsequently flown to the United States to face federal charges, including drug trafficking and narco‑terrorism.

President Donald Trump announced the success of the operation, describing it as a necessary action to confront alleged criminal conduct and asserting that the US would oversee a transition in Venezuela. He also suggested that American oil companies could invest in repairing Venezuela’s energy infrastructure.

The raid was violent: Pentagon officials confirmed several US personnel were injured, though none fatally, and independent reporting placed Venezuelan and allied casualties in the dozens.

International reactions were sharply divided. The United Nations and other global leaders raised serious concerns about the legality of the incursion and its impact on regional stability, arguing that it may violate international law and Venezuelan sovereignty.

Maduro has pleaded not guilty in a Manhattan federal court, rejecting US jurisdiction and maintaining he is Venezuela’s legitimate president.

By Aghakazim Guliyev