Trump Abducts Maduro in 2.5-Hour Raid, Backing Delcy Rodríguez Instead of New Elections
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · May 17
Trump Abducts Maduro in 2.5-Hour Raid, Backing Delcy Rodríguez Instead of New Elections
4 articles · Updated · The Guardian · May 17
A 2.5-hour US assault on 3 January seized Nicolás Maduro, ended his 13-year rule and killed scores of Cuban and Venezuelan troops plus at least three civilians, residents and officials said.
Trump then recognized Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez, not the opposition, in a move diplomats and analysts tie to US interest in Venezuela’s oil and a foreign-policy win after the Iran debacle.
That intervention has opened political space: hundreds of prisoners have been freed, exiles and dissidents have re-emerged, and protests now openly demand elections and the release of roughly 500 detainees still held.
Rodríguez has offered no timetable for a vote, while Trump officials tout rapid progress and warmer ties on the first US commercial flight to Caracas in more than seven years.
For many Venezuelans, the result is a jarring mix of hope and fear: Maduro is gone, but civilian casualties, damaged neighborhoods and a US-backed authoritarian successor leave the transition unresolved.
How did Maduro's own vice president become the key to Washington's controversial new plan for Venezuela's future?
Is Venezuela's new US-backed government a path to democracy or a new form of foreign control over its vast oil reserves?
Will the 'Donroe Doctrine' secure US dominance, or will this resource-focused strategy ultimately backfire on the global stage?