July 19, 2026

Venezuela US Conflict

Venezuelan opposition leader makes first public appearance in months– www.france24.com

pgnewser December 12, 2025 0

Blurb:

Maria Corina Machado, Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, appeared publicly for the first time in nearly a year Thursday, waving to supporters from her Oslo hotel balcony. Her daughter accepted the award on her behalf Wednesday, as Machado arrived in Norway only hours later, ending a long period in hiding under Maduro’s regime.
from www.france24.com

Trump sanctions Venezuelan model over alleged support for Tren de Aragua– www.washingtonexaminer.com

pgnewser December 12, 2025 0

Blurb:

President Donald Trump leveled sanctions against a major Venezuelan model and influencer over her alleged support for the Tren de Aragua gang.

Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, also known as Rosita, is a famous Venezuelan model, influencer, and DJ who performs at clubs internationally. She’s known for her sizable social media presence, boasting over 3.5 million followers on Instagram, where she posts videos showcasing her glamorous lifestyle. She’s also “romantically linked” to the leader of TdA, Niño Guerrero, and one of the most notable members of the entertainment industry to provide critical support for the deadly TdA.

The designated foreign terrorist organization is known for crimes, including drug trafficking, human trafficking, extortion, sexual exploitation of women and children, money laundering, and murder-for-hire, according to the Treasury Department.

White House briefing after oil tanker seized off Venezuelan coast– www.washingtonexaminer.com

pgnewser December 12, 2025 0

Blurb:

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt will hold a press briefing at around 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, a day after the United States seized an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast.

President Donald Trump said the U.S. seized the tanker on Wednesday.

“We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very large, largest one ever seized, actually,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

He later added that “it was seized for a very good reason.”

US preparing to seize more tankers off Venezuela’s coast after first ship taken, sources say– www.channelnewsasia.com

pgnewser December 12, 2025 0

Blurb:

Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA did not reply to a request for comment. Venezuela’s government this week said the US seizure constituted a “theft.” The White House National Security Council did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

The US has assembled a target list of several more sanctioned tankers for possible seizure, according to one of the people familiar with the matter.

The US Justice Department and Homeland Security had been planning the seizures for months, according to two of the people.

A reduction or halt in Venezuelan oil exports, the main generator of revenue for the Venezuelan government, would strain the Maduro government’s finances.

Venezuela Responds to U.S. Aircraft Carrier Presence with Nationwide Military Drills

pgnewser November 12, 2025 0

After the United States confirmed that the Gerald R. Ford Carrier group were in Venezuela’s region, Venezuela announced plans to conduct a large-scale, nationwide military drill involving 200,000 troops. The drill will be called the “Plan Indepenencia 200.”

The Venezuelan government accused the U.S. of “murdering defenseless people, whether or not they are drug traffickers, executing them without due process.” FYI, there is no due process in Venezuela for its citizens.

Blurb:

Venezuela launches huge military exercise as U.S. Navy flotilla nears Caribbean waters – CBS News

Venezuela announced Tuesday that it was launching a massive military exercise across the country, reportedly involving some 200,000 forces, in response to the increasing presence of U.S. military assets in the region. The announcement by Venezuela’s military came as the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford had entered the Southern Command’s area of responsibility — which includes the Caribbean.

JUST IN: Trump Announces Destruction of Another Venezuelan Drug Boat — Six Narcoterrorists Killed– conservativeroof.com

pgnewser October 15, 2025 0

Blurb:

President Trump on Tuesday announced another successful strike in international waters against a Venezuelan drug vessel, “affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO),” he said.

This comes as the US has launched a series of attacks on narcoterrorists trafficking narcotics to the United States. Earlier this month, Trump announced the destruction of a vessel, which was carrying a “substantial amounts of narcotics,” War Secretary Pete Hegseth said. According to President Trump, that boat was carrying “enough drugs to kill 25 TO 50 THOUSAND PEOPLE.”

A war on Venezuela would be a war on reality– www.theblaze.com

pgnewser October 14, 2025 0

Blurb:

The drums of war are echoing across the Caribbean. U.S. warships patrol the southern sea lanes, and squadrons of F-35s wait on standby in Puerto Rico. Strike lists are reportedly being drafted in Washington. The question is not whether the United States can act but whether it should. And more importantly: Who is the real enemy?

All signs point to Venezuela, long a fixation of neoconservatives who see regime change as a cure-all. For years, some in the Republican Party have argued that Venezuela sits at the center of Latin America’s drug trade and that military action is overdue.

26 years of dictatorship and narcoterrorism in Venezuela are about to end– thehill.com

pgnewser October 14, 2025 0

Blurb:

The U.S. is at war with drug cartels. The news should be cause for celebration, but some are trying to discredit and derail these efforts.

According to the detractors, the Cartel of the Suns doesn’t exist. Killing drug traffickers is a war crime. The U.S., they argue, should relinquish its regional leadership and pursue ostrich diplomacy.

In this context of retorts and recriminations, the Trump administration is not giving up or giving in. On the contrary, it is determined to track, kill and destroy the drug cartels. This isn’t propaganda; it’s a promise being fulfilled in real time.

Venezuela to close embassy in Norway after opposition leader wins Nobel Peace Prize– www.euronews.com

pgnewser October 14, 2025 0

Blurb:

Venezuela has said it will close its embassy in Norway, days after opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo.

Norway’s foreign ministry said that the Venezuelan embassy had not given any explanation for its decision on Monday.

“It is regrettable. Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue open with Venezuela and will continue to work in this direction,” a foreign ministry spokesperson said.

As Trump Halts Venezuela Talks, Military Action Appears to Be on the Table– legalinsurrection.com

pgnewser October 9, 2025 0

Blurb:

The U.S. military has been steadily racking up hits on Venezuelan cartel drug boats:

It appears more military action may now be on the table as President Donald Trump has officially ended diplomatic talks with Venezuela, shutting down negotiations led by presidential envoy Richard Grenell.

The move signals potential military escalation against President Nicolás Maduro’s government and his alleged drug trafficking networks.

President Trump has stopped diplomatic discussions with Venezuela in his bid to end drug trafficking and cartels operating in the U.S., according to a report by The New York Times.

The outlet cited U.S. officials and claimed Trump has closed the door on negotiations, potentially setting in motion increased military action against drug traffickers, cartel ships or President Nicolás Maduro’s government.

According to the report, Richard Grenell, the special presidential envoy who was leading talks with Maduro, was informed Oct. 2. that all diplomatic contact must stop.

The Trump administration has accused Maduro of overseeing a “narco-state,” indicting him on drug trafficking charges and offering a $50 million reward for his arrest.

Report: In Venezuela, Cartels Are Part of Regime | OCCRP

As the U.S. bombs Cartel Boats off its Coast, Venezuela Hints at War with U.S.

pgnewser October 6, 2025 0

Report: In Venezuela, Cartels Are Part of Regime | OCCRP

Venezuela vows to defend itself after US military destroys another ‘drug-smuggling’ boat – Morning Star | The People’s Daily
Source Link
Excerpt:

VENEZUELA is ready to defend itself against “warlike aggression” by the United States, the country’s leaders vowed at the weekend after the US military destroyed a fourth alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean….

Mr Trump claimed on social media that the boat had been “loaded with enough drugs to kill 25 TO 50 THOUSAND PEOPLE” and implied that it was “entering American Territory” while off the coast of Venezuela.

President Nicolas Maduro told the Caracas conference that his country was ready to defend itself.

“Venezuela has the right to peace, to sovereignty, to existence, and no empire in this world can take it away,” he said.

“And if it is necessary to move from an unarmed struggle to an armed struggle, this people will do so … Colonialism no more.”

Neighbouring Colombia’s left-wing President Gustavo Petro accused the US of committing “murder” and urged the victims’ families to “join forces.”

Posting on X, he said: “There are no narco-terrorists on the boats. Drug traffickers live in the US, Europe and Dubai. On that boat are poor Caribbean youth.”

Boom! FBI Shuts Down Maduro’s International Money Laundry – RedState– redstate.com

pgnewser October 6, 2025 0

Boom! FBI Shuts Down Maduro’s International Money Laundry – RedState– redstate.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Venezuelan El Presidente and de facto dictator Nicolás Maduro has had his hands full with all the Venezuelan drug-carrying speedboats suddenly being converted to flying spare parts and their crews being turned into low-grade fish food, courtesy of the United States War Department. But now he is having a bad case of the smuggler’s blues, as the American FBI has taken down a huge money-laundering operation tied to the dictator through his kids.

El Presidente is no doubt feeling maladjusted over all this.

 The FBI says two men have been indicted in connection with an alleged money-laundering scheme tied to Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro’s children.

The indictments come after a years-long investigation that dates back to 2019 when the FBI’s Miami Field Office launched the probe based on indications that Arick Komarczyk opened U.S. bank accounts for Maduro’s children and their U.S.-based associates. Suspicious Activity Reports allegedly showed that Komarczyk received wire transfers from individuals and businesses in Venezuela, according to the FBI.

An undercover operation in 2022 revealed that Komarczyk and his associate, Irazmar Carbajal, agreed to move $100,000 of what the FBI believed to be sanctioned money belonging to members of Venezuela’s government. The FBI said the men moved about $25,000 into the U.S.

The bureau noted that when confronted about the situation, Kormarczyk was not alarmed, rather he called it “sexy business.”

‘Can’t find any’: Trump says ‘no boats’ left after US strikes near Venezuela; calls it ‘act of kindness’– timesofindia.indiatimes.com

pgnewser October 6, 2025 0

‘Can’t find any’: Trump says ‘no boats’ left after US strikes near Venezuela; calls it ‘act of kindness’– timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that US military strikes on small boats near Venezuela have been so effective that “there are no boats” left in the area. He warned that traffickers will now be “forced to go by land.“Speaking to Navy personnel at the naval base in Norfolk, Virginia, Trump praised the operations, which Washington says aim to stop drug shipments to the United States. “We’re stopping drugs at a level that nobody’s ever seen,” he said.

‘Ready For War’: Maduro’s PUBLIC DECLARATION After U.S. Military Attack On Venezuela Boat

He added: “We’re so good at it that there are no boats. In fact, even fishing boats – nobody wants to go into the water anymore. Sorry to tell you that. We just can’t find any.” Trump warned that the crackdown may extend to land routes if traffickers are forced to shift. “They’re not coming in by sea any more, so now we’ll have to start looking at the land, because they’ll be forced to go by land. And let me tell you right now, that’s not going to work out well for them either,” he said.Last month, the US military launched an extensive attack. The US navy carried out an airstrike in early September in the southern Caribbean on a boat from Venezuela, killing all 11 people on board. Trump released a video of the strike.US officials say at least 21 people have been killed in the strikes so far. The White House claims that at least four boats have been destroyed, preventing drugs from reaching the United States. Video released by the Pentagon showed an open speedboat suddenly engulfed in smoke and flames.Trump also mentioned another strike “last night,” although the last publicly announced Pentagon operation was on Friday, when four unidentified people described as “narco-terrorists” were killed on a small boat off Venezuela.

Venezuela’s machinery of repression: Inside the UN’s harrowing 2025 human-rights report– www.miamiherald.com

pgnewser September 23, 2025 0

Venezuela’s machinery of repression: Inside the UN’s harrowing 2025 human-rights report– www.miamiherald.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

 

On a December night last year in Caracas, opposition activist Jesús Armas stepped out of a café and walked toward his car. Before he could reach it, at least five hooded men dressed in black surrounded him. They asked only his name before forcing him into a gold SUV with no license plates. There was no warrant, no explanation, no indication of where he was being taken. For weeks, his family searched for him. Only later did they discover he had been transferred to El Helicoide, the notorious intelligence prison run by Venezuela’s feared Bolivarian National Intelligence Service.

Trump eyes Venezuela regime change as warships near the coast

Trump Ups Ante on Venezuela Showdown with Demand they Take Criminal Deportees Back

pgnewser September 22, 2025 0

Trump eyes Venezuela regime change as warships near the coast

Trump demands Venezuela take back criminals, threatens ‘incalculable price’ if they refuse– www.washingtontimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

President Trump demanded that Venezuela accept “prisoners and people from mental institutions” that are in the United States.

“We want Venezuela to immediately accept all of the prisoners, and people from mental institutions, which includes the Worst in the World Insane Asylums, that Venezuelan ‘Leadership’ has forced into the United States of America,” he wrote on Truth Social Saturday.

“Thousands of people have been badly hurt, and even killed, by these ‘Monsters,’ he wrote, adding all caps, “Get them the hell out of our country, right now, or the price you pay will be incalculable.”

The Trump administration Friday asked the Supreme Court to end protections for Venezuelans in the U.S. Over 300,000 migrants from Venezuela have been granted Temporary Protection Status, which stops them from being deported and allows them to get work permits and apply for some taxpayer benefits.

The case has been batted around the courts for months, and the justices previously blocked a district court preliminary injunction that had ordered the president to keep the Temporary Protected Status program running.

Venezuelan president’s YouTube account offline as tensions with US escalate– abcnews.go.com

pgnewser September 22, 2025 0

Venezuelan president’s YouTube account offline as tensions with US escalate– abcnews.go.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

BOGOTA, Colombia — The YouTube account of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was offline Saturday, with Venezuelan state-run channel Telesur claiming in a message on X that it was “eliminated” late the previous night without justification.

YouTube’s parent company Google did not immediately respond to questions on the apparent termination of the Venezuelan president’s account. It comes amid rising tensions between Venezuela and the United States over the deployment of American warships and fighter jets in the southern Caribbean.

Maduro’s YouTube account had more than 200,000 followers before it became unavailable Friday and was used to publish the Venezuelan president’s speeches, as well as clips from his weekly show on Venezuelan state TV.

On its website, YouTube says it eliminates accounts that commit “repeated violations of community guidelines” that include publishing misinformation, hate speech and content that “interferes with democratic processes.”

Maduro has been widely accused of stealing last year’s presidential election in Venezuela, which he lost by a landslide according to tally sheets gathered by hundreds of Venezuelan opposition activists. Venezuela’s elections agency, which is controlled by the ruling socialist party, never published tally sheets to support its claim that Maduro won the vote.