Trump claims US hit major site in Venezuela, offers no specifics

"The Daily Baku" reports that, speaking on Friday with Republican donor and New York businessman John Catsimatidis, Trump said US forces had destroyed what he described as a major plant or installation linked to maritime activity. “They have a big facility where ships operate. Two nights ago, we took it out. We hit them very hard,” he said.

He expanded on the claim on Monday, stating that there had been a “significant explosion” at a dock area allegedly used to load drug shipments onto boats. “We struck the area,” Trump said, adding that both the vessels and the operational site had been eliminated.

After meeting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump reiterated that US forces had targeted what he called the operational hub supporting drug trafficking, saying the site was no longer functioning.

In October, Trump confirmed that he had authorized the CIA to carry out covert actions inside Venezuela, citing illegal immigration and drug smuggling as the main reasons. He accused Venezuela of allowing criminals and narcotics to enter the United States, claims repeatedly denied by Caracas.

“The Daily Baku” reports that, If verified, the strike would represent the first known US attack on Venezuelan territory since Washington began reinforcing its military presence in the region to counter what the administration describes as drug trafficking operations directed by President Nicolás Maduro.

What began as a military deployment aimed at interdicting narcotics has evolved into a broader effort to disrupt Venezuela’s oil exports, effectively restricting tanker traffic except for shipments by Chevron, the only US-licensed exporter of Venezuelan crude.

Trump has repeatedly warned that the campaign could expand to include direct strikes inside Venezuela, a move that would normally require approval from Congress.

Video shared online on 24 December appeared to show an explosion in an industrial area of San Francisco municipality in Venezuela’s Zulia state, though neither the footage nor the site has been independently verified. A US official later told CNN that Trump was referring to a drug-related facility.

The Venezuelan government has not commented on Trump’s remarks, and no independent confirmation of the incident has emerged from within the country.

The growing US military presence — described by the White House as a maritime “quarantine” — represents the largest naval enforcement operation of Trump’s presidency. While officials avoid calling it a blockade, they acknowledge that roughly 15,000 US personnel, including a carrier strike group, F-35 aircraft and Coast Guard vessels, are deployed across the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico to enforce sanctions.