Venezuela's government accused Donald Trump's administration of bombings that shook Caracas in the early hours of January 3, 2026, claiming they aim to seize the country's oil and minerals. President Nicolás Maduro called for mobilization of Venezuelan forces in response. The US aviation authority banned flights over Venezuelan airspace due to ongoing military activity.
In the early hours of Saturday, January 3, 2026, at least seven explosions rocked Caracas, with one target being the military airport La Carlota. Venezuela's government denounced that US armed forces also struck in the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira. In a statement, they asserted: “The objective of this attack is none other than to seize Venezuela's strategic resources, particularly its oil and minerals, attempting to break the nation's political independence by force. They will not succeed”.
President Nicolás Maduro activated national defense plans, stating: “All national defense plans have been put in place to be implemented at the appropriate time and circumstances, in strict adherence to the provisions of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Organic Law on States of Exception, and the Organic Law on National Security”.
According to CBS News reports, Donald Trump authorized the bombings in late December 2025. Initially scheduled for Christmas, they were postponed due to an operation against ISIS in Nigeria and unfavorable weather conditions; officials sought favorable weather for mission success.
This action marks an escalation in Trump's months-long military campaign against Venezuela, which has included reinforcing troops in the region, strikes on alleged narco-trafficking vessels, accusations that Maduro leads a terrorist organization, and blocking sanctioned oil tankers. Last month, Trump warned that his campaign “will only get bigger, and the impact on them will be like nothing they've seen before”.
Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a notice shortly after 1:00 a.m. Eastern Time, prohibiting US commercial flights over Venezuela and Curazao due to “flight safety risks associated with ongoing military activity”. Calls to the US Southern Command went unanswered.
Democratic Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii criticized the move: “The United States has no vital national interests in Venezuela that justify a war. We should have already learned not to stumble into another stupid adventure”. He added that Trump “isn't even bothering to tell the American public what's the hell is going on”.
Information based on reports from AP, Bloomberg, and CBS News.
