Witness testimonies circulated of multiple blasts and the noise of low-altitude aircraft in the Venezuelan capital in the early hours of Saturday. The incident has prompted claims from the Venezuelan government and calls for international intervention.
The authoritarian administration has condemned the Washington of what it calls "imperial aggression," alleging that former President Donald Trump supposedly directed attacks against the Latin American state. In an formal statement, the government stated that strikes had impacted the capital and several other provinces: Miranda, La Guaira, and Aragua state.
"Our sole aim of this aggression is to seize control of our nation's key assets, in particular its petroleum and resources," the government asserted.
Caracas called on the world to censure the actions, which it termed a "clear infringement of international norms" that placed numerous of lives in jeopardy.
Locals reported experiencing roughly seven explosions around 2:00 AM local time. Citizens in different districts allegedly hurried into the open.
"The whole ground shook. It was frightening. We heard blasts and aircraft in the sky," commented one witness.
Black smoke was reported billowing from major army bases in Caracas: the La Carlota military airfield and the Fuerte Tiuna military base, where leader Maduro is thought to reside.
The leader of neighboring Colombia, stated on social media that "At this moment they are bombing Caracas... bombing it with missiles." He demanded an immediate emergency session of the Security Council.
The Colombian government, which just became a member of the UNSC, said it would initiate security plans at its frontier with its neighbor.
These reported attacks follow a extended campaign of pressure by the Trump administration against the Maduro administration. Since August, there has been a significant US military deployment off Venezuela's northern coast and a series of air strikes on ships suspected of narco-trafficking.
Venezuela's administration has declared "the implementation of emergency" and ordered all defense protocols to be activated. It has also urged its supporters to mobilize and "repudiate this external aggression."
US authorities and the US Department of Defense did not publicly addressed requests for a statement regarding the events.
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