Overnight the city's darkness was punctured by flashes of orange and the roar of aircraft echoing around the valley, as US President Donald Trump announced a "large-scale" strike against Venezuela and captured the country's President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.

President Trump claimed overnight that the United States carried out airstrikes in Venezuela and captured President Nicolás Maduro.

Videos posted on social media showed huge explosions in Caracas. La Carlota, a small airport used for military and private flights in the city, appeared to be hit by blasts, according to the footage,

Now in US custody, Nicolás Maduro and his wife were transported some 2,100 miles (3,400km), to New York City. They were flown out of Caracas by helicopter, and taken to the USS Iwo Jima, a warship stationed in the Caribbean. The team was back "over the water" by 04:29, Gen Caine said.

The rise of Venezuela's deposed president, Nicolás Maduro, was slow, beginning in youth politics and shaped by the mentorship of Hugo Chávez. His fall, too, unfolded over years.

Thousands of protesters gathered in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas to demand the release of President Nicolás Maduro following his capture and removal by the U.S. Following Maduro's capture, President Trump said that the U.

The Canadian government therefore welcomes the opportunity for freedom, democracy, peace, and prosperity for the Venezuelan people," Carney posted on social media more than 12 hours after news broke of Maduro's capture.