State Department warns US citizens to leave Venezuela

The warning came amid reports of armed militias.

Last Updated: January 11, 2026, 10:28 PM EST

Deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife appeared in a federal court in New York City on Monday, following their capture by U.S. forces over the weekend in a military operation in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas.

Following the operation, President Donald Trump said that the U.S. would "run" Venezuela for an unspecified "period of time."

Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez has been sworn in as interim leader to lead the country after what the Venezuelan Supreme Court described as Maduro's "kidnapping."

Jan 05, 2026, 11:45 AM EST

Nicolas Maduro retains Julian Assange lawyer

Nicolas Maduro has retained Barry Pollack, according to a notice on the court docket posted Monday.

The notice did not say when Pollack was retained or how he might be getting paid. Maduro's finances are expected to be addressed during his initial appearance on Monday. Pollack previously represented, among others, Julian Assange.

Ousted President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela and his wife, Cilia Flores arrive at the Wall Street Heliport in New York City, January 5, 2026.
Adam Gray/Reuters

A Texas lawyer, Mark Donnelly, is representing the wife of Nicolas Maduro, according to a notice filed Monday with the court. He applied for pro hac vice admission to represent Cilia Flores during her prosecution in New York.

The notice does not say when Donnelly was retained or how he will be paid.

Donnelly and Pollack have not returned messages from ABC News seeking comment.

-ABC News' Aaron Katersky

Jan 05, 2026, 4:10 AM EST

Xi condemns 'hegemonic bullying' after US attack on Venezuela

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday condemned what he called "unilateral hegemonic bullying" in his first public comments since the U.S. attack on Venezuela.

China's President Xi Jinping talks to Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin during a bilateral meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, on Jan. 5, 2026.
Andy Wong/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Speaking after a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin in Beijing, Xi did not mention the U.S. by name, but appeared to be referencing the weekend assault on Venezuela and the seizure of the country's President Nicolas Maduro.

"The world today is fraught with turmoil, and unilateral hegemonic bullying is severely impacting the international order," Xi said, according to remarks published by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

"All countries should respect the development paths chosen independently by the people of other countries, abide by international law and the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter, with major powers taking the lead," Xi added.

ABC News' Karson Yiu

Jan 04, 2026, 10:23 PM EST

Trump implies he could go after Colombia’s president next, says Cuba 'looks like it's ready to fall'

President Donald Trump, who has said the operation against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro should serve as a warning to the rest of the world, doubled down on his threats, implying that Colombian President Gustavo Petro could face U.S. action soon.

“Colombia is very sick too, run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States. And he's not going to be doing it very long. Let me tell you,” Trump claimed while speaking to reporters on Sunday.

Earlier on Sunday, Petro released a statement on the operation and Trump's previous comments about him, saying, "I deeply reject Trump speaking without knowing; my name does not appear in the judicial files on drug trafficking over 50 years, neither from before nor from the present."

"Stop slandering me, Mr. Trump. That’s not how you threaten a Latin American president who emerged from the armed struggle and then from the people’s struggle for Peace in Colombia," he added.

Reporters asked Trump if the U.S. has a similar plan to deal with Cuba as they did for Venezuela, to which he said that Cuba only survived because of Venezuela.

“Now, they won't have that money coming in. They won't have the income coming in. You know, a lot of Cubans were killed yesterday, you know that a lot of Cubans were killed,” Trump said.

Trump said those Cubans were trying to protect Maduro.

Later, the president said that Cuba is “ready to fall.”

“Cuba looks like it's ready to fall. I don't know how they -- if they're going to hold out, but Cuba now has no income,” Trump said. “They got all of their income from Venezuela, from the Venezuelan oil. They're not getting any of it. And Cuba literally is ready to fall. And you have a lot of great Cuban Americans that are going to be very happy about this.”

Asked again if the U.S. is considering action in Cuba, the president said he doesn’t think there needs to be any because “it looks like it’s going down.”

-ABC News' Meghan Mistry and Hannah Demissie

Jan 04, 2026, 10:23 PM EST

Trump says 'we’re in charge' of Venezuela, claims VP Rodriguez is cooperating

President Donald Trump told reporters on Sunday, “we’re in charge” of Venezuela, doubling down on his claim Saturday that the U.S. will “run” the country.

Trump said that he has not spoken to Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro’s vice president, who was sworn in as interim leader. Asked if he wants to speak to her, the president said, "At the right time, I will."

Trump also said that Rodriguez is cooperating with the U.S., a claim he made Saturday, which she appeared to dispute in an address to Venezuelans, when she called for Maduro’s immediate release.

Later, the president was asked about comments he made to The Atlantic, where he said that if Rodriguez "doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro."

Asked what he needs from Rodriguez, Trump called for “total access” to the country’s oil reserves.

“Total access. We need total access. We need access to the oil and to other things in their country that allow us to rebuild their country,” he said.

-ABC News' Meghan Mistry and Hannah Demissie

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