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, 7:27 PM EST

Colombian president warns 'I will take up arms' if needed

In a statement posted on X early Monday morning, following Trump's comments about him Sunday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro warned he was willing to take up arms if he needed to.

“Although I have not been a soldier, I know about war and clandestine operations. I swore not to touch another weapon since the 1989 peace agreement, but for the sake of the Homeland, I will take up arms again, even though I don't want to,” Petro said.

Four months ago, Petro made comments directed at Trump on Blu Radio, a station that covers Colombian and world news.

“I’ll be waiting here if you want. I do not accept invasions. I do not accept missiles. I do not accept killings. I accept intelligence,” Petro said at the time.

Editor's note: A prior version of this post incorrectly indicated that Petro's remarks on Blu Radio were from Monday.

Jan 05, 2026, 6:30 PM EST

Lawmakers react while heading into closed-door briefing

House Speaker Mike Johnson defended the Trump administration's operation while arriving for a closed-door Venezuela briefing on Monday, saying the action "did not require prior consent of Congress" but only a "notification of Congress."

"I spoke with the president of the United States, the secretary of state, the secretary of defense, within hours of the operation commencing," he told reporters, noting that he received the first call from Secretary of State Marco Rubio at 4 a.m. Saturday.

"This was an appropriate action, and we'll get a lot more detail inside, but they have been talking all the administration officials have been talking to Senate and House members on a constant basis since this happened, and this is a big part of their obligation there," Johnson said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson arrives at the U.S. Capitol, Jan. 5, 2026, in Washington, for a closed-door briefing after President Donald Trump directed U.S. forces to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, meanwhile, told ABC News that Congress should have been notified before the Venezuela operation -- arguing "it’s the law."

"We should have found out beforehand," he said while heading to the briefing.

Monday evening's briefing is with a select group of lawmakers. Johnson said there will be an all-members briefing on the operation "sometime by mid-week."

-ABC News' Lauren Peller and John Parkinson

Jan 05, 2026, 5:26 PM EST

Switzerland freezes any assets tied to Maduro

The Swiss government said Monday it has decided to freeze any assets held in Switzerland by Nicolás Maduro and his associates, effective immediately.

"The Federal Council wants to ensure that any illicitly acquired assets cannot be transferred out of Switzerland in the current situation," the government said in a press release.

The freeze does not affect members of the current Venezuelan government, the Swiss government said.

Jan 05, 2026, 4:27 PM EST

Several UN ambassadors criticize US intervention in Venezuela

Multiple ambassadors to the United Nations criticized the United States' intervention in Venezuela during an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting in New York on Monday, questioning the legality of the operation.

The representative of Venezuela called the operation an "illegitimate armed attack lacking any legal justification" and said the "kidnapping" of Maduro is "of particular seriousness." The representative suggested that the U.S. carried out its operation on Venezuela because of its natural resources.


The representatives of Colombia, France, Denmark, Russia and Iran were among those who also criticized the military action. The representative of France said it "runs counter to the principle of peaceful dispute resolution," while the Russian ambassador called it a "criminal operation."

In a statement to the security council delivered during the meeting, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres additionally expressed concern that the U.S.' military action in Venezuela did not respect international law and said he was "deeply concerned" about its potential impact on the region and the precedent it may set.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz defended the action during the meeting, saying that the U.S. "will not waver in our actions to protect Americans from the scourge of narco-terrorism and seeks peace, liberty and justice for the great people of Venezuela."

-ABC News' Mike Pappano

Sponsored Content by Taboola