In the early hours of Saturday morning, the U.S. carried out a special operation, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, that led to the capture and arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, leading to worldwide celebrations. However, world leaders have been divided on this historic moment, with U.S. President Trump having received both praise and condemnation, including within Latin America. Mexican President Claudia Scheinbaum, who is Jewish, said that “The government of Mexico strongly condemns and rejects the military actions carried out unilaterally in the last few hours by the armed forces of the United States of America.” Argentine President Javier Milei, one of Israel’s staunchest allies on the world stage, celebrated the achievement: “Freedom advances! Long live freedom, damn it!”
Venezuela’s tiny Jewish community, with almost 5,000 Jews remaining, primarily in Caracas, is optimistic and happy about this moment, but is not yet openly celebrating.
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s interim vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, who is said to be much more moderate than Maduro, claimed the operation had “Zionist Undertones,” accusing the U.S. military of having collaborated with Israel at this moment. Meanwhile in Israel, the move is being largely praised, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated U.S. President Donald Trump, while Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar declared that the United States “acted as the leader of the free world,” and also expressed hope that Israel and Venezuela can re-establish diplomatic ties.
“Israel welcomes the removal of the dictator who led a network of drugs and terror and hopes for the return of democracy to the country and for friendly relations between the states. The people of Venezuela deserve to exercise their democratic rights. South America deserves a future free from the axis of terror and drugs,” said Sa’ar.
Former Venezuelan intelligence officials and Western sources have reported that Hezbollah has presence within Venezuela through state connected drug trafficking networks, though these claims are largely based on intelligence assessments, indictments, and testimony rather than court convictions inside Venezuela.
U.S. authorities and former Venezuelan officials say Hezbollah operatives and facilitators have used Venezuela as a logistical and financial hub, laundering money from cocaine trafficking routed through the country and cooperating with networks tied to the so-called Cartel de los Soles, a group of military and political elites accused of overseeing narcotics flows . The U.S. Treasury and Justice Department have sanctioned and indicted senior Maduro allies for drug trafficking and “narco-terrorism,” alleging cooperation with non-state armed groups and Iranian-aligned actors, while Maduro’s government denies all accusations and frames them as politically motivated.
Analysts note that Hezbollah is generally described not as a direct drug-smuggling organization, but as a facilitator that taxes, launders, or moves proceeds from Latin American cocaine routes to support its activities abroad, with Venezuela frequently cited as a permissive environment due to its alliance with Iran and weak enforcement .
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