Helicopters, drones, a shootout: US explains what went wrong in Maduro's capture

Interagency work on planning an attack on Venezuela began several months ago and was based on decades of experience in integrating complex air, ground, space, and maritime operations. This was stated during a press conference said chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Kane.

The CIA, NSA, and National Crime Agency (NCA) collaborated on this "carefully planned" operation, Kane said.

"It involved more than 150 aircraft taking off from different parts of the Western Hemisphere in close coordination, all gathered at the right time and place to achieve a single goal – to bring interception forces into the center of Caracas, while maintaining the element of tactical surprise.

Failure of one component of "this well-oiled machine" would jeopardize the entire mission, but "failure is never an option for America's joint forces," Kane emphasized.

At the same time, he said, the mission was not without unplanned problems. As the US military aircraft approached the territory of Venezuela, their helicopters came under fire. One of the helicopters was hit, but remained airworthy.

The U.S. forces arrived at the residence of Nicolas Maduro at 1:01 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time, which corresponded to 2:01 a.m. local time in Caracas. "The takedown team landed on the grounds of Maduro's residence and moved quickly, precisely and disciplinedly toward their objective, isolating the area to ensure the safety of ground forces while apprehending the defendants," Kane said.

According to the general, Nicolas Maduro and his wife offered no further resistance and surrendered. Despite the firefight, no U.S. troops were killed.

• On the night of January 3, explosions were heard in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. It was reported about partial power outages and overflights by aircraft.
• President of the United States Donald Trump said that the Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro grabbed and taken out of Venezuela.