US President Donald Trump said in a radio interview that US forces demolished “a major facility” in Venezuela last week as part of his administration’s campaign against the country. U.S. officials said Trump was referring to a drug facility that had been eliminated, without providing details about the operation. The CIA and the White House declined to comment on the information.
Trump’s statement took place on Friday (26), during an interview with John Catsimatidis, Republican billionaire and supporter of the president, owner of the radio station WABC in New York. The two were talking about the US military campaign against drug trafficking in Latin America.
If confirmed, this would be the first known attack on land since Trump began his attacks on Venezuela. American authorities, however, did not specify the location of the alleged attack, nor the role of the facility in question in drug trafficking. The Venezuelan regime has also not publicly reported an attack of this type in the country.
The US president has been promising ground attacks in Venezuela for weeks, in growing pressure against the dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro, who is in Trump’s sights for his role in drug trafficking in the region. The Republican also authorized secret CIA operations in Venezuelan territory in recent months.
American military attacks on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific began in September and have resulted in the deaths of at least 105 people. Although critics claim that the US military has no legal basis to attack civilians, the Trump administration argues that it is a war against narco-terrorists, who can only be stopped by military force.
According to the American newspaper New York Timesthe boat attacks are part of a two-phase operation by the US government. The second, not yet officially announced, would include attacks on drug facilities in Venezuela, sources involved with the planning revealed.
