U.S. resumes Caribbean boat strikes after two-month pause under new Joint Task Force

After the longest pause since the campaign began - the last known strike had been recorded on 21 June 2026 - the U.S. military announced a new strike on an alleged drug-trafficking vessel on 23 August 2026, followed by another on 25 August that killed four people. Operations resumed under the newly created Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere, presented as U.S. Southern Command's "action arm" for confronting threats across the hemisphere. According to independent trackers by Airwars and Just Security, the campaign had already killed more than 200 people.

Judge sets June 2027 trial date for Maduro and Cilia Flores

In a hearing of roughly 15 to 20 minutes held on 22 July 2026, U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein of the Southern District of New York set 1 June 2027 as the start date for the criminal trial of former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Both, captured by U.S. forces in Caracas on 3 January 2026, remain held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and have pleaded not guilty to drug-trafficking and narco-terrorism charges. Prosecutors and the defense jointly proposed the date, cautioning it could shift over the handling of classified information.

Alex Saab deported from Venezuela to the U.S., faces new Miami charges

On 16 May 2026, Venezuela's interim government under Delcy Rodriguez deported Colombian-Venezuelan businessman Alex Nain Saab Moran to the United States. The measure was executed invoking Saab's Colombian nationality under Venezuelan immigration law; on 18 May Saab appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Miami) before Magistrate Judge Marty Fulgueira Elfenbein, charged in a new money-laundering conspiracy and related counts.

Carvajal sentencing postponed after letter offering Maduro intel to Trump

Federal Judge Paul Gardephe again postponed the sentencing of Hugo "El Pollo" Carvajal in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. It was the latest adjournment since his June 2025 guilty plea, and came after his defense confirmed the existence of a letter Carvajal sent to President Donald Trump in December 2025 offering "details" about the Venezuelan government's operations, including alleged cooperation with Tren de Aragua, dealings with Iran and the FARC, and espionage inside the United States.

U.S. forces capture Nicolas Maduro in Caracas; revised indictment unsealed

Nicolas Maduro was captured by U.S. forces in a Caracas operation on 3 January 2026, along with his wife Cilia Flores. He was transferred to New York and arraigned in the Southern District of New York. Executive Vice President Delcy Rodriguez took over as interim president in Caracas.

State Department designates Cartel de los Soles as Foreign Terrorist Organization

The U.S. Department of State formally designated Cartel de los Soles as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The determination was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on 16 November and took effect upon publication in the Federal Register on 24 November 2025 (Public Notice 12869; 90 FR 53045). The designation stacked atop OFAC's July SDGT and exposed the group to the FTO-specific criminal prohibitions, including the ban on providing material support to the organization, immigration inadmissibility for its members, and asset-freezing under U.S. jurisdiction.

U.S. launches first Operation Southern Spear strike on alleged Venezuelan cartel vessel

On 2 September 2025, the U.S. military carried out its first lethal strike on a vessel that the Department of War said was operated by a Venezuelan cartel. The strike opened Operation Southern Spear, a military campaign launched after the largest U.S. naval and air buildup in the Caribbean in generations. On 4 September, President Donald Trump formally notified Congress of the military action against groups designated as terrorist organizations.

U.S. Treasury designates Cartel de los Soles as Specially Designated Global Terrorist

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury added "Cartel de los Soles" (a.k.a. Cartel of the Suns) to the SDN List as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT), under Executive Order 13224 as amended by Executive Order 13886. The designation cites the group's material support to Tren de Aragua and to the Sinaloa Cartel - both previously designated - and describes the organization as a transnational criminal network headed, according to the U.S. government, by Nicolas Maduro and other senior Venezuelan officials. The action blocked all property and interests in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction and generally prohibited U.S. persons from transactions with the designated entity.

Hugo Carvajal pleads guilty in New York federal case

Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios, former director of Venezuela's Directorate of Military Intelligence (DIM) under Hugo Chavez, pleaded guilty on 25 June 2025 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York to four counts: narco-terrorism conspiracy, conspiracy to import cocaine, and two firearms-related offenses. The plea came roughly one week before the scheduled start of trial, after nearly two years of detention in New York following his July 2023 extradition from Spain. The charges expose Carvajal to a possible sentence ranging from 50 years to life in prison.

Former Venezuelan general Cliver Alcala sentenced in U.S. court

Retired Major General Cliver Antonio Alcala Cordones was sentenced in the Southern District of New York to 21 years and 6 months (260 months) in prison for providing material support to a narco-terrorist organization (the FARC) and for illicit arms trafficking. Alcala, the former commander of the border garrison with Colombia, had pleaded guilty in June 2023 after voluntarily surrendering to U.S. authorities in March 2020.

Alex Saab appears in U.S. court after extradition from Cabo Verde

Colombian businessman Alex Saab Moran was extradited from Cabo Verde and appeared in a Miami federal court on money-laundering charges. The United States described him as a key frontman for Nicolas Maduro, tied to inflated housing program contracts and to the CLAP food-distribution program. Saab had been detained in Cabo Verde on 12 June 2020 when his private jet stopped to refuel en route to Iran.

OFAC targets sanctions-evasion network connected to PDVSA flows

OFAC designated four companies and their directors for running a broker network that helped Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) evade U.S. oil sanctions, selling crude and diesel to Asian buyers through operators in Mexico, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates. The action named Libre Abordo and Schlager Business Group as pillars of the "oil-for-barter" scheme announced in May 2020.

U.S. DOJ announces charges against Maduro and other officials

The U.S. Department of Justice unsealed criminal charges in four federal districts against 14 Venezuelans, including President Nicolas Maduro, ANC president Diosdado Cabello, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, and former military intelligence chief Hugo Carvajal. The centerpiece was a Southern District of New York "narco-terrorism" indictment that described a more than two-decade criminal partnership between government insiders and FARC commanders to ship cocaine into the United States. The State Department announced a reward of up to USD 15 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Maduro, and USD 10 million for each of the other indicted leaders.

OFAC sanctions Diosdado Cabello and his associated network

OFAC designated Diosdado Cabello, president of the National Constituent Assembly and central figure in the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, alongside his wife Marleny Contreras (then-Minister of Tourism), his brother Jose David Cabello (then-Minister and head of SENIAT), and a business associate, Rafael Sarria. The action blocked Miami real estate valued at approximately USD 10 million.

OFAC sanctions 13 current and former Venezuelan officials

Two days before the National Constituent Assembly referendum, OFAC sanctioned 13 current and former Venezuelan government officials for undermining democracy and human rights, including violence against protesters and electoral corruption. Designations included then-Interior Minister Nestor Reverol, leaders of the Strategic Operational Command, National Electoral Council heads, and PDVSA executives.

OFAC sanctions eight Venezuelan Supreme Court officials

The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned eight members of Venezuela's Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), including its then-president Maikel Moreno and the seven justices of the Constitutional Chamber. The action, taken under Executive Order 13692, was a direct response to TSJ decisions 155 and 156 of March 2017, which stripped the elected National Assembly of its powers and triggered an institutional crisis.

OFAC sanctions Tareck El Aissami under the Kingpin Act

The U.S. Department of the Treasury, through OFAC, designated then-Vice President of Venezuela Tareck El Aissami under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, accusing him of playing a significant role in international drug trafficking. The action included his associate Samark Jose Lopez Bello, identified as a "primary frontman", and 13 companies based in the United States, United Kingdom, Panama and Venezuela. OFAC froze approximately USD 500 million in assets, including Florida real estate and private aircraft.