The U.S. strike in Venezuela and capture of the country’s president prompted mixed reactions from North Texans, with some planning protests against the U.S. involvement in the country and others celebrating the possible end of an authoritarian regime.
President Donald Trump shared in a post on Truth Social early Saturday morning the U.S. had "successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolás Maduro” and had captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Victoria Reyes, who has lived in the U.S. for the past three years for her husband, was at a Venezuelan restaurant in Garland watching the news in on Saturday. Reyes said she felt emotional at the news.
“I think I believe that the hope I lost since July 28, 2024, has returned — because they practically stole the elections from us,” she told KERA in Spanish.
Uncertain Future
The future for many North Texas Venezuelans is uncertain — their temporary protected status in the United States could end permanently, and the next steps for their home country remain to be seen.
Reyes said she already had plans to return to Venezuela — but she hopes she can return sooner now that Maduro is gone.
“I would like to wait a little bit more to see what happens from here on out because we have just seen the president’s statements,” Reyes said. “There are still some processes that have to be done.”
Gonzalo, another Venezuelan national who spoke with KERA, called Maduro’s capture a relief. Gonzalo, who only shared his first name, said his whole family lives in Caracas.
“Yesterday, we had practically no hope,” he told KERA. “But after what happened last night, it gives us a little bit of relief and a little bit of hope that everything is going to change, and that we will be able to return peacefully.”
Protesting the attack
The Dallas Antiwar Committee condemned the attack, calling it “warmongering” in a post on social media. The group held a protest starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday at the Main Street Garden Park in downtown Dallas.
“The U.S. has repeatedly demonized governments, countries, and communities as a pretense for wars to steal resources,” the social media post said. “We recognize this escalation against Venezuela as another sham that would cost countless Venezuelan and American lives— all to protect the profits of oil and gas executives.”
Protesters shouted, “No more coups, no more wars, Venezuela isn’t yours!” and also called for Maduro's release after they gathered at the park.
Representatives from various grassroots organizations who came to the microphone could be heard despite the sound of a helicopter overhead and honking cars passing through the busy area intersection.
Signs read, “End American Imperialism” and “Free President Maduro.” A couple of people carried Venezuelan flags.
Protestors wearing vests worked to keep the peace and discourage participants from engaging with counterprotesters.
There were a couple of disruptions, as a few people shouted out their support for Maduro’s capture.
“God bless, America! Venezuela is free!” yelled one of two counterprotesters, who walked away from the area as a police officer walked alongside him.
Jo Hargis, a community organizer with the DFW Anti-War Committee, told KERA she opposed Maduro’s capture and that a country should have sovereignty over their own governments.
"The excuse is that it's to help the people — but always it's at the expense of the people in the countries we invade, and it's for the profit of the United States at their expense,” Hargis said. “It was a disgusting breach of international law for President Madura to be abducted and brought to this country.”
Rick Majumdar, with the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, told KERA that Venezuelans have not only faced repression in their home country but in the U.S. as well. He cited ICE detainments and deportations.
“Venezuelans have a right to dignity here in the United States, as they have a right to dignity in Venezuela,” he said.
While some Venezuelans in the U.S. have shown support for Maduro’s capture, he said there were others in Caracas who supported Maduro and the United Socialist Party of Venezuela.
“Some people can disagree with their political positioning, but I'm certain that they don't want their country bombed," Majumdar said.
Maduro's record
Maduro has faced election fraud claims for his 2024 election win. The U.S. recognized opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia as the winner, with then-Secretary of State Anthony Blinken calling for a transition of power to reflect the will of the Venezuelan people.
Attorney General Pam Bondi shared in a post on X Maduro and his wife have been indicted in the Southern District of New York on drugs, arms and conspiracy charges.
"They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts," Bondi said.
The indictment alleges that Maduro, Flores and senior Venezuelan officials partnered with international drug trafficking organizations to transport thousands of tons of cocaine into the United States starting in 1999. It also accuses Maduro of partnering with organizations, including the Sinaloa Cartel, the Zetas and Tren de Aragua.
A previous indictment under the first Trump administration in March 2020 alleged that Maduro as the leader of the Cartel de los Soles, and that he and other defendants took part in a narcoterrorism conspiracy with the Colombian guerrilla group known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) according to reporting from NPR.
The 2020 indictment also accuses Maduro of coordinating foreign affairs with Honduras and others to facilitate large-scale drug trafficking. The current Trump administration designated the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization in November 2025.
Military actions
The Venezuelan government has accused the United States of “grave military aggression.” In a statement posted on Telegram, the government said U.S. forces targeted civilian and military locations in Caracas as well as in the nearby states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira, calling the attacks a "flagrant violation" of the United Nations Charter.
The U.S. had already conducted 35 strikes this year against boats that were allegedly smuggling drugs, killing at least 115 people according to reporting from the Associated Press. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently defended the first strike after reports that it a second round killed two survivors on a burning boat, NPR reported. Hegseth said he authorized and watched the initial attacks but not the second, which he said Admiral Frank M. Bradley authorized.
"A couple of hours later, I learned that that commander had made the [decision], which he had the complete authority to do," Hegseth said. "And by the way, Adm. Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat."
Rep. Adam Smith, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, accused Hegseth of deflecting responsibility when speaking on NPR's Morning Edition.
"He's the secretary of defense,” Smith told NPR. “He’s putting them in a terrible spot by giving them these highly questionable orders. And then after that, to come out and say, hey, it was that guy, not me. That's not leadership, and it's also not honest. It seems to me Secretary Hegseth is the one who's responsible for what happened here."
Pursuit of oil?
Maduro has accused the U.S. of attempting to remove him from power in order to gain access to Venezuela's oil reserves, among the largest in the world.
The Dallas Antiwar Committee called Maduro’s capture a kidnapping on social media, arguing it was an unnecessary escalation in “the endless pursuit of more oil.”
“No blood for oil,” an unnamed member of the group said in a video posted on Facebook. “No war with Venezuela. Free Maduro.”
Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene, who has become a critic of the Trump administration after previously being a staunch supporter, also raised concerns about the escalation in Venezuela in relation to country’s oil reserves.
“By removing Maduro this is a clear move for control over Venezuelan oil supplies that will ensure stability for the next obvious regime change war in Iran,” Greene said in a post on X.
She also questioned why the Trump administration hasn’t taken action against Mexican drug cartels and the pardoning of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was released from federal prison after the pardon, NPR reported. Hernández had been sentenced in U.S. federal court last year to 45 years in prison for helping move tons of cocaine to the United States.
The Trump administration has also faced criticism for its treatment of Venezuelan migrants in the U.S. A March Supreme Court ruling allowed the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status for roughly 350,000 Venezuelans in the U.S. pending appeal, paving the way for possible deportations, according to reporting from NPR.
And a federal judge recently ruled the Trump administration must give due process to Venezuelan migrants accused of being gang members that were sent to a mega-prison in El Salvador known as the Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT.
Priscilla Rice is KERA’s communities reporter. Got a tip? Email her at price@kera.org.
Got a tip? Email Caroline Love at clove@kera.org.
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