Venezuelan leader Maduro says ‘happy new year’ as he’s escorted to US jail

The Venezuelan leader was captured yesterday

He also wished onlookers a 'good night' as he arrived to the DEA offices in New York while handcuffed.

Maduro was captured yesterday (Saturday, 3 January), and flown to the US to face charges of narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices.

An indictment accuses him of being connected to 'some of the most violent and prolific drug traffickers and narco-terrorists in the world'.

President Donald Trump announced that the US plans to ‘run’ Venezuela until they can find somebody else to take over.

Speaking at his Mar-a-Lago residence, the President said: “Late last night and early today at my direction, the United States Armed Forces conducted an extraordinary military operation in the capital of Venezuela, overwhelming American military power. 

“Air, land and sea was used to launch a spectacular assault and it was an assault like people have not seen since World War Two.”

Donald Trump then added that the US will run the country.

He said: “We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.

“So, we don’t want to be involved with, having somebody else get in. And we have the same situation that we had for the last long period of years.

“So, we are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.”

Trump has also vowed that the US will bring in oil firms.

He said: “We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country.” And the US is prepared to launch a second attack.

He said the US is “ready to stage a second and much larger attack if we need to do so.” He said: “But we’re prepared to do a second wave, a much bigger wave, actually.”

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that the UK was ‘not involved in any way’.

I haven’t and it is obviously a fast moving situation and we need to establish all the facts.”

He said: “I want to establish the facts first. I want to speak to President Trump. I want to speak to allies. As I say I can be absolutely clear we were not involved in that.

“As you know, I always say and believe we should uphold international law. But I think at this stage, fast moving situation, let’s establish the facts and take it from there.”