According to sources who spoke with CNN , an elite US Army special operations team known as Delta Force conducted the operation to oust and capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife on Saturday,3rd January 2026.
Delta Force is a top special operations unit in the United States military, specializing in counterterrorism, hostage rescue, direct action, and unique reconnaissance, frequently targeting high-value objectives.
Delta Force, formed in 1977, is directly subordinate to the Joint Special Operations Command and based in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It contains eight operational Sabre squadrons. Nearly all information regarding Delta Force is highly classified, but in general, it is called upon to perform some of the most difficult, covert, and dangerous missions at the direction of the United States President and Secretary of Defence.
Delta Force, similar to the US Navy’s famed SEAL Team 6, has played a critical role in some of the most high-profile US military operations in recent memory, including the 1993 mission to rescue American service members in Somalia after their helicopter was shot down during the Battle of Mogadishu. That task was later popularized in the 2001 film “Black Hawk Down. “
Delta Force was also involved in Operation Just Cause in Panama, which resulted in the arrest of Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega in December 1989 and has been used by various Trump administration officials as a model for the Maduro operation.
