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American officials claim the military operation aimed at apprehending Venezuela's president took months of careful preparation, yet the moment the US President gave the command to commence, the mission dubbed "Absolute Resolve" concluded after about two and a half hours.

The unexpected pre-dawn attack this past weekend marked a never-before-seen event within modern politics and culminated in the arrest for Venezuela's president and his wife, Cilia Flores de Maduro.

Seized by troops belonging to a top-tier American military force as they attempted to flee into a heavily secured safe room, the couple are now in custody in a detention centre within New York City and face narco-terrorism accusations.

A Early Morning Assault against Fuerte Tiuna

With daybreak that morning, the scale of the armed intervention in Caracas, the nation's capital, became apparent.

Pictures of the vast military base, a massive military complex in which top government officials live, reveal blasted buildings as well as charred, smouldering vehicles.

The location was this facility that Maduro and his wife were captured, a senior political figure a party official reported.

Hours Earlier - Trump Gives the Order

The mission started amid reports of blasts at about 02:00 in Caracas (6:00 Greenwich Mean Time).

The US disabled electricity across the capital, the President has since said, describing it as "dark and deadly".

The aim was to neutralize Venezuela's air defences and clear the path for US military helicopters to reach the target.

Our evaluation was that we successfully kept completely the advantage of surprise," a senior military officer commented.

Strike locations included the compound, a maritime facility and an airfield. Pictures depict Fuerte Tiuna engulfed in flames, with huge flames seen from a great distance.

Residents reported the way American choppers flew low over Caracas, heading for the military base.

Some of the helicopters came under fire, however managed to continue flying, military leaders stated.

There was a lot of weapons fire," Trump noted.

A Rapid On-the-Ground Operation

After landing, troops from an elite special operations unit, moved quickly.

They gained access to the compound at 02:01 Caracas time, and the presidential couple "gave up" without resistance, according to reports.

But, more details were provided. They attempted to flee into a safe place, described as a military "fortress".

The secure room is all steel, and he failed to make it to the door because our guys were so fast.

It featured an extremely heavy entryway, a massive door," the President told reporters. He reached to the door. He could not to close it."

However, even assuming they had succeeded to enter the safe room, troops could have breached it in about "under a minute."

From the Capital to Manhattan

Now in US custody, the couple were transported some 2,100 miles, to Manhattan.

They were flown from the capital via chopper, and transferred to a US warship, a warship stationed in the Caribbean. The operation was back in international waters by 04:29.

It was on the ship that one of the defining pictures of the whole operation emerged - the president shackled, with hearing protection and darkened eyewear resembling opaque glasses.

After leaving the ship, his initial stop was at the American naval installation at Guantánamo Bay.

The Maduros then traveled on a government plane to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York, and then via helicopter to Manhattan.

Confronting Justice on US Territory

That same day, footage emerged showing Maduro inside the federal drug agency's headquarters in New York.

He and Cilia Flores are now being held at a federal holding facility within the city.

They face charges including conspiracy to commit drug-related terrorism and cocaine trafficking, possession of automatic weapons and explosives, and conspiracy to acquire machine guns and bombs against the US.

"They will soon face the full wrath of American justice in the United States within US courtrooms," the Attorney General declared.

Video shows the leader's entry into American and journey to detention.