Venezuela, Trump: ‘Raid on Tren de Aragua, boss Niño Guerrero killed’

“On my orders, the US Southern Command launched a swift and lethal strike to eliminate Niño Guerrero, the notorious leader of Tren de Aragua, one of the most bloodthirsty terrorist organisations on the planet”. This was written by President Donald Trump on Truth regarding the raid carried out in Venezuela, adding that ‘before my return to office, Joe Biden had thrown open our southern border to millions of illegal criminals, allowing this foreign army to rape, maim and murder American citizens with total impunity".

“During my election campaign, I promised to expel these monsters from our country and to bring justice to the families of their victims, including little Jocelyn Nungaray (aged 12), Laken Riley (aged 22) and countless other wonderful souls”, the tycoon continues. “With this action, the US armed forces have avenged them, their families and their loved ones. At the start of my administration, I kept my promise to designate Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organisation, to expel thousands of vicious criminals and to declare war on the cartels, which had long been fighting against our citizens whilst weak leaders left America defenceless and on the back foot,” Trump added.

“This operation was coordinated in close collaboration with our friends in Venezuela, with whom we are working extremely well. Consequently, the terrorists of the Tren de Aragua no longer have a safe haven either in Venezuela or elsewhere: under my leadership, we will track down these ruthless murderers and drug traffickers wherever they may be and send them to the depths of hell, where they deserve to be. ‘GOD BLESS AMERICA!’, concludes the President’s post, increasingly focused on the midterm elections, with polls showing him struggling following his ill-fated campaign in Iran.

The head of the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, also commented on the matter: Earlier this week, he wrote on X, “the Department of Defence, in full cooperation with Venezuelan security forces, carried out a raid on a Tren de Aragua (TdA) base in Venezuela”. The operation underscores “the joint commitment of the United States and Venezuela to combating narco-terrorists and denying them any safe haven in our hemisphere. We will continue to work closely with security partners, such as Venezuela, and with member countries of the Coalition of the Americas Against Cartels (A3C), to combat our enemies,” concludes Hegseth.

The Venezuelan government has confirmed the operation took place in the state of Bolívar, located in the south-east of the country. During the raid, ‘clashes occurred with members of these criminal organisations’, stated the Ministry of Communications and Information in a press release published on X. The statement also indicated that the operation benefited from specialised technological support and was carried out through mechanisms of cooperation and information-sharing between the authorities of both countries. The government led by interim presidentDelcy Rodríguez has reaffirmed its commitment to the fight against organised crime and has stated that it will continue to take the necessary measures to ensure peace, tranquillity and p