Maduro Claims Plot to Bomb U.S. Embassy in Caracas Foiled
CARACAS — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said security forces thwarted a plan to plant explosives at the shuttered U.S. Embassy in Caracas, describing it as a “false flag operation” designed to escalate tensions with Washington, according to Al Jazeera News.
In a televised address late Monday, Maduro alleged that “extremist sectors of the local Venezuelan right” sought to carry out the attack, citing information from both domestic and international intelligence sources. He said security forces were deployed to reinforce the compound after the threat emerged.
“The intention was to blame the Venezuelan government and trigger an escalation of conflict,” Maduro claimed. He added that those behind the plot will soon be identified.
The U.S. Embassy has been closed since 2019, when the Trump administration broke ties with Caracas and recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó. Only staff responsible for upkeep and security remain on site.
News of the alleged plot comes amid heightened U.S.-Venezuelan tensions. According to Reuters, President Donald Trump last week instructed his envoy Richard Grenell to halt diplomatic outreach to Caracas. Washington is already running military operations in the Caribbean, targeting what it calls drug-trafficking vessels linked to Venezuela.
Trump has branded Maduro a “major drug trafficker,” doubling the reward for his capture to $50 million. U.S. Navy ships, submarines, and F-35 fighter jets have been deployed near Venezuelan waters. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said four people were killed Friday in the latest strike on a small vessel Washington claims was crewed by “narco-terrorists.”
Reports in U.S. media suggest the Trump administration has expanded authority for the CIA and other agencies to carry out lethal targeting in Latin America, a move critics say amounts to extrajudicial killings.
Maduro has denounced the U.S. campaign as a step toward regime change. He said he has appealed to Pope Leo XIV, asking the Vatican to help “preserve peace and stability” in Venezuela.
