Is Trump’s capture of Venezuela's president legal?
05 January 2026

Is Trump’s capture of Venezuela's president legal?

ABC News Daily

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After a dramatic US military operation capping off months of escalating tensions, the former president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro is now in a New York prison.

With Maduro gone, the Venezuelan military has endorsed the interim presidency of his former Vice President Delcy Rodriguez but Donald Trump has warned she could suffer a fate worse than Maduro if she doesn’t comply with American demands.

He’s also signalled other Latin American nations could be next.

Today, a local journalist on how Venezuelans are reacting to Maduro's arrest, and a legal expert on what this brazen US military action could mean for international law.

Featured:

Professor Ben Saul, Challis Chair of International Law at the University of Sydney 

Tony Frangie Mawad, Venezuelan journalist and political scientist

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