Venezuela made one outrageous CIA claim that will have Donald Trump seeing red
Nicolás Maduro's regime is scrambling as American pressure mounts in the Caribbean.
The Venezuelan dictator just made an announcement straight out of a spy novel.
And Venezuela made one outrageous CIA claim that will have Donald Trump seeing red.
Venezuela claims CIA-backed mercenaries captured
Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez announced authorities had captured a group of alleged mercenaries "with direct information" linking them to the CIA.¹
According to Rodríguez, these mysterious operatives were planning what she called a "false flag" operation that would set the stage for a "full military confrontation" with Venezuela.²
The announcement came as joint military exercises between the United States and Trinidad and Tobago got underway in the Caribbean Sea.
The USS Gravely, a guided-missile destroyer, arrived in Port of Spain on Sunday to conduct training with the Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force.³
Maduro's government called the military exercises a "provocation" designed to turn the Caribbean into "a space for lethal violence and U.S. imperial domination."⁴
Maduro has been playing the false flag card for years amid increased U.S. activity in the region.
In October, he claimed security forces prevented a "false flag operation" to plant explosives at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas.⁵
Back in 2020, when a botched raid by American mercenaries tried to infiltrate Venezuela, some observers suggested Maduro's intelligence agencies had prior knowledge and let it proceed to embarrass the opposition.⁶
Administration-authorized covert operations have Maduro panicking
President Trump authorized CIA covert operations in Venezuela earlier this month and the Venezuelan dictator knows his days could be numbered.⁷
Trump hasn't been subtle about his intentions toward the Maduro regime.
The administration doubled the reward for Maduro's capture to $50 million after designating multiple Venezuelan drug cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.⁸
Since early September, U.S. military forces have carried out at least 10 strikes on vessels in Caribbean and Pacific waters that the Trump administration says were smuggling drugs, killing more than 40 people.⁹
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth deployed the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group to the Caribbean last week, bringing America's most advanced aircraft carrier along with dozens of fighter jets.¹⁰
Lindsey Graham getting his jollies
Senator Lindsey Graham told CBS News on Sunday that land strikes in Venezuela are a "real possibility" and Trump plans to brief Congress on expanding military operations when he returns from Asia.¹¹
"I think President Trump's made a decision that Maduro, the leader of Venezuela, is an indicted drug trafficker, that it's time for him to go," Graham said.¹²
Graham issued an ominous warning directly to Maduro.
"If I were Maduro, I'd find a way to leave before heat goes down," Graham stated.¹³
The South Carolina Senator compared Trump's actions to President George H.W. Bush's 1989 invasion of Panama to remove drug-trafficking dictator Manuel Noriega.
Trump himself confirmed the pressure campaign is working.
"He's offered everything," Trump said about Maduro's recent attempts at negotiation, adding "You know why? Because he doesn't want to f*** around with the United States."¹⁴
Maduro draws comparisons to historical false flags that preceded U.S. Military Odysseys
Maduro's government compared their alleged mercenary bust to historical events like the USS Maine explosion in 1898 and the Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964, both of which preceded major U.S. military interventions.¹⁵
The Venezuelan regime "regularly claims to have arrested U.S.-backed mercenaries working to destabilize Maduro's administration," according to reports, with Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello saying at least four suspects were arrested.¹⁶
The Miami Herald reported it "could not independently confirm the arrest of any group or the existence of coordinated operations involving the CIA."¹⁷
Trump has assembled the largest U.S. military presence the Caribbean has seen in decades.
Around 10,000 troops are now stationed in Puerto Rico, with multiple destroyers, a nuclear submarine, B-1B and B-52 strategic bombers, and F-35 fighters all positioned near Venezuelan waters.¹⁸
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, has openly called for U.S. intervention to remove Maduro.
¹ "Venezuela Claims Capture of CIA Group, Accuses US Of Plotting 'False Flag' Attack," Military.com, October 27, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ "Venezuela says it captured 'mercenaries' working with CIA," Newsweek, October 27, 2025.
⁴ "Venezuela Claims Capture of CIA Group, Accuses US Of Plotting 'False Flag' Attack," Military.com, October 27, 2025.
⁵ "Venezuela's Maduro says US embassy 'false flag' bombing foiled in Caracas," Al Jazeera, October 7, 2025.
⁶ "Operation Gideon (2020)," Wikipedia.
⁷ "Trump confirms the CIA is conducting covert operations inside Venezuela," NPR, October 16, 2025.
⁸ "Trump approves CIA operations in Venezuela: What we know, and what's next," Al Jazeera, October 16, 2025.
⁹ "Venezuela claims CIA 'false flag' attack foiled, as US deploys bombers," France24, October 27, 2025.
¹⁰ Ibid.
¹¹ "Sen. Lindsey Graham says land strikes in Venezuela are a 'real possibility,'" CBS News, October 26, 2025.
¹² Ibid.
¹³ "Lindsey Graham Issues Venezuela's Maduro Ominous Warning, Tells Him to Leave 'Before Heat Goes Down,'" Gateway Pundit, October 26, 2025.
¹⁴ Ibid.
¹⁵ "Venezuela Claims Capture of CIA Group, Accuses US Of Plotting 'False Flag' Attack," Military.com, October 27, 2025.
¹⁶ "Venezuela claims CIA 'false flag' attack foiled, as US deploys bombers," France24, October 27, 2025.
¹⁷ "Venezuela Claims Capture of CIA Group, Accuses US Of Plotting 'False Flag' Attack," Military.com, October 27, 2025.
¹⁸ "What military force has the US positioned off Venezuela's coast?" Al Jazeera, October 25, 2025.
