The ousted president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, sustained injuries during the US military operation that took place on January 3 in Caracas and led to their arrest, the country’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello stated yesterday, Wednesday. As he reported on a weekly public television program, Cilia Flores was injured on the head and various parts of her body, while Nicolás Maduro was injured in one leg. According to the minister, both are recovering.
Read: American Growlers: How they paralyzed Venezuela’s air defense and captured Maduro
Meanwhile, Mr. Cabello announced that the US armed forces operation, during which Maduro and the first lady were arrested, resulted in the death of 100 people.
“So far, and I emphasize so far, we have 100 dead (…) and a similar number of wounded. The attack against our country was horrific,” Mr. Cabello stated during his weekly public television program.
Venezuela: Emotion at funerals of soldiers who lost their lives in the American military operation
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s armed forces released video footage yesterday Wednesday from the funerals of soldiers who lost their lives in the American military operation that resulted in the capture of President Nicolás Maduro. Relatives with tears in their eyes, coffins covered with Venezuelan flags, speeches about “courage,” “bravery,” “honor,” and “faith” of the fallen… Flower wreaths and photographs of the deceased accompanied the coffins, along with honor guards.
“Toque de silencio a los caídos”.
Así fueron los actos fúnebres de los militares de la Guardia de Honor Presidencial que perdieron la vida en la operación que realizó EE.UU para capturar a Nicolás Maduro y a Cilia Flores en Venezuela.#agresion #eeuu #venezuela #militares pic.twitter.com/kCJBs2lCrL
— Último Minuto (@ultimominuto24) January 6, 2026
“Those who die to defend life cannot be called dead,” states text accompanying one of the videos, reproducing lyrics from a well-known Venezuelan singer, Ali Primera.
At least one civilian and 55 military personnel from Venezuela and Cuba were killed in the US attack on January 3.
#HonorYGloria
Para nuestros 32 valientes combatientes caídos defendiendo al pueblo de Venezuela. pic.twitter.com/HiEMKm8Ce5— Mercedes Martínez Muñiz (@mercedesmm2653) January 8, 2026
Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodriguez declared a seven-day national mourning period on Tuesday. “The images of the corpses pierced my soul, but I know they fell as martyrs for this republic,” she said.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino stated on Sunday that President Maduro’s bodyguards were murdered “in cold blood” by American troops, who bombed the capital Caracas and locations in three other states as part of the operation to capture the head of state.
