U.S. President Donald Trump ordered strikes on targets within Venezuela, including military ones, on Friday night, escalating his campaign of pressure on Nicolás Maduro's regime, according to administration sources who spoke to CBS News.
US officials confirmed to CBS News that Trump has ordered attacks on Venezuelan territory shortly after explosions and flyovers were heard near Caracas in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Fox News also confirmed that Trump has ordered airstrikes against several targets within Venezuela, with a greater focus on the coastal area around La Guaira, near Maiquetía airport, and in an area that includes key potential military targets for the Maduro regime.
Other US media initially only indicated that Washington was aware of the detonations, but did not confirm that they were attacks ordered by the White House.
The Venezuelan government denounced this Saturday a "very serious military aggression" by the United States in civilian and military locations in the states of Miranda, Aragua, La Guaira, and the country's capital, Caracas, and ordered "the deployment of the command for the integral defense of the nation."
The Colombian president, Gustavo Petro, expressed his government's "deep concern" over the explosions that occurred early this morning in Caracas and other places in Venezuela due to "the consequent escalation of tension in the region."
US Air Force prohibits operations in Venezuelan airspace
The U.S. Air Force also issued an official notice this Saturday prohibiting all aircraft from flying through Venezuelan airspace, amid attacks in the South American country's capital that President Donald Trump allegedly ordered, according to CBS
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) prohibited U.S. commercial aircraft from operating at any altitude over Venezuelan airspace, citing safety risks stemming from ongoing military activity in the South American country
The notice, known as a NOTAM, went into effect at 2:00 a.m. Saturday, local time in Venezuela, and will be in effect for 23 hours