‘Iran should pay close attention to what is happening in Venezuela’: Israeli ministers praise US capture of Maduro

The US military action began in the early hours with airstrikes and culminated in the capture of Maduro and his wife.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Israeli officials on Saturday welcomed the US operation that ended with the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, praising President Donald Trump for what they described as decisive action against a regime tied to drugs and terrorism.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar commended the operation, saying it was “led by President Trump, [who] acted as the leader of the free world.” Sa’ar said Israel stood “alongside the freedom-loving Venezuelan people, who have suffered under Maduro’s illegal tyranny,” and welcomed the removal of what he called “the dictator who led a network of drugs and terror.” He added that Israel hoped for the return of democracy in Venezuela and the establishment of friendly relations between the two countries.

“The people of Venezuela deserve to exercise their democratic rights,” Sa’ar said. “South America deserves a future free from the axis of terror and drugs.”

Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel echoed that message, stressing Israel’s alignment with Washington. “The United States is Israel’s strongest ally. We support America’s right to defend itself and enforce its laws,” she wrote on X. Haskel accused Maduro of leading “a terrorist regime, propped up by Iran,” and said Venezuela had been used “as a platform for Hezbollah’s drug trafficking, money-laundering and terror networks.”

From the opposition, leader Yair Lapid framed the events as a broader warning to Tehran. “The regime in Iran should pay close attention to what is happening in Venezuela,” Lapid wrote, as tensions between Washington and Iran continued on multiple fronts.

The US military action began in the early hours with airstrikes and culminated in the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, Trump said on Truth Social.

He added that both were flown out of Venezuela. Trump has accused Maduro of running a narco-terrorist state, a charge US officials say formed the basis for the operation and subsequent criminal proceedings.

Iran sharply criticized the move. The Iranian Foreign Ministry said the attack constituted “a clear violation of the fundamental principles of the UN Charter and international law,” warning that its implications threatened the international order. Israeli officials, however, portrayed the outcome as a turning point against what they see as an Iran-backed network operating far beyond the Middle East.