Delta restarts Caribbean flights day after U.S. strike in Venezuela

Trump says US will run Venezuela

Trump says who will run Venezuela in the absence of President Maduro following his capture by the US.

Delta Air Lines has resumed flights on Sunday after the FAA closed the airspace in the Caribbean after the United States carried out a large-scale military strike in Venezuela resulting in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

U.S. strikes Venezuela, capturing Maduro

What we know:

Hours after the strike, President Donald Trump announced on social media that U.S. forces had captured Maduro and his wife and flown them out of Venezuela.

"Maduro has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country," Trump wrote, adding that the operation was carried out in conjunction with U.S. law enforcement. Trump said the strikes were carried out "successfully" and scheduled a news conference for later Saturday.

Delta issues travel waiver

What they're saying:

Delta has issued a travel waiver for customers traveling to or from 13 impacted airports between Jan. 3-6.  

Customers with travel booking during this period will receive a notification from Delta with instructions on how to make changes to existing bookings.  

Affected airports currently include ANU, AUA, BGI, BON, CUR, GND, SJU, SKB, STT, STX, SVD, SXM and UVF. 

Delta is asking customers to continue to monitor the status of their flight via the Fly Delta app and Delta.com, where they can also make adjustments to their itineraries. 

A Delta Air Lines plane taxis toward a gate between other Delta planes at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, U.S., on Monday, July 20, 2009.

Why target Maduro?

The backstory:

The strike followed months of escalating pressure by the Trump administration on Maduro’s government, including a buildup of U.S. forces near South America and attacks on boats accused of drug smuggling.

Maduro was indicted in March 2020 on U.S. charges related to narco-terrorism.

Trump has said the United States is engaged in an "armed conflict" with drug cartels and has justified recent military actions as necessary to stop drug trafficking.

Maduro’s status unclear

What we don't know:

As of Saturday morning, it was not known whether there were deaths or injuries, whether additional military actions were planned, or who was exercising control of Venezuela’s government. The White House did not respond yet to questions about where Maduro and his wife were being taken.

International reaction

International reaction began to emerge quickly.

The other side:

Cuba condemned the strike, calling it a criminal attack, while Iran’s foreign ministry also denounced the operation. 

Argentina’s president praised Trump’s announcement, celebrating what he described as a blow against authoritarian rule.

What's next:

The FAA lifted the restriction to the 13 airports impacted. Travel waivers will be issued for those who were planning to travel the area between Sunday and Jan. 6.