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American officials state their armed forces mission to capture Venezuela's leader involved many weeks of careful preparation, yet when Donald Trump issued the command to commence, "Operation Absolute Resolve" only lasted roughly 150 minutes.

The surprise pre-dawn attack this past weekend marked a historic event in modern politics and resulted in the arrest for Venezuela's president and his spouse, Cilia Flores.

Apprehended by troops belonging to an elite American military force as they tried to flee inside a fortified safe room, the pair are currently being held at a holding facility within New York City and face drug trafficking and terrorism charges.

The Early Morning Assault on the Military Complex

At sunrise on Saturday, the magnitude of the military operation in Caracas, Venezuela's primary city, was clear.

Photographs of Fuerte Tiuna, an enormous army installation in which top government officials live, show destroyed buildings and burned, smoking cars.

It was at this compound where Maduro and his wife were captured, Venezuelan ruling party leader Nahum Fernández stated.

Just Moments Earlier - The President Issues the Command

"Operation Absolute Resolve" began with reports of explosions around 02:00 local time (6:00 Greenwich Mean Time).

American forces disabled electricity to the city, Trump has since said, describing it as pitch black and dangerous.

The aim was to disable Venezuela's air defences and open up the path for American assault helicopters to reach the target.

Our evaluation was that we successfully kept completely the advantage of surprise," a senior military officer commented.

Strike locations encompassed the base, a maritime facility and an airport. Pictures show the complex on fire, with huge flames seen for miles.

Residents reported how American choppers flew low over Caracas, en route to the military base.

A number of the aircraft were shot at, however managed to continue flying, officials said.

"It was significant gunfire," the President noted.

The Lightning-Fast Ground Assault

Once on the ground, forces from the US Army's Delta Force, sprang into action.

They entered to the compound just after 2 AM Caracas time, and the Maduros surrendered without a struggle, as per reports.

However, further information were provided. The Maduros attempted to flee into a safe place, described as a heavily fortified bunker.

The secure room is all steel, and he wasn't able to get inside because our guys were too quick.

It featured an extremely heavy entryway, a very heavy door," Trump informed the media. He reached the entrance. He was unable to shut it."

But even if they had succeeded to get into the safe room, troops could have blown it open in about "under a minute."

From Caracas to Manhattan

Currently under American detention, Nicolás Maduro and his wife were transported approximately 2,100 miles, to Manhattan.

They were flown out of Caracas by helicopter, and transferred to the USS Iwo Jima, a warship stationed off the coast. The team was completed in international waters before 4:30 AM.

Aboard the vessel that one of the defining pictures from the entire mission emerged - Maduro in handcuffs, with hearing protection and a type of blindfold that looked like opaque glasses.

After leaving the ship, he was first flown to the US Navy base at Guantánamo Bay.

The Maduros were then flown via official aircraft to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York, and then via helicopter into New York City.

Confronting Justice in US Territory

That same day, footage was released depicting Maduro inside the federal drug agency's headquarters in the city.

The couple are presently being held in a detention centre in the city.

They face charges with conspiracy to commit drug-related terrorism and import cocaine, owning automatic weapons and explosives, and conspiracy to possess such weapons and destructive devices against the US.

"They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts," the Attorney General declared.

Video shows the leader's entry in US and journey to detention.