WASHINGTON — Deportations of Venezuelan migrants who illegally snuck into the US have resumed in the wake of the pre-dawn raid to capture strongman Nicolas Maduro during Operation Absolute Resolve.
Late last week, the Trump administration flew over 200 Venezuelan migrants from Phoenix to Caracas, via Eastern Airlines.
That marks the first known deportation flight to Caracas since Dec. 10, 2025, with treks typically taking place Wednesday and Fridays each week in the past, according to watchdog Human Rights First.
Back in December, Venezuela claimed the US suspended deportation flights, though the Trump administration denied that, causing some confusion.
An ICE Air deportation flight is en route to Venezuela from Phoenix, Arizona. This is the first deportation flight to Caracas since Dec 10, and previously flights had been operating twice a week (Wednesdays and Fridays) pic.twitter.com/v1NIaqeT4Q
— ICE Flight Monitor (@ICEFlightM) January 16, 2026
President Trump publicly indicated that US forces sat on plans to capture Maduro for days before proceeding due to concerns about the weather conditions.
After Maduro’s capture, the Trump administration has continued its oil quarantine of Venezuela as a means of leveraging the strongman’s success, Delcy Rodriguez, into compliance.
“This leverage we are using and we intend to use — we started using already,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told ABC News’ “This Week” earlier this month, referring to the oil quarantine.
“That will continue to be in place until the people who have control over the levers of power in that country make changes that are not just in the interest of the people of Venezuela but are in the interest of the United States.”
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who was also captured during the raid, were given a court hearing on Jan. 5, where they both pleaded not guilty to narcoterrorism charges.
The Department of Homeland Security publicly claimed that deportation flights were not paused after Maduro was taken into US custody.
