🔗 Share this article US Forces Struck a 'Big Facility' in Venezuela, President Trump Stated Lacking Offering Details. Ex-President Trump has asserted that US forces hit a "major plant" in Venezuela last week. Yet, the former president offered no details on the exact purpose or location of the strike, and officials have issued no further comment from his team. Vague Remarks Made In a Talk Interview "US forces just destroyed – I don't know if you saw – they have a large facility, where the vessels depart from. Recently, we destroyed it. So we targeted them very hard," Trump allegedly told Republican donor and supermarket owner John Catsimatidis in a recent interview. Potential Implications of a Verified Strike If a US military action is confirmed, it would mark the first land strike since the US Department of Defense began a buildup of American military presence in the Caribbean region to disrupt narco-trafficking operations that the former administration claims operate under the orders of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. This initial objective of the force deployment has evolved into a blockade aimed at stopping the country's crude oil shipments. Social Media Video and Official Claims Trump has for some time indicated that American military units are prepared to escalate the military campaign by attacking targets inside Venezuela, a move that would theoretically require legislative approval. Video footage posted online on 24 December purportedly showed an explosion said to be from an industrial zone in Zulia state. But, the footage or the site in question has not been corroborated. An official from Trump's team reportedly told a news network that the president was describing a narco-trafficking site in his remarks. Response and Current Strategic Posture The Caracas administration has issued no statement on the incident Trump described. Additionally, there have been no corroborating news from Venezuela about it. The deployment of US military in the region – a stance certain officials have termed a naval quarantine – marks the broadest maritime enforcement action of the Trump era. Officials have avoided from calling the action as a full blockade, but have stated that around 15,000 service members are stationed across the Caribbean and the Gulf, including a carrier strike group, F-35 aircraft, and law enforcement vessels to uphold existing economic sanctions.