Multiple Explosions Rock Venezuela

Multiple explosions have rocked the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, and low-flying aircraft were heard early Saturday morning.

Smoke billowed from a hangar at a military base in the city, while another installation in the capital reportedly lost power.

Residents in several neighborhoods rushed into the streets, some watching from a distance as the situation unfolded.

“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, told The Associated Press. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”

It was unclear what caused the explosions, and Newsweek contacted the White House and the Pentagon for comment via email outside of regular working hours.

Venezuelan state television continued its regular programming, airing a segment on music and art without interruption.

The explosions come amid recent U.S. military strikes on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean.

On Friday, Venezuela signaled its willingness to negotiate an anti-narcotics agreement with Washington. In a prerecorded interview broadcast on Thursday, President Nicolás Maduro accused the U.S. of seeking regime change and access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves through a months-long campaign that began with a military deployment to the Caribbean in August.

Maduro faces U.S. charges of narco-terrorism. Last week, a CIA drone strike targeted a docking area allegedly used by Venezuelan drug cartels-the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since U.S. strikes on boats began in September.

President Donald Trump had long warned he might authorize strikes on land targets. The U.S. has also seized sanctioned oil tankers off Venezuela’s coast, and Trump ordered a blockade of others in a move aimed at tightening economic pressure on the country.

This is a developing story. More to follow.

Newsweek

This story was originally published January 3, 2026 at 2:58 AM.