According to CBS News journalist Jennifer Jacobs, US President Donald Trump has ordered strikes on targets inside Venezuela, including elements of the country’s military infrastructure. She views this decision as a sharp escalation of the US administration’s campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

At the same time, Washington has not formally announced the start of a military operation. The New York Times reported that a spokesperson for the US Army in Washington confirmed that explosions had taken place in Caracas, but declined to comment on what was happening or on any possible involvement of the White House.

Earlier, in the early hours of 3 January, explosions were heard in Caracas. Sources reported strikes on facilities at Forte Tiuna and the Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda air base, as well as on the La Guaira naval base in Vargas, the island of Margarita in the Caribbean Sea, one of the airports in the eastern part of the capital, and the private residence of Venezuela’s defense minister.

Footage showing helicopters flying over the capital appeared on social media. In the southern districts of Caracas, disruptions to internet access and electricity supply have been recorded. Su-30MKV fighter jets of the Venezuelan Air Force were scrambled on alert.

Local media report that Maduro has introduced a state of emergency in the country. The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry has stressed that the republic reserves the right to lawful self-defence in order to protect its people and its territory.