Venezuela declares week of mourning for military killed in US attack

Venezuela has declared seven days of national mourning for military personnel killed during a controversial U.S. military operation to capture President Nicolás Maduro, reflecting rising tensions and casualties from the weekend attack. The move follows reports that around two dozen Venezuelan officers and dozens of allied Cuban personnel were killed in the raid.

Anna Portella/Reuters

7 January 2026 at 13:10:33

Military personnel carry a casket during the funeral of soldiers killed in the U.S. operation to capture Venezuela’s leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in the capital on January 3, at a cemetery in Caracas, Venezuela, January 7, 2026.

Maxwell Briceno/Reuters

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez on Tuesday (January 6) declared seven days of mourning for members of the military killed in the U.S. raid over the weekend to capture leader Nicolas Maduro.

Around two dozen Venezuelan officers were killed in the attack, according to the South American government.

Cuba's government said on Sunday that 32 of its military and police officers working in Venezuela were also killed and declared two days of mourning.

Production: Anna Portella/Reuters