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The US claim their armed forces mission aimed at apprehending Venezuela's president involved many weeks of careful preparation, however the moment the US President issued the order to launch, "Operation Absolute Resolve" was completed in roughly 150 minutes.

The surprise early-morning strike this past weekend signified a never-before-seen incident within modern politics and resulted in the detention of Venezuela's president and his spouse, Cilia Flores.

Apprehended by soldiers from a top-tier American military force as they tried to escape into a heavily secured panic room, the two are now detained in a detention centre within New York City and face drug trafficking and terrorism indictments.

The Dawn Raid against Fuerte Tiuna

With daybreak on Saturday, the scale of the armed intervention in the capital, Venezuela's primary city, was clear.

Images of Fuerte Tiuna, a huge army installation where senior leadership reside, reveal blasted structures and charred, smouldering vehicles.

It was at this compound that the president and first lady were captured, a senior political figure a party official indicated.

Hours Before - Trump Gives the Order

"Operation Absolute Resolve" commenced with reports of explosions around 2 AM in Caracas (06:00 GMT).

The US disabled electricity across the capital, the President has since said, describing it as "dark and deadly".

The goal was to neutralize the nation's air defences and open up the path for US military helicopters to get to Fuerte Tiuna.

Our evaluation was that we successfully kept totally the advantage of surprise," a senior military officer commented.

Targeted sites encompassed the compound, a maritime facility and an airport. Images depict the complex on fire, with massive fires visible for miles.

Residents reported the way American choppers flew at low altitude over Caracas, en route to the military base.

Some of the helicopters came under fire, however were still able to fly, military leaders said.

There was significant weapons fire," Trump noted.

A Lightning-Fast Ground Assault

After landing, forces from an elite special operations unit, sprang into action.

They gained access the facility just after 2 AM local time, and the presidential couple "gave up" without resistance, according to accounts.

However, further information were provided. They tried to escape into a secure location, described as a heavily fortified bunker.

"The safe place was constructed of steel, and he wasn't able to get to the door as our personnel were so fast.

It featured a very thick door, a massive door," the President told reporters. He reached the entrance. He could not to close it."

However, even assuming they had managed to enter the bunker, troops could have breached it in approximately "under a minute."

From the Capital to New York City

Currently under American detention, the couple were moved approximately 3,400 kilometers, to New York City.

They were taken by air from the capital via chopper, and transferred to a US warship, a naval vessel stationed in the Caribbean. The operation was back in international waters before 4:30 AM.

Aboard the vessel that an iconic image of the whole operation emerged - the president in handcuffs, with hearing protection and darkened eyewear that looked like dark sunglasses.

From the USS Iwo Jima, his initial stop was at the American naval installation in Cuba.

The Maduros were then flown via official aircraft to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York, and then via helicopter to Manhattan.

Facing Justice in US Territory

On Saturday, footage was released depicting Maduro inside the Drug Enforcement Agency's (DEA) headquarters in New York.

The couple are presently detained in a detention centre in the city.

They have been charged with conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism and cocaine trafficking, owning automatic weapons and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and bombs to use against America.

They are set to encounter the full wrath of the US legal system in the United States within US courtrooms," the Attorney General declared.

Video documents the leader's entry into American and transport into custody.