Joint US-Venezuelan operation captures notorious warcriminal - ADANews - November 14, 2024

[MSgt Falconer]

Joint US-Venezuelan operation captures notorious warcriminal.

With official US involvement in stabilization efforts following the Venezuelan civil war confirmed ADANews has been given exclusive insight into some of the more sensitive parts of this operation. While images of US Marines guarding humanitarian supply posts and patroling major Venezuelan cities have been flooding social media in recent days, in the background more clandestine missions are carried out.  American special forces have been conducting a large scale manhunt for a number of high profile members of the fallen Maduro regime. Some of these people have surrendered themselves to SUG forces but many more have fled into the more remote parts of the country along with the remnants of the former Venezuelan army.

As a journalist for ADANews I was granted a rare permission to accompany US forces on one of these missions. I was taken blindfolded in a car to a remote staging area where I was intorduced to several masked and armed men. The men were identified simply as "Team Black" and "Team Green". It was explained to me that "Team Green" was the first unit in a program by the new Venezuelan government to build a western style special forces unit and "Team Black" was responsible for training and advising this unit. I was not informed what US Unit "Team Black" was part of.

I was allowed to sit in on the teams briefing but was not allowed any camera or recording equipment. The plan layed out was a bold one and bordered on foolish. A daring raid against a townhouse in a remote village in broad daylight. One of the Venezuelan soldiers questioned why it would be done during daytime and the reson given was that the target was most likely not planning an overnight stay. The team had to go now, or be forced to wait until the next opportunity. The soldier seemed content with that reply. The target of the raid was one "Brigadier General Ernesto Molina". A man responsible for multiple terror campaigns again dissenting elements within Venezuela both before and during the civil war.

The trip to the remote village took place in unmarked Toyota Landcruisers, as one of the soldiers put it: "If we roll in with big, lumbering military vehicles the rebels just run and hide in the jungle". The trip took no more than 20 minutes and when we arrived at the village the soldiers quickly lept out of the vehicles and surrounded what they had called "the target building". Three armed men came out on the building porch and were immedietly gunned down. The soldiers then stormed the building using a sledgehammer to break open the front door. I was left alone with the vehicles for about 5 minutes during which no gunfire was heard. After 5 minutes had passed the soldiers came back out with a handcuffed man and I was permitted to take one picture of the group before quickly being bundled back into the vehicles and driven back to the base we came from. Ernesto Molina was escorted away from the vehicles and into a different house. All my camera and recording equipment were seized by "Team Black" and only returned to me 2 days later having been "sanitized"

 

Team Black and Team Green with the captured Brigadier General Molina

 

Simon Tam
War Correspondent
ADANews