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The Venezuela model: The era of empty threats is over

Juan BARRETO / AFP; EPA/NICOLE COMBEAU; ATTA KENARE / AFP

Analysis

The Venezuela model: The era of empty threats is over

January 4, 2026

The extraction of Maduro is more than regime change; it is a calculated message to the Iranian axis. This display of American power is encouraging, illustrating that Trump's barrier of non-intervention policies has fallen – and that action against Iran is entirely within the realm of possibility.

Travel

Significant flight delays expected to, from Israel

Liat Mofaz Milchen

Analysis

Trump's Venezuela strike has historical roots in US policy

Prof. Abraham Ben-Zvi

Jewish World

BBC to pay Israeli family for filming Oct. 7 trauma without consent

Miri Weissman

Jewish World

Israeli missing, Jewish sisters dead in Swiss fire

Erez Linn

Federico PARRA / AFP; REUTERS/Jorge Duenes

Maduro family's cocaine trafficking ring exposed in indictment

Erez Linn

Reichman lecturer calls for terrorist's release, email accidentally sent to students

Noam Dvir

Vantor/Handout via REUTERS ; EPA/NICOLE COMBEAU; Vantor/Handout via REUTERS; AFP PHOTO/Juan Barreto

How the CIA got everything it needed on Maduro

Erez Linn

Analysis

The Venezuela model: The era of empty threats is over

January 4, 2026

Analysis

Trump's Venezuela strike has historical roots in US policy

The capture of Nicolas Maduro mirrors decades of US intervention in Latin America stretching back to the Monroe Doctrine. The operation also signals to Iran and Hamas that Trump's threats carry real consequences.

January 4, 2026

Explainer

Maduro family's cocaine trafficking ring exposed in indictment

The document alleges that Maduro’s activities began long before he assumed the presidency. Detailed filing outlines partnership with FARC and Tren de Aragua to export massive cocaine shipments.

January 4, 2026

Explainer

How the CIA got everything it needed on Maduro

Maduro had been rotating between several locations, and the US often lacked confirmation of his whereabouts until late at night. Delta Force troops rehearsed the extraction in a Kentucky replica of Maduro's compound, practicing breaches of steel doors at high speeds.

January 4, 2026

Explainer

Was Maduro Jewish? All you need to know on the deposed despot

He has long claimed that he has Sephardi ancestry. How the former bus driver became Trump's archenemy.

January 4, 2026

Feature

The world's most dangerous flashpoints of 2026

2025 was saturated with conflict. From Southeast Asia through the Himalayas and the Middle East to Ukraine, there is little reason to believe the trend will ease in the coming year. Europe is rearming at an unprecedented pace, Russia is growing bolder, China more aggressive, and the US is massing forces in the Caribbean. And the Middle East? As always.

January 4, 2026

Magazine

Nobel prize laureate: 'If they find me, they'll disappear me'

Even in a secret hideout, María Corina Machado, Venezuela's opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, doesn't give up. "The transition to democracy has begun, truth defeated Maduro."

January 4, 2026

Maduro's last stand? Qatar exile reportedly explored by US

Analysis

The Monroe Doctrine returns: How Venezuela became the first test for Trump

Drugs were the pretext, Iran was the target: The geopolitical race to oust Russia and Iran from the Americas.

January 4, 2026

Magazine

Trump may start a war with Venezuela – and meet Iran

After Yemen and Tehran, it looks like the US is preparing for another strike, this time much closer to home. What began as an action against drug smuggling may develop into a full-blown conflict. So why is Venezuela in the crosshairs, will its friendship with the Islamic Republic change the character of the campaign, and how does this affect Israel?

January 3, 2026