by Colleen Dulle
January 4, 2026
Mixed reactions
Reactions from around the world have been mixed, with many, particularly Venezuelans in the diaspora, hailing Maduro’s capture, while others expressed concerns that the U.S. attack violated international law.
The country’s bishops issued a brief “message of accompaniment and closeness with the People of God” via Instagram and X that did not comment directly on the capture of the Venezuelan president and his wife, but instead urged for “prayer for the unity of our people.”
“In light of the events that our country is experiencing today, let us ask God to grant all Venezuelans serenity, wisdom, and strength,” the bishops said. “We express our solidarity with those who were wounded and the families of those who died.”
Less than an hour later, the bishops issued a second brief statement calling on the people of Venezuela “to live more intensely in hope and fervent prayer for peace in our hearts and in society, rejecting any type of violence.”
“May our hands open for encounter and mutual aid, and may the decisions that are taken always be made for the well-being of our people,” the bishops wrote.
The statement was shared by other Latin American bishops’ conferences, including the bishops of Argentina and Mexico.
The Mexican bishops’ conference said it was “united in prayer with the bishops of Venezuela to ask God for serenity, wisdom, and strength for the Venezuelan people.”
In a brief comment to SIR, the news agency of the Italian bishops’ conference, Archbishop Jesús González de Zárate of Valencia, Venezuela, president of the country’s bishops conference, said he had been “awake since 2 a.m. to follow what was happening” and that he was accompanying “our people with prayer.”
While Venezuelans are still in shock, Archbishop Zárate said, “the facts are still in development to properly assess” the situation and emphasized his “trust in God and the values of our people.”
Bishop Juan Carlos Bravo Salazar of Petare, a diocese located east of the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, issued a statement Jan. 3 on the diocese’s Instagram account acknowledging that the people of Venezuela “are living through moments of confusion, uncertainty, and pain, in which we do not see clearly what is happening.”
“Our strength and hope are in the Lord of life and peace,” Bishop Bravo said, urging the need “to maintain serenity, peace, and above all a climate of prayer.”
He also urged caution, asking people to “take shelter and not go out.”
“For the good of our people, do not make calls to (take to) the streets, nor disseminate unverified and unconfirmed information, nor from sources that are not reliable or official. Let us stay in communication among ourselves, between pastoral zones, and with our closest collaborators,” he said.
Jan. 5. 2026: This article has been updated.
A man draped in a Venezuelan flag becomes emotional as people celebrate in Madrid Jan. 3, 2026, as they react to the news after U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. has struck Venezuela and captured its President Nicolas Maduro. Credit: OSV News photo/Violeta Santos Moura
In his first public comments since the U.S. military operation that captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, Pope Leo XIV called for “safeguarding the country’s sovereignty” and “ensuring the rule of law enshrined in the [Venezuelan] Constitution.”
Speaking at his Sunday Angelus on Jan. 4, the American-born pope said he was following developments in Venezuela “with deep concern,” adding, “The good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration.”
“This must lead to the overcoming of violence, and to the pursuit of paths of justice and peace, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the country, ensuring the rule of law enshrined in its Constitution, respecting the human and civil rights of each and every person, and working together to build a peaceful future of cooperation, stability and harmony, with special attention to the poorest who are suffering because of the difficult economic situation,” the pope said.
Mr. Maduro and his wife were captured by U.S. special forces in a nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital city of Caracas on Jan. 3. They have been taken to the United States, where they are expected to be charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-importation conspiracy and weapons charges in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The attack followed weeks of escalating tensions between the two nations, as the United States accused Maduro of being a “narco-terrorist” and sought to interdict shipping coming to and from the South American nation. Venezuelan officials said at least 40 Venezuelans were killed in the American attack.
The latest economic pressure from the United States has only added to Venezuela’s already serious fiscal woes: Venezuela’s economy has shrunk to just 28 percent of what it was when Mr. Maduro came to power in 2013, according to the International Monetary Fund. The last 12 years have also seen hyperinflation, human rights abuses and shortages of food and medicine, prompting mass emigration from the country.
These issues are well-known to the Vatican’s top diplomatic leadership. Pope Leo’s former diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, saw an influx of Venezuelan refugees during his time as bishop, and Leo opened soup kitchens in response. The Vatican’s secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was a nuncio—a role similar to an ambassador—in Venezuela from 2009 to 2013. The “number two” in the Vatican’s Secretariat of State is Venezuelan Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra.
Speaking to journalists aboard the papal plane in early December, Pope Leo said that the Vatican was working with its ambassador and the bishops’ conference of Venezuela “to calm the situation, seeking above all the good of the people, because in these situations it is often the people who suffer, not the authorities.”
Acknowledging that the messages out of the United States regarding Maduro were changing often, Leo said that it would be better for the United States to “seek ways to dialogue: perhaps some form of pressure, even economic pressure, but looking for another way to bring about change” rather than “an operation or invading Venezuelan territory.
In his first public comments since the U.S. military operation that captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, Pope Leo XIV called for “safeguarding the country’s sovereignty” and “ensuring the rule of law enshrined in the [Venezuelan] Constitution.”
Speaking at his Sunday Angelus on Jan. 4, the American-born pope said he was following developments in Venezuela “with deep concern,” adding, “The good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration.”
“This must lead to the overcoming of violence, and to the pursuit of paths of justice and peace, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the country, ensuring the rule of law enshrined in its Constitution, respecting the human and civil rights of each and every person, and working together to build a peaceful future of cooperation, stability and harmony, with special attention to the poorest who are suffering because of the difficult economic situation,” the pope said.
Mr. Maduro and his wife were captured by U.S. special forces in a nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital city of Caracas on Jan. 3. They have been taken to the United States, where they are expected to be charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-importation conspiracy and weapons charges in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The attack followed weeks of escalating tensions between the two nations, as the United States accused Maduro of being a “narco-terrorist” and sought to interdict shipping coming to and from the South American nation. Venezuelan officials said at least 40 Venezuelans were killed in the American attack.
The latest economic pressure from the United States has only added to Venezuela’s already serious fiscal woes: Venezuela’s economy has shrunk to just 28 percent of what it was when Mr. Maduro came to power in 2013, according to the International Monetary Fund. The last 12 years have also seen hyperinflation, human rights abuses and shortages of food and medicine, prompting mass emigration from the country.
These issues are well-known to the Vatican’s top diplomatic leadership. Pope Leo’s former diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, saw an influx of Venezuelan refugees during his time as bishop, and Leo opened soup kitchens in response. The Vatican’s secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was a nuncio—a role similar to an ambassador—in Venezuela from 2009 to 2013. The “number two” in the Vatican’s Secretariat of State is Venezuelan Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra.
Speaking to journalists aboard the papal plane in early December, Pope Leo said that the Vatican was working with its ambassador and the bishops’ conference of Venezuela “to calm the situation, seeking above all the good of the people, because in these situations it is often the people who suffer, not the authorities.”
Acknowledging that the messages out of the United States regarding Maduro were changing often, Leo said that it would be better for the United States to “seek ways to dialogue: perhaps some form of pressure, even economic pressure, but looking for another way to bring about change” rather than “an operation or invading Venezuelan territory.
Mixed reactions
Reactions from around the world have been mixed, with many, particularly Venezuelans in the diaspora, hailing Maduro’s capture, while others expressed concerns that the U.S. attack violated international law.
The country’s bishops issued a brief “message of accompaniment and closeness with the People of God” via Instagram and X that did not comment directly on the capture of the Venezuelan president and his wife, but instead urged for “prayer for the unity of our people.”
“In light of the events that our country is experiencing today, let us ask God to grant all Venezuelans serenity, wisdom, and strength,” the bishops said. “We express our solidarity with those who were wounded and the families of those who died.”
Less than an hour later, the bishops issued a second brief statement calling on the people of Venezuela “to live more intensely in hope and fervent prayer for peace in our hearts and in society, rejecting any type of violence.”
“May our hands open for encounter and mutual aid, and may the decisions that are taken always be made for the well-being of our people,” the bishops wrote.
The statement was shared by other Latin American bishops’ conferences, including the bishops of Argentina and Mexico.
The Mexican bishops’ conference said it was “united in prayer with the bishops of Venezuela to ask God for serenity, wisdom, and strength for the Venezuelan people.”
In a brief comment to SIR, the news agency of the Italian bishops’ conference, Archbishop Jesús González de Zárate of Valencia, Venezuela, president of the country’s bishops conference, said he had been “awake since 2 a.m. to follow what was happening” and that he was accompanying “our people with prayer.”
While Venezuelans are still in shock, Archbishop Zárate said, “the facts are still in development to properly assess” the situation and emphasized his “trust in God and the values of our people.”
Bishop Juan Carlos Bravo Salazar of Petare, a diocese located east of the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, issued a statement Jan. 3 on the diocese’s Instagram account acknowledging that the people of Venezuela “are living through moments of confusion, uncertainty, and pain, in which we do not see clearly what is happening.”
“Our strength and hope are in the Lord of life and peace,” Bishop Bravo said, urging the need “to maintain serenity, peace, and above all a climate of prayer.”
He also urged caution, asking people to “take shelter and not go out.”
“For the good of our people, do not make calls to (take to) the streets, nor disseminate unverified and unconfirmed information, nor from sources that are not reliable or official. Let us stay in communication among ourselves, between pastoral zones, and with our closest collaborators,” he said.
Jan. 5. 2026: This article has been updated.
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