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The La Guaira naval attack, also called Operation Gideon (Template:Lang-es), was an attempt by armed Venezuelan dissident groups and US-aligned forces to infiltrate Venezuela near the coastal city of La Guaira, launched from Colombia. The groups planned to train Venezuelans to overthrow the government of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro.

Background

Former United States Army Special Forces operator Jordan Goudreau had allegedly met with Venezuelan opposition officials aligned with disputed interim president Juan Guaidó, with Guaidó eventually turning down proposals promoted by Goudreau. The Colombian government had also condemned actions performed by Goudreau's forces and refused to aid his cause. Goudreau had worked security at Venezuela Aid Live in February 2019, turning his attention to the area at this point.

Venezuelan Major General Clíver Alcalá Cordones approached Goudreau, stating that he had gathered 300 Venezuelan troops who had defected into Colombia. Alcalá's troops were stationed in the La Guajira Peninsula. According to the Associated Press (AP), Goudreau and Alcalá distanced themselves from the Venezuelan opposition due to "closed-door deal making with the regime".

Former United States Navy SEAL operator Ephraim Mattos met with Alcalá's troops while working in Colombia and was presented with a document created by Goudreau on 16 June 2019, listing operations equipment: "320 M4 assault rifles, an anti-tank rocket launcher, Zodiac boats, US$1 million in cash and state-of-the-art night vision goggles."

The AP published an article about Goudreau, his plan and its history, and his training camps on 1 May 2020, writing that the plans to attack Venezuela were "far-fetched" and that people who knew him believed he was "in way over his head". Bellingcat suggested that the Venezuelan government may have known of the plan since late March 2020, but certainly knew by 1 May. Maduro confirmed that they knew all of the plan by the evening of 1 May, and that it had been initially planned for 10 March, but postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. By the time of the attack, many of the mercenary soldiers had abandoned their camps, following the arrest of Alcalá, investigations by Colombian authorities, and the growing pandemic.

Alcalá incident

On 26 March 2020, Alcalá assumed responsibility for "a military operation against the Maduro dictatorship", including a shipment of weapons captured in Colombia, stating that the United States, Colombia and Guaidó officials had signed an agreement to support their efforts to overthrow President Maduro. Guaidó denied knowledge of the event while United States Special Representative to Venezuela Elliott Abrams described Alcalá's statement as "despicable and quite dangerous". Alcalá was subsequently extradited to the United States for unrelated drug trafficking charges as part of the Maduro government. Abrams later said that Alcalá "was put up to making those terrible charges by the regime".

Attack

On 3 May 2020, a group of armed militants arrived by boat to Macuto, near La Guaira, a port city just north of Venezuelan capital Caracas. The boats had been launched from Colombia at 5 p.m. the day before, in two waves. According to Venezuelan state intelligence, the first boat (that arrived at Macuto) was smaller and faster, while the second boat was to arrive at Chuao before it was intercepted by the Navy. The Venezuelan military reported that the militants had "war materials" on their boats. According to photos released by the Venezuelan government, a helicopter was involved. The naval attack force was composed of 60 soldiers, including two former United States Army Special Forces members.

An initial fight in the early morning of 3 May involved the first boat, and was fought against the Venezuelan Navy. Goudreau said that the second boat was running low on fuel after this, but that safe houses were available for soldiers if they landed and refueling boats were sent from Aruba to help the incursion force. In the initial fight, eight soldiers were arrested on the shore. Another eight had been killed on the beach. Videos of the fight, including gunshots, were shared on social media; the Venezuelan government first acknowledged the attack at 7:30 a.m., in an announcement from Interior Minister Néstor Reverol. Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López later said that one of the militant boats had been sunk by the Navy, and the country's military sent ships to look for survivors. One of the killed militants was Robert "Pantera" Colina.

Goudreau and former Venezuelan National Guard officer Javier Nieto Quintero released a video in the afternoon claiming responsibility, calling the attack 'Operation Gideon' and explaining that they intended to launch an army into Venezuela to overthrow Maduro; Goudreau said that as well as the naval attack, his forces had entered Venezuela by land and were still operating. Speaking on national television that day, Reverol said that the Venezuelan military's defensive operation was ongoing, and would be for several days.

The next day, Maduro said Venezuelan forces had detained 13 soldiers, including two Americans working with Goudreau; these were named as Airan Berry and Luke Denman. Goudreau said that eight of his soldiers had been captured on 4 May, the two Americans and six Venezuelans, and that an unknown number had been captured on 3 May. On 5 May it was reported that "dozens" of militants had been captured. Seized items from the militants include weapons, Peruvian documents, and uniforms emblazoned with an American flag. Venezuelan prosecutor general Tarek William Saab later announced that a total of 114 people suspected to be involved had been arrested within Venezuela, and that 25,000 national troops were mobilized to hunt down more in a Venezuelan military mission named 'Escudo Bolivariano' ('Bolivarian Shield').

The United States and Colombian governments have been accused by Venezuela of masterminding the attack, which both deny; there has also been no comment on involvement of US citizens from the U.S. State Department.

See also

• Colombia–Venezuela relations
• Caracas helicopter incident
• Attack on Fort Paramacay
• El Junquito raid
• 2018 Caracas drone attack
• 2019 Venezuelan uprising attempt

References

1. Smith, Scott; Goodman, Joshua (4 May 2020). "Venezuela: 2 Americans among those nabbed after beach raid". The Washington Post. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
2. ^ "Ex-Green Beret led failed attempt to oust Venezuela's Maduro". Associated Press. 1 May 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
3. ^ "Venezuela holds two US citizens over 'coup bid'". BBC News. 5 May 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
4. ^ "The Invasion of Venezuela, Brought To You By Silvercorp USA". bellingcat. 5 May 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
5. ^ ""Lo sabíamos todo", dice Maduro sobre incursión en Macuto". Efecto Cocuyo. 5 May 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
6. ^ Long, Gideon (4 April 2020). "Mystery surrounds foiled 'plot' to liberate Venezuela". Financial Times. Retrieved 5 May 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
7. "Cliver Alcalá se entregó a la DEA y fue extraditado a EEUU: Reuters - Noticiero Digital". Noticiero Digital. 27 March 2020.
8. ^ "Venezuela attack: Former US special forces soldier says he led botched plot to overthrow President Maduro". Sky News. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
9. ^ CNN, Claudia Dominguez. "Venezuela claims to have captured two Americans involved in failed invasion". CNN. Retrieved 5 May 2020. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
10. ^ Venezuelan government says it stopped ‘invasion’ launched from Colombia The Washington Post
11. ^ Boat attack on Venezuela port foiled The Canberra Times
12. ^ "Venezuela's Maduro: Americans captured in failed coup plot". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
13. "Venezuela accuses Colombia of sea invasion". BBC News. 3 May 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
14. Venezuela detains two Americans allegedly involved in failed raid to remove Maduro
15. ^ "Venezuela: Two US citizens held after failed coup attempt are named". Sky News. Retrieved 5 May 2020.

External links

• Javier Nieto Quintero y Jordan Goudreau se atribuyen Operación Gedeón: "Es real" – Video released by Nieto and Goudreau about the attack

• 2020 in international relations
• Conflicts in 2020
• Crisis in Venezuela
• 2020 in Venezuela
• Venezuelan presidential crisis
• March 2020 events in South America
• May 2020 crimes
• May 2020 events in South America
• Violent non-state actor incidents in South America
• Colombia–Venezuela relations