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American officials state the armed forces mission to capture the South American nation's leader required many weeks of planning, but the moment Donald Trump gave the command to launch, "Operation Absolute Resolve" only lasted about two and a half hours.

The surprise pre-dawn assault this past weekend marked a historic incident in contemporary international relations and culminated in the detention for Nicolás Maduro along with his wife, Cilia Flores de Maduro.

Captured by troops belonging to an elite American military force when they tried to escape inside a heavily secured panic room, the pair are currently in custody in a detention centre within New York City and face narco-terrorism accusations.

The Dawn Assault against the Military Complex

With daybreak on Saturday, the magnitude of the military operation in Caracas, Venezuela's primary city, was evident.

Pictures of Fuerte Tiuna, an enormous military complex in which senior leadership reside, show blasted buildings as well as burned, smoking vehicles.

The location was this compound where the president and first lady were apprehended, a senior political figure Nahum Fernández stated.

Hours Before - The President Issues the Command

"Operation Absolute Resolve" started with reports of explosions at about 02:00 local time (06:00 GMT).

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

The objective was to neutralize the nation's air defences and clear the path for US military helicopters to reach the target.

Our evaluation was that we had maintained totally the advantage of surprise," a senior military officer remarked.

Strike locations encompassed the compound, a port and an airfield. Images depict the complex on fire, with huge flames seen for miles.

Residents have described the way US military helicopters flew at low altitude above the city, en route to Fuerte Tiuna.

Some of the helicopters came under fire, however managed to continue flying, officials said.

There was a lot of weapons fire," Trump added.

A Rapid On-the-Ground Operation

Once on the ground, troops from an elite special operations unit, moved quickly.

They entered to the compound just after 2 AM Caracas time, and the Maduros "gave up" without a struggle, as per accounts.

However, further information were provided. The Maduros tried to escape into a safe place, described as a heavily fortified bunker.

The secure room is all steel, and he failed to get to the door as our personnel were so fast.

It featured a very thick entryway, a very heavy door," the President informed the media. He reached the entrance. He was unable to shut it."

But even if they had succeeded to get into the safe room, forces could have blown it open in about "47 seconds".

From the Capital to Manhattan

Now in US custody, the couple were transported approximately 2,100 miles, to Manhattan.

They were taken by air from the capital via chopper, and taken to a US warship, a warship positioned off the coast. The team was back in international waters by 04:29.

It was on the ship where an iconic image from the entire mission emerged - the president shackled, with hearing protection and a type of blindfold resembling opaque glasses.

From the USS Iwo Jima, his initial stop was to the US Navy base at Guantánamo Bay.

They then traveled on a government plane to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York, and then via helicopter into New York City.

Facing The Legal System on American Soil

That same day, footage was released depicting Maduro inside the federal drug agency's headquarters in the city.

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

They have been charged with planning drug-related terrorism and import cocaine, possession of automatic weapons and explosives, and plots to acquire machine guns and destructive devices to use against America.

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

Footage shows the leader's entry into American and transport to detention.