Venezuela's chief prosecutor Tarek William Saab holds a news conference in Caracas.
Photo by: Reuters/Manaure Quintero
Venezuela's attorney general, Tarek William Saab, said Thursday that between 100 and 120 people were killed during the U.S. military operation on that led to the capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, marking the highest official casualty estimate to date.
Saab said the strikes targeted Caracas and three nearby regions and involved both civilians and military personnel, as EFE reports. He described the operation as "an unprecedented event" carried out through force and violence, and alleged that the attacks involved bombers, missile-equipped helicopters and chemical weapons, causing damage in residential areas.
He also argued that the operation violated U.S. constitutional principles and international legal frameworks, adding that "there were elderly people, children and women, many of whom died."
Earlier estimates from Venezuelan officials had been lower or less precise. On Jan. 8, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said the attack had left "up to now" about 100 dead and a similar number injured, claiming that many of the victims were civilians caught in bombings of urban areas.
Venezuelan authorities have not released an official list of those killed, and casualty figures have varied in official statements.
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Reporting from The New York Times on Jan. 8 highlighted the uncertainty surrounding the toll. The newspaper said Venezuelan officials had offered different tallies. The remains of the 32 Cuban soldiers killed during the operation were returned to their country in mid-January while Venezuela's defense minister, Vladimir Padrino López, reported last Friday that 47 members of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB) also perished.
U.S. officials have described the operation as a law-enforcement action rather than a military conflict, a distinction that affects how casualties are legally assessed. The Pentagon has said it is is conducting an evaluation of the damage
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Tags: Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, US military