by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
WASHINGTON D.C. (Worthy News) – President Donald Trump has confirmed that the United States deployed a previously undisclosed weapon system—dubbed “The Discombobulator”—during the January 3 raid that led to the capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro in Caracas.
In an exclusive interview with the New York Post from the Oval Office, Trump said the classified technology was critical to the operation’s success, disabling enemy defenses and preventing any effective response from Maduro’s forces.
“The Discombobulator. I’m not allowed to talk about it,” Trump said, before confirming its use. “They never got their rockets off. They had Russian and Chinese rockets, and they never got one off. They pressed buttons and nothing worked.”
According to Trump, U.S. helicopters entered Caracas under stealth conditions, capturing Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, without the loss of a single American life. Maduro, 63, is now being held in a federal detention facility in Brooklyn awaiting trial on narcoterrorism and weapons charges. His former vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, has assumed the role of interim leader.
On the ground, witnesses described a sudden collapse of Venezuelan defensive systems. A self-identified member of Maduro’s security detail said radar systems inexplicably shut down moments before U.S. drones appeared overhead.
“At one point they launched something—I don’t know how to describe it. It was like an intense sound wave,” the witness said. “My head felt like it was exploding from the inside. We started bleeding from the nose. Some were vomiting blood. We couldn’t move.”
Trump’s remarks came amid renewed discussion of U.S. research into pulsed energy devices, following reports that such technology may have been linked to the mysterious “Havana Syndrome.” Venezuelan officials have seized on those reports to accuse Washington of testing experimental weapons on their country.
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López, who is himself wanted by U.S. authorities on drug trafficking charges with a $15 million bounty on his head, claimed Thursday that Venezuela had become a “testing ground for unknown weapons.”
Speaking at a military ceremony at Fuerte Tiuna—Caracas’s largest military complex and the site of Maduro’s capture—Padrino López alleged that U.S. forces used artificial intelligence–assisted weapons “never before used on a battlefield.”
“Venezuela was subjected to systematic bombing assisted by artificial intelligence of the highest level,” he said, referencing Trump’s recent comments at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
Trump echoed those claims—without offering technical details—during his Davos address. “Two weeks ago, they saw weapons that nobody ever heard of,” he said. “They weren’t able to fire one shot at us. Everything was discombobulated.”
Venezuelan regime officials have alleged that between 100 and 120 people were killed during the operation, though no evidence has been provided and exact figures remain unverified. Attorney General Tarek William Saab accused the U.S. of using chemical weapons and missiles in residential areas—claims Washington has not addressed and for which no proof has been presented.
Padrino López has separately claimed that 47 Venezuelan military personnel and 32 Cuban security officials were killed protecting Maduro. Cuba later confirmed that its agents had been guarding the Venezuelan leader, a revelation that underscored Havana’s long-suspected influence over Caracas and Maduro’s distrust of his own military.
Trump, meanwhile, praised the post-Maduro leadership, saying, “We have a great relationship with the new president. She’s been terrific.”
The president also warned that the operation in Venezuela signals a broader campaign against international drug cartels. In the same interview, Trump said U.S. strikes could extend beyond South America.
“We know their routes. We know their homes. We know everything about them,” Trump said. “We’re going to hit the cartels. Could be anywhere.”
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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