In a dramatic kick off to 2026, your early-January headlines have likely foregrounded images like these: U.S. naval vessels slinking through the Caribbean, smoke rising over coastal installations, and the shocking announcement that Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro had been captured in a special U.S. military operation. On January 3rd, the United States launched what is described as a “counter-narcotics mission” against Venezuela, but according to experts, the strike was something far more serious: an unlawful use of force and a direct violation of the UN Charter. 

The operation, ordered by President Donald Trump, involved airstrikes and armed incursions that, under international law, clearly fit “three of the seven prohibited acts” under Resolution 3314, which defines “Operation Absolute Resolve” as an act of aggression (Amnesty). Article 2(4) of the UN Charter prohibits any threat or use of force against another country’s territory or political independence unless it’s in self-defense or approved authorization from the UN Security Council. However, neither condition was met. As Amnesty’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard put it bluntly: “No label can convert a bombardment into ‘law enforcement.’ The facts, not political rhetoric, determine the applicable law.” 

But wait, wasn’t this operation removing a tyrant? Shouldn’t this be a good thing?

For over a decade, human rights organizations have documented widespread and systematic abuses under the government of Nicolás Maduro. In 2019, Amnesty International concluded that crimes against humanity had been committed in Venezuela since, at the VERY least, 2014. These include arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial executions targeting political opponents, journalists, and protesters. They also have been accused of trafficking tons of narcotics into the U.S.

In the end, two truths can exist simultaneously. The removal of Nicolas Maduro and the brutality of his regime brings hope for justice and political change for many Venezuelans—yet that outcome doesn’t erase Trump’s endorsement of unilateral military intervention or the revival of U.S. imperialism in Latin America. Justice for Venezuelans should not come at the cost of undermining the very laws that are supposed to protect them.