Donald Trump refuses to rule out executing Venezuela's socialist President - as CIA deployed undercover

The White House's strategic aim is the remove the far-left leader from his position, according to US officials familiar with the decision.

Mr Trump said he gave the CIA the go-ahead due to the large amounts of drugs pouring in to the US from Venezuela, with significant quantities coming in over the sea.

He confirmed: "We are looking at land now, because we've got the sea very well under control."

The President has long accused Venezuela of trafficking fentanyl into the US, which has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans in the past five years.

When asked by a reporter why the US Coast Guard was not being used to intercept boats suspected of carrying drugs, Mr Trump said the practice was "politically correct" and had previously failed.

The Commander-in-Chief, just after declining to answer whether the CIA was given the power to assassinate Mr Maduro, said: "I think Venezuela is feeling heat".

Mr Trump has authorised five strikes against drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean since September.

The Pentagon recently informed Congress that America was now embroiled in a "a non-international armed conflict" against drug cartels.

Mr Trump also accused the Venezuelan dictator of flooding the US with prisoners, including those from mental health asylums in the South American country.

Mr Maduro's regime is yet to publicly comment on the most recent comments from the President.

But Democrat Senator Jeanne Shaheen accused the Trump administration of bringing the US into a direct conflict.

On Wednesday, Senator Shaheen - who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - said: "The American people deserve to know if the administration is leading the US into another conflict, putting servicemembers at risk or pursuing a regime-change operation."

The Venezuelan dictator ordered his military to carry out exercises in one of the country's biggest shanty towns in the wake of the most recent strike on a suspected drug-trafficking boat.

And he was left fuming when his country's opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for fighting for democracy under his nose.

Ms Machado dedicated the prize to Mr Trump.

The total number of suspected narcoterrorists killed in the US strikes since September is now believed to be 27.

Mr Trump has deployed eight warships, fighter jets and a nuclear-powered submarine to the region in recent weeks.

In August, the US offered a $50million (£37million) reward for information leading to the arrest of Mr Maduro.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi previously accused the dictator of collaborating with violent groups including organised crime group Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa drug cartel.

Ms Bondi said: "Maduro uses foreign terrorist organizations like Tren de Aragua, Sinaloa and Cartel of the Suns to bring deadly violence to our country.

"He is one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world and a threat to our national security."

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