Former U.S. soldier claims to have led failed invasion of Venezuela

Jordan Goudreau, a former U.S. Green Beret, said Sunday that he and a retired Venezuelan army general had launched a failed overthrow of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, telling an exiled Venezuelan journalist in Florida that his forces had ordered an amphibious attack on Caracas early Sunday morning. Venezuela's government said eight people were killed in the failed incursion, which it blamed on the U.S. and Colombia.

The goal of the beach attack on the heavily fortified capital was to arrest Maduro, The Associated Press reports. "But from the outset the ragtag army lacked funding and U.S. government support, all but guaranteeing defeat against Maduro's sizable-if-demoralized military. It also appears to have been penetrated by Maduro's extensive Cuban-backed intelligence network." Goudreau and retired Venezuelan Capt. Javier Nieto posted a video announcing the "daring amphibious raid" and claiming 60 men were still on the ground and other cells were being activated, AP notes, but "there was no sign of any fighting in the capital or elsewhere as night fell."

Asked why his forces would launch their attack against one of Venezuela's most heavily guarded coastlines, Goudreau pointed to Alexander the Great and the Battle of Guagamela, when Alexander's forces "struck deep into the heart of the enemy."

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Maduro's allies linked the alleged plot to opposition leader Juan Guaidó, recognized by the U.S. and other countries as Venezuela's legitimate president. "Of course, there are patriotic members of the military willing to fight for Venezuela," Guaidó said. "But it's clear that what happened in Vargas is another distraction ploy" to pull attention away from Venezuela's cratered economy. The U.S. State Department also denied any U.S. involvement but referred to Maduro's government as "the former regime."