Leader of Venezuelan gang killed in US military strike, Trump says

President Donald Trump has said a "swift and lethal kinetic" US military strike has killed "the infamous leader" of Venezuela's Tren de Aragua street gang.

Tren de Aragua has been a target of the Trump administration which claims it had operated under the control of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro before he was seized by US forces.

The gang's leader, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores - also known as Nino Guerrero, was charged in a US federal court in December with racketeering conspiracy and other crimes, including lending support to terrorists.

In a post on Truth Social, President Trump wrote: "At my direction, the United States Southern Command delivered a swift ​and lethal kinetic strike to ‌successfully execute Nino Guerrero, the infamous leader of Tren De Aragua, ​one of the most bloodthirsty Terrorist Organizations on Planet."

Operation 'coordinated closely' with Venezuela

He added: "Tren de Aragua terrorists no longer have safe haven in Venezuela or anywhere else and, under my leadership, we will find these vicious murderers and drug lords anytime, anyplace, and send them to the depths of hell where they belong."

Mr Trump went on to say the operation was "coordinated closely ⁠with our friends in Venezuela, ⁠with whom we are working very well".

His post included a dramatic video appearing to show a shot from above of a small building with a green roof exploding.

Although Mr Trump did not say when the strike took place, US defence secretary Pete Hegseth posted on X that it occurred earlier in the week on a Tren de Aragua compound in Venezuela.

Venezuelan authorities have not yet commented on the operation.

Tren de Aragua originated more than a decade ago at an infamous prison in Venezuela's central state of Aragua.

The gang has expanded in recent years as millions of Venezuelans migrated to other Latin American countries or the US in search of better living conditions.

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The Trump administration has repeatedly ‌targeted the gang and its leader with sanctions over alleged involvement in criminal activities such as illicit drug smuggling, human ‌trafficking and money laundering.

It has also cited the alleged connection ⁠to justify deporting some immigrants in the US ​to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador.

Tren de Aragua had been labelled by the US as a terrorist organisation and the State Department had offered rewards of up to $5m for information leading to Guerrero Flores' arrest.

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(c) Sky News 2026: Leader of Venezuelan gang killed in US military strike, Trump says