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The US assert the armed forces mission aimed at apprehending the South American nation's leader involved months of careful preparation, but when Donald Trump issued the command to launch, the mission dubbed "Absolute Resolve" was completed in about two and a half hours.

The surprise early-morning strike on Saturday marked an unprecedented incident within contemporary international relations and culminated in the detention for Venezuela's president and his spouse, Cilia Flores.

Apprehended by troops from an elite US army unit when they tried to escape inside a heavily secured secure chamber, the two are currently in custody at a holding facility in New York and are confronting narco-terrorism indictments.

A Dawn Raid against the Military Complex

With daybreak on Saturday, the magnitude of the military operation in Caracas, Venezuela's primary city, was evident.

Images of the vast military base, a massive army installation in which top government officials reside, depict bombed out buildings as well as charred, smoking cars.

The location was this base that the president and first lady were captured, a senior political figure a party official reported.

Just Moments Before - The President Issues the Command

"Operation Absolute Resolve" started amid reports of explosions at about 2 AM in Caracas (06:00 GMT).

American forces disabled electricity to the city, the President later described, calling it "dark and deadly".

The aim was to disable the nation's air defense systems and clear the way for US military helicopters to reach Fuerte Tiuna.

Our evaluation was that we had maintained completely the element of surprise", the top general stated.

Strike locations encompassed the base, a maritime facility and an airport. Pictures show the complex on fire, with huge flames visible from a great distance.

Residents have described the way American choppers flew at low altitude over Caracas, heading for Fuerte Tiuna.

Some of the helicopters were shot at, but were still able to fly, officials stated.

"It was a lot of gunfire," the President noted.

A Rapid Ground Assault

After landing, troops from an elite special operations unit, acted with speed.

They gained access to the compound at 02:01 Caracas time, and the Maduros "gave up" without a struggle, according to accounts.

But, further information were provided. The Maduros attempted to flee into a safe place, described as a military "fortress".

"The safe place is all steel, and he failed to make it inside because our guys were so fast.

It featured a very thick entryway, a massive door," the President informed the media. He reached the entrance. He was unable to shut it."

However, even assuming they had succeeded to get into the bunker, troops could have blown it open in about "47 seconds".

From the Capital to New York City

Now in US custody, the couple were transported approximately 2,100 miles, to New York City.

They were taken by air from the capital by helicopter, and taken to a US warship, a warship stationed in the Caribbean. The team was back "over the water" by 04:29.

It was on the ship where an iconic image from the entire mission emerged - the president shackled, with hearing protection and darkened eyewear resembling opaque glasses.

After leaving the ship, his initial stop was to the US Navy base in Cuba.

The Maduros were then flown via official aircraft to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York state, and then via helicopter into New York City.

Confronting Justice in American Soil

That same day, footage was released depicting the detainee inside the Drug Enforcement Agency's (DEA) main office in New York.

The couple are now being held in a detention centre in the city.

They have been charged including planning narco-terrorism and cocaine trafficking, possession of automatic weapons and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and bombs against the US.

"They will soon face the full wrath of the US legal system on American soil within US courtrooms," the Attorney General proclaimed.

Footage shows Maduro's arrival into American and journey to detention.