Venezuela and Cuba Confirm Military Deaths After US Operation; Interior Ministry Reports Larger Toll

CARACAS, Venezuela – January 8, 2026

In the wake of a dramatic United States military operation earlier this month that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, official statements from Venezuela and Cuba have confirmed significant military casualties, even as the country’s Interior Ministry released a broader fatality estimate.

Both Venezuela and Cuba have released lists detailing the military personnel killed during the US-led operation:

• Venezuelan military personnel: The Venezuelan army publicly listed 23 Venezuelan soldiers killed during the strikes and ground assault connected to the raid. These personnel were killed during an intense assault involving airstrikes and close-quarters engagements across strategic locations in and around Caracas.
• Cuban military and security personnel: The Cuban government published the names, ranks and ages of 32 Cuban officers who died during the operation. The personnel included colonels, majors, captains and lieutenants aged between their mid-20s and late 60s, all of whom were in Venezuela under bilateral security cooperation arrangements.

Taken together, these official lists confirm 55 military personnel killed, 23 Venezuelan and 32 Cuban, making them the only confirmed casualty figures directly published by the countries involved.

Venezuela’s army and Cuba’s official media released named lists of their military dead. These have verifiable names and ranks attached, making them the most concrete figures so far.

Statement from Venezuela’s Interior Minister, Diosdado Cabello, who declared that 100 people died in the United States attack that led to Maduro’s capture.

This figure was released on state television and is the first broad death toll provided by the Venezuelan government since the operation.

Cabello’s estimate does not break down how many of the 100 were military personnel, Cuban allies or civilians.

The 100-fatality figure covers all deaths connected to the attack, likely including civilian fatalities, combatants on both sides, and possibly unclassified losses that have not been individually identified or published.

Venezuelan officials have also claimed that many in Maduro’s security contingent were killed “in cold blood,” although specific details behind the larger number have not been publicly enumerated.

Independent assessments from early reporting placed overall casualties between 40 and 80, suggesting the true toll, particularly among civilians, is still being investigated, showing ongoing uncertainty.

The publication of Cuba’s list also marks Havana’s first formal acknowledgement of its forces’ involvement in Venezuela’s internal security, a fact that had previously been downplayed despite long-running cooperation between the two governments.

Venezuela’s interim authorities have declared a week of national mourning for the fallen soldiers, emphasising their sacrifices and framing the US operation as a hostile attack on Venezuelan sovereignty.

With multiple casualty figures in circulation, verification from independent observers and further official disclosures will be critical for a full understanding of the human cost of the operation.

For now, 55 confirmed military deaths stands as the most specific and verifiable count, while the Interior Ministry’s 100-fatality figure underlines the broader scale of loss and the ongoing uncertainty surrounding civilian and unconfirmed deaths linked to the strikes.