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The US state the armed forces mission to capture the South American nation's president took many weeks of planning, however the moment Donald Trump issued the command to commence, "Operation Absolute Resolve" was completed in about two and a half hours.

The unexpected pre-dawn attack on Saturday signified a never-before-seen event in modern politics and resulted in the detention of Venezuela's president and his wife, Cilia Flores de Maduro.

Apprehended by soldiers from an elite US army unit as they attempted to flee into a heavily secured safe room, the couple are currently being held at a holding facility within New York City and are confronting drug trafficking and terrorism charges.

The Dawn Raid against Fuerte Tiuna

With daybreak that morning, the scale of the armed intervention in Caracas, Venezuela's capital, became apparent.

Photographs of Fuerte Tiuna, a huge army installation in which senior leadership reside, reveal blasted buildings and burned, smoking vehicles.

The location was this facility that the president and first lady were captured, a senior political figure Nahum Fernández stated.

Just Moments Before - The President Issues the Order

"Operation Absolute Resolve" began amid reports of blasts at about 2 AM in Caracas (6:00 Greenwich Mean Time).

The US cut power to the city, Trump has since said, describing it as "dark and deadly".

The goal was to disable Venezuela's air defences and clear the way for American assault helicopters to reach Fuerte Tiuna.

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

Strike locations included the compound, a port and an airfield. Pictures depict the complex engulfed in flames, with massive fires seen for miles.

Residents have described how US military helicopters flew at low altitude over Caracas, heading for the military base.

A number of the aircraft came under fire, however managed to continue flying, officials said.

"It was significant gunfire," Trump noted.

A Rapid On-the-Ground Operation

After landing, troops from an elite special operations unit, moved quickly.

They gained access the facility just after 2 AM Caracas time, and the Maduros "gave up" without a struggle, as per reports.

But, more details emerged. They tried to escape into a secure location, described as a heavily fortified bunker.

The secure room was constructed of steel, and he failed to make it inside as our personnel were so fast.

It featured a very thick entryway, a very heavy door," the President informed the media. "He made it to the door. He could not to shut it."

However, even assuming they had succeeded to get into the safe room, forces could have breached it in about "under a minute."

From Caracas to Manhattan

Currently under American detention, Nicolás Maduro and his wife were transported approximately 2,100 miles, to Manhattan.

They were taken by air out of Caracas via chopper, and taken to the USS Iwo Jima, a naval vessel positioned off the coast. The team was back "over the water" by 04:29.

Aboard the vessel where one of the defining pictures from the entire mission was captured - Maduro in handcuffs, wearing ear protectors and darkened eyewear resembling dark sunglasses.

After leaving the ship, he was first flown at the American naval installation at Guantánamo Bay.

They were then flown via official aircraft to a military airfield in New York state, before a final helicopter transfer to Manhattan.

Facing Justice on US Territory

On Saturday, a video was released showing Maduro inside the Drug Enforcement Agency's (DEA) headquarters in New York.

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

They face charges including conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism and import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and plots to possess such weapons and bombs to use against America.

They are set to encounter the complete force of the US legal system on American soil in American courts," a senior legal official proclaimed.

Footage shows the leader's entry in US and journey to detention.