The U.S. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife on Saturday is reviving memories of the dramatic 1989 takedown of Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, which coincidentally took place 36 years ago to the day of Maduro’s Jan. 3 capture.
Under former President George H.W. Bush, U.S. forces launched a surprise invasion of Panama in the early hours of Dec. 20, 1989, accusing Noriega of conspiring with drug traffickers to funnel cocaine into America.
He had also faced allegations of manipulating the country’s 1989 presidential election.
“The goal was to restore the democratically elected government of Guillermo Endara and arrest Noriega on drug trafficking charges,” as noted on the U.S. Army’s website. “At the time, Operation Just Cause was the largest and most complex combat operation since the Vietnam War.”
Similarly to Saturday’s operation involving Maduro, the Panama invasion proceeded without explicit authorization from Congress, according to Axios.
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Noriega’s capture, however, unfolded over several weeks as he evaded arrest by taking refuge inside the Vatican’s embassy in Panama City.
U.S. troops used psychological warfare to force Noriega out of hiding.
In a tactic known as “Operation Nifty Package,” military vehicles with loudspeakers blasted non-stop rock music, with a playlist that included songs by The Clash, Van Halen and U2, BBC News reported.
Noriega ultimately surrendered to U.S. forces on Jan. 3, 1990, 36 years to the day before the U.S. capture of Maduro, and was flown to America to stand trial, Axios reported.
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The operation resulted in the deaths of 23 U.S. service members and left 320 others wounded. The Pentagon estimated that roughly 200 Panamanian civilians and 314 Panamanian military personnel were killed, according to the Associated Press.
In 1992, Noriega was convicted on drug trafficking charges in a Miami federal court and received a 40-year prison sentence.
He was granted prisoner-of-war status, housed in a separate bungalow away from other inmates, and was allowed to wear his Panamanian military uniform and insignia in court, the AP reported.
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After serving 17 years in a U.S. prison, he was extradited to France and later Panama. He died in 2017, according to the AP.
President Donald Trump announced Saturday that Maduro and his wife had been captured and flown out of the country as part of “Operation Absolute Resolve.”
In recent months, the U.S. military has carried out a series of strikes on suspected drug vessels allegedly tied to the Venezuelan regime in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific.
Until a permanent leader can be found, the U.S. government will “run” Venezuela, Trump said, “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.”
