How many died after the US strike on Venezuela? Here’s what Trump revealed

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that numerous Cubans were killed when US forces launched an attack on Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuela and Cuba are long-standing allies, united by communist ideology and jointly affected by US sanctions. For years, Havana has relied heavily on Caracas for fuel supplies and economic assistance.

Ahead of the pre-dawn US operation, as Washington deployed forces in the Caribbean, US media reports said Maduro depended largely on Cuban advisers and security personnel. Neither Venezuela nor the United States has disclosed casualty figures from the operation, though Trump said no US personnel were killed.

Giving a press conference to talk about the attack, Trump told the New York Post, "You know, many Cubans lost their lives last night. Did you know that?" He added, "Many Cubans lost their lives. They were protecting Maduro. That was not a good move."

Meanwhile, Trump did not confirm the number of casualties during the attack. "Cuba was always very reliant on Venezuela. That's where they got their money, and they protected Venezuela, but that didn't work out too well in this case," Trump said.

Along said of President Trump, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Havana and said, “If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I'd be concerned at least a little bit.” However, Trump stated that he was not planning any military action against Cuba, due to its own economic crisis. "No, Cuba is going to fall of its own volition. Cuba is doing very poorly," Trump said.

At least 40 killed in Venezuela

Meanwhile, a senior Venezuelan official confirmed that at least 40 people, including soldiers and civilians, were killed after the US military launched a large-scale military operation in Venezuela that led to the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, according to the New York Times.

Maduro was airlifted to New York on Saturday afternoon to face US narcotics charges, just hours after American forces launched what US officials called a rapid and decisive operation in Caracas to oust him from power.