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Pro-Maduro groups protesting Trump’s actions in socialist country include Soros-backed organization
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One of the groups organizing protests against President Donald Trump’s capture of Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro is a group funded by the George Soros-tied Open Society Foundation.
Trump’s invasion of Venezuela’s capital city, Caracas, and subsequent arrest of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, on Saturday, garnered quick condemnation from a handful of groups, including some calling themselves the No War on Venezuela Coalition.
In a flyer posted by the Soros-funded Alliance for Global Justice (AFGJ), the coalition called for global protests at U.S. embassies, military bases, city halls and other sites to «defend Venezuelan sovereignty and right to resist.»
The AFGJ flyer stated that «We, the undersigned anti-imperialist and anti-war organizations, condemn the U.S. violent attacks on the rights of Venezuelans, and violations of Venezuela’s sovereignty.»
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Protestors rally outside the White House, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Washington, after the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a military operation. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)
The coalition urged «mass resistance» against the administration’s actions, telling people to «take to the streets, organize rallies and teach-ins on your university campuses, mobilize in your unions to demonstrate solidarity and shut down the supply chains of imperialism, including resolutions, pickets and protests outside of arms factories and ports that are providing the weapons for this aggression.»
It especially urged those outside the U.S. to target «U.S. embassies, U.S. military bases and diplomatic installations around the world.»
According to the website of the Open Society Foundation, a philanthropic network founded by Soros and currently led by his son, Alex Soros, the group donated $250,000 to AFGJ in 2020.
The description listed for the donation on the website was «to catalyze Black communities into the global movement for climate justice.»
AFGJ has been a staunch critic of the Trump administration. In a Tuesday statement, the group wrote that the «War against Venezuela is against Us All.»
MADURO’S WIFE SUFFERED ‘SIGNIFICANT INJURIES’ IN DRAMATIC CAPTURE, ATTORNEY ALLEGES
George Soros, Founder of the Open Society Foundations arrives for a meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on April 27, 2017. (Olivier Hoslet/AFP via Getty Images)
In the statement, AFGJ drew a line between the administration’s actions in Venezuela and its deployment of National Guard troops to major U.S. cities «occupying our streets as part of a hemispheric repression of resistance.»
«In his first press conference following the January 3 invasion, Trump specifically referenced Washington, DC, Memphis, and other US cities that have been occupied by federal troops. He knows full well that these are connected,» AFGJ continued, adding that «People of color, immigrants, all those who resist are designated as internal enemies, and international solidarity movements are targets of the hybrid war.»
«The strategies of war and repression against Venezuela are united in a single strategy not only toward other nations, but here at home. Memphis or Caracas—to the Pentagon, we’re all the same,» the group wrote.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
MADURO’S SON GIVES ‘UNCONDITIONAL SUPPORT’ TO NEWLY SWORN IN INTERIM VENEZUELA PRESIDENT
Nicolas Maduro is seen in handcuffs after landing at a Manhattan helipad, escorted by heavily armed Federal agents as they make their way into an armored car en route to a Federal courthouse in Manhattan on January 5, 2026, in New York City (XNY/Star Max/GC Images via Getty Images)
Following months of U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean, Trump authorized a military strike on Caracas that resulted in Maduro and his wife being apprehended and transported to New York City to stand trial.
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Maduro and his wife have since been charged in U.S. federal court with conspiracy to traffic large quantities of cocaine into the country and related crimes, including narco-terrorism and weapons offenses. Both have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Fox News Digital also reached out to AFGJ and the Open Society Foundation for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
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INTERNACIONAL
‘Fiction’: House Republican campaign chair dismisses Democrats’ expanding GOP target map
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EXCLUSIVE – Emboldened congressional Democrats are expanding their battleground map for this year’s midterm elections, when Republicans will be defending their razor-thin majority in the House.
But the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) chairman, Rep. Richard Hudson, isn’t buying it.
«I mean, I’ve read fiction my whole life, and I recognize it when I see it,» Hudson said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital.
Republicans currently control the House 218-214, with two right-tilting districts and one left-leaning seat currently vacant. Democrats need a net gain of just three seats in the midterms to win back the majority for the first time in four years.
HOUSE DEMOCRATS ON OFFENSE: EXPAND GOP TARGET LIST
An exterior view of the House side of the U.S. Capitol, on Jan. 12, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) this week added five more offensive opportunities in Colorado, Minnesota, Montana, South Carolina and Virginia to their list of what they consider are vulnerable Republican-held House districts.
That brings the total number of districts Democrats are hoping to flip to 44. The DCCC notes that all five of the new districts they’re adding to their list of «offensive targets» were carried by President Donald Trump by 13 points or fewer in the 2024 elections.
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«Democrats are on offense, and our map reflects the fact that everyday Americans are tired of Republicans’ broken promises and ready for change in Congress,» DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene emphasized earlier this week.
And DCCC Spokesperson Viet Shelton told Fox News Digital, «In a political environment where Democrats are overperforming by more than 17 points in congressional special elections, it’s pretty clear we’re poised to re-take the majority. Momentum and the American people are on our side while Republicans are running scared.»
Asked about the DCCC’s move, Hudson scoffed.
«They’ve got to have a list they can present to their donors,» he said as he pointed to the DCCC. «But it’s not realistic. I mean, if you look at the map, there are very few seats up for grabs, and the majority of those seats are held by Democrats, but they’re seats that Donald Trump has carried or came very close….if you look at the seats that we’ll be competing for this fall. They’re all favoring Republicans.»
The House GOP campaign chair added, «If you look at the map, it’s a Republican map. We just got to go out and win those races.»
The move by the DCCC comes as Democrats are energized, despite the party’s polling woes. Democrats, thanks to their laser focus on affordability amid persistent inflation, scored decisive victories in the 2025 elections and have won or over performed in a slew of scheduled and special ballot box contests since Trump returned to the White House over a year ago.
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Republicans, meanwhile, are facing traditional political headwinds in which the party in power in the nation’s capital normally suffers setbacks in the midterm elections. And the GOP is also dealing with Trump’s continued underwater approval ratings.
The latest national surveys, including the most recent Fox News poll, indicate the Democrats ahead of the Republicans by mid-single digits in the so-called generic ballot question, which asks respondents whether they’d back the Democratic or GOP candidate in their congressional district without offering specific candidate names.
Asked about the polls, Hudson said, «We almost never lead in the generic ballot. But a single digit generic ballot, we do very well.»
And the House GOP campaign chair added he remains «very bullish.»
Cost of living concerns helped boost Trump and Republicans to sweeping victories in 2024, but affordability and overall economic concerns may work against them this year.
While the latest AP/NORC national poll indicated the GOP with a slight advantage over Democrats on handling the economy, a bunch of surveys, including the latest Fox News poll, indicate many Americans feel things are worse off than they were a year ago and remain pessimistic about the economy.
But on Friday the latest government numbers indicated that inflation eased during January.
And Hudson says the economy is still a winning issue for Republicans.
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Pointing to the numerous tax cuts kicking in this year in the GOP’s sweeping One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Trump signed into law last summer, Hudson touted «we put policies in place that are going to bring prosperity to the American people, and they’re starting to feel it.»
«And as we move into tax season…folks who work overtime, folks who work for tips, they’re going to see a lot more money in their pocket thanks to no tax on tips, no tax on overtime,» he added.
The GOP is also dealing with a low propensity issue: MAGA voters who don’t always go to the polls when Trump’s name isn’t on the ballot.
«Our voters tend to be more working-class voters, and you have to put in extra effort to get them to the polls,» Hudson said. «We know that’s our challenge. President Trump knows that’s the challenge, and he’s committed to helping us.»
President Donald Trump gestures as he arrives to deliver remarks on the economy and affordability at the Mount Airy Casino Resort in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, on Dec. 9, 2025. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
Pointing to the NRCC’s annual fundraising gala, which Trump will once again headline this year, Hudson said this dinner will be a great kickoff for this year. We raised a whole lot of money with President Trump last year. We plan to raise a lot of money in March with President Trump, and then he’s going to get out on the campaign trail and help us turn out those voters and make that case.»
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Asked about midterm election predictions, Hudson shied away from giving any hard numbers.
«Not going to give you a number, but we’re going to hold the majority,» he predicted. «President Trump was elected with a very specific agenda. We delivered almost his entire domestic agenda, and we’re going to go back to the voters and say promises made, promises kept, and they’re going to keep this House majority.»
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INTERNACIONAL
Global protests call for Iran regime change in major cities worldwide after bloody crackdown
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Anti-Iran regime protesters gathered in major cities across the globe on Saturday calling for a leadership change in the Global Day of Action Rally.
Over 250,000 protesters rallied in Munich, Germany on Saturday on the backdrop of the Munich Security Conference.
«With the number of participants recorded, this gathering is one of the largest rallies held in Munich in recent years,» the Munich Police reported in a press release. «The peaceful atmosphere is particularly noteworthy, despite the high number of participants in the meeting.»
IRAN REGIME REPORTEDLY ISSUED NATIONWIDE SHOOT-TO-KILL ORDERS AS PROTEST DEATH TOLL SURGES
Crowds reportedly chanted «change, change, regime change» and «democracy for Iran» with green-white-and-red flags with lion and sun emblems waving in the air with a few «Make Iran Great Again» red hats spotted.
Exiled Iranian crown prince Reza Pahlavi was among the hundreds of thousands protesting, telling Reuters, a possible attack on Iran will either weaken the regime or accelerate its fall.
«Global Day of Action» protests were held in major cities across the globe on Saturday. (Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images)
«It’s a matter of time. We are hoping that this attack will expedite the process and the people can be finally back in the streets and take it all the way to the ultimate regime’s downfall,» said Pahlavi.
He shared that he hopes President Trump will have the United States intervene and «have the people’s back.»
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On Friday, President Trump said regime change in Iran would be the «best thing» to happen while speaking to troops at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.
Senator Graham said anti-regime protesters should «keep protesting.» ( James Willoughby/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
«People are hoping that at some point the decision will be made that there’s no use, there’s no point, we’re not going to get anywhere with negotiations,» said Pahlavi. «»Intervention is a way to save lives.»
South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham was present in Munich for the security conference and echoed a similar sentiment in a sideline interview on Friday.
NIKKI HALEY URGES TRUMP TO MAKE IRAN ACTION A ‘LEGACY-DEFINING MOMENT’ BEFORE LEAVING OFFICE
«There’s no negotiating with these people, in my view. They’re hell-bent on enacting an agenda based on religion that teaches them to lie, teaches them to destroy in the name of God,» said Graham.
«There’s no negotiating with these people, in my view,» said Graham at a rally in Munich. (Hannes Magerstaedt/Getty Images)
He shared that the regime is the weakest they have been since 1979, adding, «it is a regime with American blood on its hand,» calling on protesters to «keep protesting.»
The senator also took the stage at the Global Day of Action speaking to the crowd and holding up a «Make Iran Great Again» black hat.
Large demonstrations were also held in Toronto, Melbourne, Athens, Tokyo, London, and Los Angeles.
An estimated 350,000 people marched on the streets of Toronto, the city’s police spokesperson, Laura Brabant, told the Associated Press (AP).
Over 250,000 protesters rallied in Munich, Germany on Saturday on the backdrop of the Munich Security Conference. (Marijan Murat/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Iranian American activist and Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Sheila Nazarian told Fox News Digital the protests across the globe represent a universal truth.
«When regimes silence their people, the people eventually find their voice. Whether in the streets of Tehran or in diaspora communities around the world,» she said.
Nazarian left Iran when she was 6 years old along with her family.
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«As someone who came to this country from Iran, I know firsthand that these protests are not about politics, they’re about basic human dignity, women’s rights, and the fundamental freedom to live without fear,» she added.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
world,iran,world protests
Cuando el presidente Donald Trump amenazó el mes pasado con atacar Irán si su gobierno no aceptaba un acuerdo para detener su programa nuclear, el Pentágono no estaba en condiciones de respaldarlo.
Los entre 30.000 y 40.000 soldados estadounidenses dispersos por Medio Oriente, y sus ocho bases permanentes, tenían escasas defensas aéreas para protegerse de las previsibles represalias.
Los aviones de combate adicionales necesarios para ejecutar el tipo de operación de barrido de la que hablaba Trump estaban designados en bases estadounidenses en Europa, y también en instalaciones en Estados Unidos. Gran parte del equipo militar reunido en Medio Oriente durante 20 años de guerra, e incluso durante la campaña estadounidense contra los hutíes yemeníes del año pasado, había salido de la región.
Por eso, funcionarios de seguridad nacional de alto rango propusieron al presidente que se mantuviera a la espera mientras el Pentágono reconstruía su capacidad de ataque y, lo que es aún más importante, de defensa en los 11 países que podrían ser vulnerables a las represalias iraníes, según tres funcionarios estadounidenses, que hablaron con la condición de mantener su anonimato para poder discutir cuestiones operativas.
“El presidente Trump tiene todas las opciones sobre la mesa con respecto a Irán”, dijo Anna Kelly, vocera de la Casa Blanca. “Escucha diversas perspectivas sobre cualquier asunto, pero toma la decisión final basándose en lo que es mejor para nuestro país y la seguridad nacional”.
Ahora, mientras Trump analiza sus opciones militares si la diplomacia no logra resolver las disputas con Irán sobre sus programas nuclear y de misiles balísticos, el Pentágono está aprovechando el tiempo para terminar de construir la “armada” que el presidente dijo que se dirigía hacia ese país.
Hasta ahora, esa armada incluye ocho destructores de misiles teledirigidos que pueden derribar misiles balísticos iraníes, sistemas terrestres de defensa contra misiles balísticos y submarinos que pueden lanzar misiles de crucero Tomahawk contra objetivos en Irán.
En las últimas tres semanas, mientras diplomáticos y dirigentes de Israel, los países árabes, Irán y Estados Unidos han iniciado conversaciones, el Pentágono se ha estado preparando para la guerra. Las plataformas que está instalando no solo tienen capacidad ofensiva, dijeron oficiales militares, sino también defensiva, porque es probable que Irán devuelva el ataque.
Un alto cargo militar describió el proceso como poner la casa en orden.
En un principio, Trump dijo que intentaba defender a los manifestantes iraníes que comenzaron a desafiar al gobierno autoritario a finales del año pasado. Pero se ha retractado “cuando dijo que Estados Unidos estaba ‘preparado y listo’ para proteger a los manifestantes”, dijo Vali Nasr, experto en Irán y profesor de Asuntos Internacionales en la Universidad Johns Hopkins.
Pero, más recientemente, sus razones para atacar a Irán han vuelto a centrarse en su programa nuclear, que los funcionarios iraníes insisten en que tiene fines civiles y no para producir armas.
“Amenazó con la guerra antes de que el ejército estadounidense estuviera preparado”, dijo Nasr. “Pero al poner la guerra sobre la mesa y tener que retroceder para dar tiempo a la preparación, también alertó a Irán de que se avecinaba la guerra y le dio tiempo para hacer más creíbles sus propias amenazas de represalia”.
Altos cargos del gobierno dijeron que Trump no había decidido si atacaría a Irán.
Tras reunirse con el primer ministro de Israel, Benjamín Netanyahu, en la Casa Blanca el miércoles, Trump escribió en redes sociales que “no se llegó a nada definitivo, aparte de que insistí en que continuaran las negociaciones con Irán”.
Las opciones que Trump ha estado sopesando incluyen una acción militar dirigida contra el programa nuclear de Irán y su capacidad de lanzar misiles balísticos, según tres funcionarios estadounidenses. También está considerando opciones que incluirían el envío de comandos estadounidenses para perseguir determinados objetivos militares iraníes, dijeron los funcionarios.
Pero antes de que el Pentágono pueda hacer nada de esto, debe estar mejor preparado, dijeron los funcionarios.
Eso significa trasladar sistemas de defensa antiaérea a bases de la región que albergan soldados estadounidenses —no solo en la base aérea de Al Udeid, en Qatar, que Irán atacó el año pasado en represalia por los ataques estadounidenses contra sus instalaciones nucleares—, sino también en bases de Irak, Baréin, Kuwait y Jordania.
“Defensivamente, tenemos que asegurarnos, antes de hacer nada” de que las defensas estadounidenses están en orden, dijo el general Joseph Votel, excomandante del Mando Central de Estados Unidos. “De modo que estemos preparados para la inevitable respuesta que vuelva contra los intereses estadounidenses o contra nuestros socios”.
En su amenaza del mes pasado, Trump caracterizó la escalada en Medio Oriente como mayor que la de Venezuela el año pasado, que condujo a una incursión de la Fuerza Delta del ejército para capturar al presidente Nicolás Maduro a principios de enero. No cabe duda de que existen similitudes, ya que cada una de ellas implicó el despliegue de miles de soldados en el mar y bases en tierra, y cada escalada creó su fuerza de ataque en torno a un portaaviones.
En el caso de Irán, el portaaviones Abraham Lincoln, acompañado de tres buques de guerra equipados con misiles Tomahawk, se encuentra en el centro de una decena de buques de guerra en la región, incluidos el mar Arábigo, el golfo Pérsico, el mar Rojo y el mar Mediterráneo oriental.
Los drones iraníes han estado rastreando el portaaviones, y un caza de la Armada derribó uno el 3 de febrero después de que funcionarios estadounidenses dijeran que se había acercado al Lincoln.
Los cazas furtivos F-35 y los aviones de ataque F/A-18 del portaaviones están a una distancia de ataque considerable de objetivos en Irán. Estados Unidos también ha enviado más de una decena de aviones de ataque F-15E adicionales a la región, según funcionarios estadounidenses.
El jueves, se comunicó a la tripulación de un segundo portaaviones, el USS Gerald R. Ford, que abandonaría el Caribe, donde el buque se unió el mes pasado a la operación estadounidense para capturar a Maduro, y se desplegaría en Medio Oriente como parte de la campaña de presión de Trump contra Irán.
Los B-2 y otros bombarderos de largo alcance en Estados Unidos que podrían atacar objetivos en Irán permanecen en un estado de alerta superior al habitual, según un funcionario estadounidense de alto rango, quien habló bajo condición de anonimato para discutir cuestiones operativas. El Pentágono elevó el estado de alerta hace casi un mes, cuando Trump solicitó opciones para responder a la represión violenta del gobierno iraní de las protestas.
Los analistas militares afirman que otros indicios de posibles operaciones importantes suelen ser el número de aviones cisterna de reabastecimiento en Medio Oriente o en sus cercanías, y el número de EA-18 Growlers, aviones antirradar que pueden escoltar a los bombarderos. Hay Growlers en el Lincoln, y el Mando Central envió recientemente algunos a una base en Jordania.
Los datos de seguimiento de vuelos indican que Estados Unidos también está acercando o introduciendo en la región aviones adicionales, incluidos aviones de reabastecimiento y de reconocimiento.
Los analistas afirman que otro indicio de la seriedad de cualquier plan ofensivo sería que la Marina trasladara un submarino lanzamisiles balísticos que suele operar en el Mediterráneo al mar Rojo o, más probablemente, al mar Arábigo, donde estaría mejor situado para atacar objetivos en Irán.
Los submarinos de la Armada pueden transportar hasta 154 misiles de crucero Tomahawk, lo que añade una considerable potencia de fuego a la región. A diferencia de sus buques, la Marina no suele revelar la ubicación de sus submarinos. Pero un submarino que se desplazara desde el Mediterráneo hacia las vías fluviales del este tendría que salir a la superficie atravesando el canal de Suez y sería visible para los rastreadores de buques. Eso aún no ha ocurrido.
Además de su arsenal ofensivo, el Pentágono está enviando más defensas aéreas Patriot y THAAD a la región para ayudar a proteger a los soldados de los ataques de represalia de los misiles iraníes de corto y medio alcance.
Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., general retirado de cuatro estrellas de la Infantería de Marina y exjefe del Mando Central de Estados Unidos, dijo que los líderes militares y políticos de Irán se tomarían en serio cualquier refuerzo estadounidense debido al historial de Trump: el bombardeo de tres instalaciones nucleares iraníes el pasado junio y el asesinato de un general iraní de alto rango, Qasem Soleimani, en enero de 2020.
“Los iraníes temen a Trump porque mató a Soleimani y atacó sus instalaciones nucleares”, dijo el general McKenzie en una entrevista. “Le temen porque emprende acciones directas”.
© The New York Times 2026.
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