Maduro posts from prison: ‘We are standing firm’

Former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro shared photos from his current imprisonment in a New York prison on Sunday, stating he was "standing firm." Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were apprehended in Caracas during a U.S. military operation in January and are currently held in a Brooklyn, New York jail on drug trafficking and firearms possession charges.

The couple maintains their innocence. Maduro expressed his gratitude in a tweet to his grandchildren, children, and supporters, assuring them that they are "standing firm" with their hearts filled with love. He appeared to have lost significant weight since his capture, as seen in the photographs. The camera data suggests these images were captured on June 25, the day following two devastating earthquakes in northern Venezuela that claimed over 6,500 lives and caused extensive damage.

Maduro concluded the tweet with a message of resilience, faith, and hope: "We will remain strong, calm and confident: God is with us. God will provide. Venezuela will rise again." The photos appeared two days after his successor, interim President Delcy Rodriguez, announced a historic oil deal granting the United States the right to operate Venezuelan oil fields.

Rodriguez, who governs under intense pressure from Washington, has chosen a path of diplomacy with the U.S. to help Venezuela become an "energy powerhouse." Maduro does not have access to newspapers or the internet in prison but is permitted to make phone calls to his family and lawyers for approximately 300 minutes each month, with a maximum of 15 minutes per conversation.

His son, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, claims his father is in good health and uses his time in prison to study the Bible. The couple's trial in the United States is scheduled to commence on June 1, 2027, according to a federal court in New York, which announced the date in late July.