From within the Caracas 'fort' all the way to a New York courtroom: The Venezuelan leader's seizure in photographs as well as maps.

The US claim the military operation aimed at apprehending Venezuela's president took months of careful preparation, yet the moment Donald Trump gave the order to commence, "Operation Absolute Resolve" concluded after approximately 150 minutes.

The unexpected early-morning strike this past weekend marked a historic incident within contemporary international relations and culminated in the arrest for Venezuela's president along with his wife, Cilia Flores.

Apprehended by soldiers belonging to a top-tier American military force as they tried to flee into a heavily secured secure chamber, the two are now in custody in a detention centre in New York and face drug trafficking and terrorism charges.

A Dawn Assault against the Military Complex

With daybreak that morning, the scale of the armed intervention in the capital, the nation's primary city, was clear.

Pictures of the vast military base, a huge military complex where top government officials reside, show destroyed buildings and charred, smouldering cars.

It was at this facility where the president and first lady were apprehended, Venezuelan ruling party leader a party official stated.

Hours Earlier - Trump Issues the Command

"Operation Absolute Resolve" commenced with reports of blasts at about 02:00 in Caracas (6:00 Greenwich Mean Time).

American forces disabled electricity to the city, the President later described, describing it as pitch black and dangerous.

The aim was to disable the nation's air defences and open up the way for American assault helicopters to reach Fuerte Tiuna.

"We assessed that we had maintained totally the element of surprise", the top general remarked.

Targeted sites included the compound, a port and an airfield. Pictures show Fuerte Tiuna on fire, with huge flames seen for miles.

Venezuelans reported the way US military helicopters flew at low altitude above the city, heading for the military base.

A number of the aircraft were shot at, but were still able to fly, military leaders stated.

There was a lot of gunfire," Trump noted.

A Rapid Ground Assault

Once on the ground, forces from the US Army's Delta Force, sprang into action.

They entered the facility just after 2 AM Caracas time, and the presidential couple surrendered without a struggle, as per reports.

However, further information emerged. They tried to escape into a safe place, referred to as a heavily fortified bunker.

"The safe place is all steel, and he failed to make it inside because our guys were so fast.

"It was an extremely heavy entryway, a very heavy door," Trump told reporters. "He made it to the door. He could not to close it."

However, even assuming they had succeeded to enter the bunker, forces could have breached it in about "under a minute."

From the Capital to Manhattan

Currently under American detention, the couple were transported some 2,100 miles, to Manhattan.

They were taken by air out of Caracas by helicopter, and transferred to the USS Iwo Jima, a warship stationed in the Caribbean. The team was completed in international waters by 04:29.

Aboard the vessel where an iconic image of the whole operation emerged - the president shackled, wearing ear protectors and darkened eyewear resembling opaque glasses.

From the USS Iwo Jima, he was first flown to the US Navy base at Guantánamo Bay.

The Maduros were then flown on a government plane to a military airfield in New York, before a final helicopter transfer to Manhattan.

Confronting The Legal System on American Soil

On Saturday, a video emerged depicting the detainee at the Drug Enforcement Agency's (DEA) main office in the city.

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

They have been charged including conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism and import cocaine, owning machine guns and explosives, and plots to acquire machine guns and destructive devices against the US.

They are set to encounter the full wrath of American justice on American soil within US courtrooms," the Attorney General declared.

Footage documents the leader's entry into American and transport to detention.