Caracas, September 20, 2024 – Demonstration in support of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro – Photo: Prensa Latina
By Robert Inlakesh
Pro-Israeli think tanks in Washington, such as the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, publish articles welcoming the prospect of taking over the country’s oil.
Not only is the Venezuelan opposition, in favor of regime change, allied with the Israeli Likud, but overthrowing the government in Caracas directly serves Israel’s regional agenda. This is why pro-Israel commentators insist that the US military should intervene and put American lives on the line.
As parallels begin to be drawn between the build-up to the Iraq War and the Trump administration’s regime change propaganda against Venezuela, one key similarity is conveniently left aside.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is infamous for encouraging the illegal US invasion of Iraq in 2003, a war that Israel refused to wage itself but nonetheless defended and encouraged through its neoconservative lobby groups allied with Washington.
The US war against Venezuela began in 2001
Although the White House recently released a new 33-page National Security Strategy document, in which the United States declares that it no longer seeks to engage in “nation-building wars” and that the days of regime change operations aimed at exporting American values are over, the current administration is threatening Venezuela with just that.
It also seeks to achieve this outcome in Gaza through its ceasefire plan approved by the United Nations Security Council.
The parallels with the build-up to the Iraq War could not be more striking. Conservative pro-Trump commentators are currently salivating over the prospect of getting their hands on Venezuelan oil.
Additionally, the false accusation that Venezuela is somehow responsible for the fentanyl crisis in the United States has led to the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro being labeled a “narcoterrorist” regime.
However, if you listen to what Trump administration officials use to justify their goal of overthrowing Maduro, they consistently accuse Caracas of allying with Hezbollah and Hamas. Some pro-Israeli commentators even claim that Hezbollah and Hamas could be planning attacks on American soil, an accusation that is not only incredible and illogical, but is not supported by any evidence.
They are also not enemies of the United States, but enemies of Israel, which makes it all the more suspicious why this issue is receiving such attention.
For example, Maria Corina Machado, leader of the Venezuelan opposition, recently spoke at a conference in Oslo and was invited to address the issue of American intervention in her country; his response was to declare that the country “has already been invaded.”
“We have Iranian agents. We have terrorist groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, which operate freely in agreement with the regime,” Ms. Machado bellowed to justify the invasion of her country.
The United States also recently released footage of its illegal theft of a Venezuelan oil tanker, justifying the action by claiming it was being used to transfer Iranian oil.
It should be noted that relations between Tehran and Caracas are frequently cited as posing a threat to the United States. Steps such as the recent seizure of the tanker represent aggression against Iran by proxy.
Venezuela refuses to be the 68th government overthrown by the United States
Donald Trump, whose much-desired Nobel Peace Prize was stolen by the pro-war Venezuelan opposition leader he supports to oust Maduro, is trying to tout the idea that he is a peacemaker and opposes wars of regime change.
Yet between March and May, he launched a failed war against Yemen, followed by a direct attack on Iran in June, both acts committed solely for Israel’s sake.
Pro-Israel think tanks in Washington, such as the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), publish articles in which they welcome the prospect of taking over the country’s oil, while ensuring that the new Venezuela, led by a US puppet regime, will cut ties with Israel’s enemies.
In a new article written by Saeed Ghasseminejad, FDD senior advisor on Iran and the financial economy, we read that “a new regime in Caracas would sever ties with Iran. Tehran is using Venezuela as a base to expand its jihadist influence in America’s backyard. A U.S.-aligned Caracas would kick out Iranian agents, making the southern border and homeland more secure.”
The Atlantic Council think tank even claimed that Lebanese Hezbollah “helped make Venezuela a hub for the convergence of transnational organized crime and international terrorism.”
In fact, in the same briefing note published on October 7, 2020 and entitled “The Maduro-Hezbollah Nexus: How Iran-backed Networks Prop up the Venezuelan Regime”, the think tank uses the term “narcoterrorism”.
The Atlantic Council accuses Israel’s enemies of carrying out a “narcoterrorist conspiracy involving dissidents from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), drug cartels in Mexico, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Syria and the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah.”
This obsessive focus on a conspiracy theory devoid of any facts, which points the finger at a whole range of enemies of Israel, recently associating Hamas, is not the result of chance. The same goes for the Venezuelan opposition’s pledge of allegiance to Israel.
While it is clear that Venezuela is allied with Iran and working with it to navigate the world under crushing U.S. sanctions, these conspiracy theories put forward by pro-Israel think tanks, politicians backed by the Israel lobby, and Israel-aligned media are about as serious as the claims that led to the Iraq War, in terms of supporting evidence.
The West wants to take control of Venezuela
Another factor motivating Israel’s desire to see the Venezuelan state overthrown is the emergence of what is now known as the “Isaac Accords.” This initiative was publicly announced by Argentine President Javier Milei late last month.
Having failed to rally more major Arab and Muslim nations to the Trump administration’s “Abraham Accords,” the Israeli government is now setting its sights on Latin America. The Isaac Accords demonstrate Israel’s desire to expand its influence in the Western Hemisphere.
Left-wing movements and governments in Latin America have historically supported the Palestinian cause, a legacy of unified resistance to imperialism that endures to this day.
If the Venezuelan government is toppled, a domino effect is predicted that will bring down other left-wing governments in the region, or at least the United States will move on to the next target. This means that Cuba and Nicaragua will be in the crosshairs.
For Tel Aviv to succeed in its mission under the Isaac Accords, US-funded parties must win elections and Washington must carry out regime change operations across the region.
The only country that seems safe from this strategy for the moment is Brazil, under the presidency of Lula da Silva.
Everywhere else, the Israelis have the perfect men to pursue this strategy to the end. Consider the example of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who not only received at least $1,013,563 in funds from the Israel lobby, but also has personal animosity toward Cuban leaders as a member of the diaspora largely supportive of regime change in that country.
Rubio understands perfectly well that a regime change in Caracas leads to overthrowing the government in Havana.
While Israel is not the sole driver of the Trump administration’s regime change agenda in Venezuela, it is undeniable that it is a factor and will certainly benefit from this outcome.
December 13, 2025 – The Palestine Chronicle – Translation: Chronicle of Palestine
