Nicolás Maduro and his wife expected to face new charges related to alleged torture of Americans

2026-10-07 5:14pm EDT / Fox News

The former Venezuelan president and his wife already pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges

Fox News national correspondent Bryan Llenas reports from Manhattan federal court as former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro appears on narco-terrorism and drug-trafficking charges on ‘The Faulkner Focus.’

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Deposed Venezuelan Nicolás Maduro and his wife could face new charges tied to the alleged torture of Americans as prosecutors fight their efforts to have their criminal case thrown out.

The additional charges are expected to be announced in Manhattan federal court, according to Fox News’ David Spunt and Jake Paronich.

U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald is expected to speak after a 10:30 a.m. hearing.

That hearing was scheduled to address a request by Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores de Maduro, to be released from custody because of ongoing medical problems, including a heart condition.

MADURO ALLY DEPORTED TO US OVER ALLEGED BILLION-DOLLAR CORRUPTION SCHEME TIED TO OIL, FOOD PROGRAM

Deposed Venezuelan Nicolás Maduro and his wife may face new charges in federal court Thursday.(@Nicolás Maduro/X)

The expected charges would add to a case already involving allegations of cocaine trafficking, narco-terrorism and weapons offenses.

Maduro and Flores deny the allegations and have sought to dismiss the case on sovereign immunity grounds.

Federal prosecutors pushed back in a recent court filing, arguing neither defendant is entitled to that protection and that Venezuela has not asserted immunity on their behalf.

The government noted that the U.S. has not recognized Maduro as Venezuela’s head of state since January 2019.

“The defendants are former rogue officials of a formerly rogue state with no entitlement to immunity,” prosecutors wrote.

THE UNLIKELY SOUTH AMERICAN ALLY HELPING LEAD TRUMP’S DRUG CARTEL CRACKDOWN

Maduro and his wife Flores deny the allegations.(Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images, File)

They argued that foreign sovereign immunity is “a matter of grace and comity on the part of the U.S., and not a restriction imposed by the Constitution.”

Prosecutors also argued that the alleged cocaine trafficking, narco-terrorism and weapons offenses violated the law rather than served any legitimate government function.

Maduro’s attorneys argued in their motion that the court lacks jurisdiction because he is recognized as Venezuela’s head of state. Flores separately filed a motion seeking dismissal on sovereign immunity grounds.

Maduro is also challenging the narco-terrorism conspiracy count. His lawyers said he vehemently denies involvement in drug trafficking intended to benefit groups allegedly engaged in terrorism and argued that prosecutors have not met the elements required for the charge.

VENEZUELAN GANG MEMBERS WHO ENTERED US ILLEGALLY PLEAD GUILTY TO GUNNING DOWN TWO UNARMED AMERICANS

Maduro is also challenging the narco-terrorism conspiracy count.(Federico Parra/AFP via Getty Images, File)

The government countered that the “prohibited drug activity had a nexus to and intended effect on the United States.”

Prosecutors allege Maduro and other defendants participated in cocaine trafficking that resulted in thousands of tons of cocaine being distributed to the United States, funding and supporting violent terrorist organizations.

Meanwhile, Flores’ attorneys have proposed home confinement with GPS monitoring, round-the-clock armed surveillance, surrender of her travel documents and a court-approved third-party custodian.

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Her lawyer said she was recovering from a complete hysterectomy before her arrest and receiving monthly injections for mitral valve prolapse. She may now need cardiac catheterization, which could lead to more invasive heart procedures, according to her release motion.

“Her medical condition is significant and her current housing, despite best efforts, is inadequate to allow for proper recovery from cardiac surgery,” her attorney wrote

Flores’ defense also argues she poses no danger to the community and denies the allegations against her.

Stepheny Price is a Writer at Fox News with a focus on West Coast and Midwest news, missing persons, national and international crime stories, homicide cases, and border security.

Trump pitches Trump International Golf Course for site of “presidential retreat”

2026-10-07 16:36 EDT / CBS News

Washington — President Trump on Wednesday claimed the U.S. Secret Service and U.S. military suggested developing Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach as a presidential getaway. It would be “like sort of a Camp David retreat” for future presidents, Mr. Trump said.

“This was suggested to me by the military and Secret Service,” the president said during an unrelated event in the Oval Office. “There are no high buildings looming over it. There are no houses on it so you don’t have houses — we have to inspect rooms. Seems that all presidents play golf.”

A White House official said Wednesday that the “United States government has asked to look into developing a presidential retreat” at the golf course so future presidents can “hold important meetings and utilize the amenities of a world-class property.”

Trump International Golf Course is where Mr. Trump plays golf when he’s staying at his resort at Mar-a-Lago. The Palm Beach Post first reported that an attorney for the golf course wrote a letter to Palm Beach County commissioners offering to designate the golf club as a presidential retreat that could also be used by foreign heads of state.

“The United States government has asked to look into developing a presidential retreat at Trump International Golf Course in Palm Beach for future presidents, so they can hold important meetings and utilize the amenities of a world-class property,” the White House official said. “The property is minutes away from the Donald J. Trump International Airport, does not have buildings looming, does not have houses along the course, has great security features, is close to law enforcement, and happens to be a highly-rated golf course. These are features that are necessary for any presidential retreat.”

The White House official’s statement did not specify whose idea the retreat was first, or whose permission they’re seeking.

The cost of the proposed development — and who would bear it — has not been disclosed.

In December, the president is hosting the G20 summit of world leaders at a different property, Trump National Doral Miami.

The Secret Service has paid the Trump Organization hundreds of thousands of dollars to stay at the president’s properties during his presidency.

President Trump waves from his motorcade as he returns to his Mar-a-Lago club from Trump International Golf Course in Palm Beach, Florida, on December 22, 2025. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS /AFP via Getty Images

Emma Nicholson contributed to this report.

‘It’s not out of reach for Whatley’: Sen. Thom Tillis isn’t counting out the Republican running to replace him

6:37 PM EDT, Wed October 7, 2026 / CNN

By Kasie Hunt, CNN

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Outgoing North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis joins Kasie Hunt to discuss the race in his home state.

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“They hit us bad.” Newly obtained footage, witness accounts detail Iran attack — and U.S. retreat — at major post in Kuwait

2026-10-07T17:00:00-0400 / CBS News

By
Jonah Kaplan
Jonah Kaplan is an award-winning correspondent and investigative journalist who has built a strong reputation for his balanced reporting, thoughtful interviews, and deeply researched coverage of high-impact issues affecting the communities across the country. Based in Minneapolis, his work appears on all of CBS News’ programs and platforms, including the CBS Evening News, CBS Mornings and CBS 24/7.

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October 7, 2026 / 5:00 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington — New videos obtained exclusively by CBS News show Iranian attacks on a major U.S. military base in Kuwait as the war with Iran kicked off seven months ago. American forces faced ballistic missiles, drones and what witnesses described as Iranian F-5 fighter jets.

The footage obtained by CBS News was recorded by a person stationed on the ground at Camp Buehring, and captures the moments of impact and their explosive aftermath. Damage to buildings and military equipment can also be seen in the videos.

The attacks on Camp Buehring offer a window into the strain Iranian attacks placed on American forces during the opening days of the war. CBS News has learned that soldiers defending the base ran critically low on .50-caliber ammunition as some soldiers were repositioned into the Udari Desert in Kuwait. Two soldiers were injured by lightning there in late April, according to U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter.

Contacted by CBS News, U.S. Central Command, the primary unit which oversees American military operations across the Middle East, declined to comment.

The Pentagon did not comment, but pointed back to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s comments on March 4 regarding the removal of U.S. troops from bases and the employment of defensive measures.

“As we built up offensive combat power, we moved the vast majority of American troops — over 90% of Americans that were on our bases — what we say off the X, out of the range of Iranian fire,” Hegseth told reporters in March.

Camp Buehring, or CBKU, sits about 25 miles from the Iraqi border and has for more than two decades served as a major staging ground for American forces deploying across the Middle East.

CBS News authenticated the videos using metadata embedded in the files and compared the footage to other photographs showing damage to the base.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/new-videos-iranian-strikes-us-base/

Ahead of the war, sources said most of the roughly 7,000 troops there were moved elsewhere — as were the majority of U.S. forces in Kuwait — as a part of the Pentagon’s “get off the X” plan, military shorthand for moving away from a position vulnerable to attack.

Once the war started, Iranian attacks, some originating from Iraq, repeatedly threatened the installation. Missiles and drones forced soldiers into bunkers. Three U.S. service members told CBS News that Iranian F-5 fighter jets were also used during the attacks, a detail first reported in April by NBC News.

“They ran so close to us I could see their helmets,” the eyewitness described. “They came in, they hit us, and then took off.”

While most of the U.S. service members were moved off of Camp Buehring, a tranche of more than 100 soldiers stayed behind. The service members feared the isolated base was ill-equipped to handle a mass-casualty event if the attacks continued.

“They hit us bad,” the source told CBS News on condition of anonymity because of the military’s strict media restrictions. “It was horrible. There were a lot of brave guys who stayed to fight there — and people at home don’t know what happened. We had to abandon the base.”

A senior Army official working in logistics, managing operations from another post in Kuwait, confirmed to CBS News there were concerns about the availability of .50 caliber ammunition and other “exquisite” munitions like Patriot missile batteries.

The decision ultimately was to leave. Service members packed up, loading their vehicles with whatever equipment they could and drove at night deep into the Kuwaiti desert. Their remote locations would emerge as forward operating bases, or “FOBs,” where the soldiers would remain indefinitely.

No one was killed by enemy fire at Camp Buehring or at the FOBs, but several were injured, including two soldiers who were struck by lightning in desert sandstorms. One soldier suffered burns after the direct strike while the other suffered a ruptured eardrum, according to U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter.

Before the lightning strike, Army leaders had been trying to move the troops out of the area, but were not able to do so quickly enough. In May, the soldiers left the FOBs for Camp Arifjan, and then relocated to other positions both in and out of the Middle East.

“CBKU got demolished,” the source added. “They need to do an investigation. How come no one came to reinforce us?”

The Defense Department’s inspector general last month released a report on the war with Iran that revealed “equipment losses” worth up to $3.7 billion — including nearly 60 aircraft. On Monday, the Congressional Research Service, which provides nonpartisan analysis to members of Congress, reported that 81 fixed or rotary-wing aircraft including drone assets had been lost or damaged by Iran since February, according to news reports and statements from the Defense Department.

In a first-of-its-kind mandatory report to Congress, the inspector general added that U.S. Central Command had reported Iranian strikes at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman and Jordan.

Although strikes were mentioned in the report, pictures and videos of any impact zones have been extremely limited. Beyond Camp Buehring, CBS News earlier obtained exclusive photos of damage at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia and Camp Arifjan in Kuwait.

CBS News has also reported extensively on the deadliest attack of the war against U.S. troops at the Port of Shuaiba, which killed six American service members.

Marco Rubio uses a dramatic backdrop to sketch a post-MAGA foreign policy

2026-10-07T21:51:41.301Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/10/07/politics/marco-rubio-greece-speech

In the golden light of an Athens evening, with the Acropolis over his shoulder, Marco Rubio hardly looked like a man planning to ride off into a political sunset.

The secretary of state’s speech in Greece on Wednesday will surely reignite speculation around his future presidential intentions. It implicitly positioned him as both the heir to and the modernizer of the “America First” movement — just weeks before the 2028 race roars into life after the midterm elections.

Rubio depicted the West as a continuous inheritance dating from Ancient Greece to modern America, epitomizing “individuality and relentless ambition, daring exploration and invention” as well as duty and heroism. But he warned that the civilization,ashamed of its achievements and embarrassed by its past, risked “atrophy, servitude and decline.”

“Under President Trump, the United States has made its choice. We choose the unapologetic pursuit of national power,” Rubio said, giving himself some political cover for the high-profile appearance.

One interpretation is that this was yet another bid to retroactively impose doctrinal coherence on Trump’s erratic foreign policy of Iran war-style gut calls, power grabs and a transactional approach to resources.

And Rubio is just the latest administration official to bemoan Europe’s supposed decline; failure to tackle mass immigration; and prioritization of the “global community” over national interest. This canon was hallmarked by Vice President JD Vance’s stemwinder in Munich last year.

Yet he was seeking something deeper, at times, sketching the framework of a post-MAGA foreign policy in which US sovereignty and action remain paramount, while​ reinvigorating friendships shattered by Trump’s hostility.

“We must rebuild our institutions and alliances” to face new great power rivalries and respond to a “new universe” of threats and attacks, Rubio said.

His comments also reinforced a message to decayed European militaries that the US now expects alliances to offer tangible military multipliers to Washington. It was a hint that while nothing will be the same after Trump, a future Republican president might still value updated transatlantic ties.

Rubio seeks to shape a new American foreign policy — and maybe something more?

Rubio also seemed to be fusing three strands of traditional GOP foreign policy — the muscular internationalism of Ronald Reagan, the realism of Richard Nixon and Trump’s coercive nationalism. He might also have been trying to make sense of his own political evolution from aspirational conservatism to his current, darker worldview. (Rubio’s critics portray his conversion to MAGAism as the cynical act of a political chameleon desperate for power.)

The speech was also jarring and contradictory.

He was the latest Trump acolyte to travel to Europe to explain Europe’s history to Europeans and to adopt an idealized view of Western civilization that fits the needs of America’s Christian nationalist right.

When Rubio laments eroded national sovereignty, like Vance, he seems oblivious to enduring national and cultural differences distinguishing French, German, Italian, and other European citizens. He ignored gruesome history that led late 20th-century leaders to constrain raging nationalism within shared political and economic structures.

And while Trump’s team believes something is rotten in Europe, many Europeans perceive a corrupt and increasingly authoritarian American is most to blame for obliterating Western values. Noting that “passions” have rocked the alliance, Rubio used a deceptive euphemism for Trump’s bullying.

Rubio’s lionizing of the ancient Greeks as foundational to the US also overlooked the founders’ concern that their direct democracy encouraged factionalism and promoted demagogues. Their answer was the Electoral College.

Some Europeans will be offended by Rubio’s speech. But he’s seen by allies as the most conventional and sympathetic Trump foreign policy official, so his comments may be less provocative than rebukes by Vance or Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Inevitably, such an ambitious speech using the optics of a major campaign address will stir presidential speculation. Visually, Rubio’s setting recalled then-Sen. Barack Obama’s hilltop speech at the Citadel in Amman, Jordan, in 2008.

A Rubio run in 2028 seems problematic with Vance in pole position as the vice president. But whether he next takes aim at the White House in two years, in 2032, or later, Rubio showed the world Wednesday his ambition is unquenched.

Anti-Israel groups rally across US on October 7 anniversary, chanting ‘long live the intifada’

Demonstrations from Columbia University to UCLA marked the third anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel

2026-10-07 6:11pm EDT / Fox News

By Preston Mizell, Asra Q. Nomani

Published October 7, 2026 6:11pm EDT | Updated October 7, 2026 7:25pm EDT

Pro-Israel supporter clashes with anti-Israel agitators during demonstration in New York City

A pro-Israel supporter confronted an anti-Israel agitator outside City Hall in New York City, causing NYPD to de-escalate the situation.

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NEW YORK — On the third anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, nonprofits and a number of anti-Israel organizations mobilized and rallied for demonstrations across the country, with some waving Palestinian flags, chanting “long live the intifada” and lauding the Hamas-planned ambush that killed more than a thousand civilians.

A number of demonstrations took place in New York, California and other states – with nonprofits in the Singham network organizing and staging larger rallies set for this weekend, intentionally scheduled on and around the anniversary of the Hamas terrorist attack.

At 12:30 p.m., organizers from the NYU Students for Justice in Palestine staged a walkout in Washington Square Park as part of their “NYU WEEK OF RAGE,” where they said in a social media post they remain “steadfast in our commitment to Palestinian liberation.”

Hundreds of anti-Israel agitators gather outside of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s City Hall office on the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.(Preston Mizell for Fox News Digital)

DUKE REINSTATES STUDENTS FOR JUSTICE IN PALESTINE AFTER SUSPENSION OVER ANTISEMITISM CONCERNS

Separately, anti-Israel demonstrators arrived at the gates of Columbia University at 2 p.m., where encampments and riots embattled the campus for years after Oct. 7, 2023. As students filtered in and out of the gates, now guarded by heavy security, demonstrators from The Columbia Intifada and others chanted “globalize the intifada” through a megaphone.

Columbia University has previously told Fox News Digital that the Columbia Intifada is not officially associated with the Ivy League school.

At 4 p.m., some of the same groups who were protesting at Columbia traveled to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office at City Hall, with Palestinian flags flying and chants echoing throughout the Financial District of Manhattan.

FILE – New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday addressed what he called the “ongoing genocide in Gaza.”(ANGELA WEISS / AFP via Getty Images)

FORMER HAMAS HOSTAGE COUNTERS HASAN PIKER’S UT AUSTIN EVENT WITH HER STORY OF SURVIVAL

Mamdani weighed in on the anniversary earlier on Wednesday morning, saying “we grieve alongside our many friends and neighbors” who are dealing with the loss experienced on Oct. 7, 2023, before blasting Israel for an “ongoing genocide in Gaza.”

“The suffering did not begin nor end that day,” Mamdani posted to X. “It instead continued through the Israeli government’s devastating, ongoing genocide in Gaza, in which it has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians — including more than 21,000 children.”

On Mamdani’s schedule for the anniversary of Oct. 7, he is set to meet with “Palestinian New Yorkers” following a vigil for the Israeli victims of the Hamas attack.

MAMDANI ROASTED FOR STAYING TIGHT-LIPPED ON ‘WAR CRIMINAL’ PEZESHKIAN AFTER RAGING ABOUT NETANYAHU

In California, Students for Justice in Palestine UCLA mobilized at Bruin Plaza on the Los Angeles campus, echoing similar messages to separate groups across the country. Agitators at UC Davis celebrated the terrorist attack, calling for “glory to the resistance” and referring to Oct. 7 as the “anniversary of the al-Aqsa Flood.”

Operation Al-Aqsa Flood is the military code name given by Hamas for the attack three years ago.

UC BERKELEY SLAMMED AFTER ANTI-ISRAEL GROUP HOSTS FAILED SUICIDE BOMBER AS GUEST EVENT SPEAKER: ‘CESSPOOL’

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led terrorists stormed into southern Israel from the Gaza Strip, converging on a music festival in a surprise ambush that killed roughly 1,200 people. The attackers abducted more than 250 people and took them into Gaza as hostages, triggering a conflict that remains ongoing.

Personal belongings recovered from Israeli homes burned by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack displayed at the ‘Return to October’ exhibition in Israel.(Amelie Botbol for Fox News Digital)

The coordinated, organized events held Wednesday shed light on the protest infrastructure that has fueled many of the anti-Israel protests since October 2023, with Singham-backed groups like the People’s Forum and CodePink consistently in attendance.

On Tuesday, the People’s Forum collaborated with Shut it Down 4 Palestine to prepare for a separate protest that will take place on Saturday in Washington Square Park “to stand against three years of continued genocide in Gaza,” according to their social media post.

INTEL EXPERT SAYS SINGHAM NETWORK IS MORE THAN A NONPROFIT SCANDAL—IT’S A SECURITY THREAT

A Fox News Digital investigation revealed Singham has donated $22.44 million to the People’s Forum Inc.

Last month, CodePink, which was founded by Singham’s wife, Jodie Evans, marched alongside communist and Marxist groups in protest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speaking at the United Nations General Assembly.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6405597616112

Singham, a 72-year-old American who sold his tech company for $785 million in 2017 and now lives in Shanghai, has funneled $278 million into the broad network of nonprofits since 2017, according to a Fox News Digital investigation. These groups regularly organize and participate in anti-ICE, anti-Israel and pro-Iran demonstrations.

The Southern District of New York, one of the country’s most powerful districts for federal prosecutions, opened a grand jury probe into Singham’s finances in June. He has yet to be charged with any crime.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6406438007112

HOW CODEPINK CO-FOUNDER MEDEA BENJAMIN’S FAMILY FOUNDATION BECAME A MAJOR FUNDER OF LEFT-WING ACTIVIST GROUPS

Trauma psychologist Dr. Orli Peter, who founded the Israel Healing Initiative, a nonprofit that has been providing high-tech trauma treatment for people impacted by the Oct. 7 attack, told Fox News Digital that the demonstrations across the country “manipulate the public,” weaponize the anniversary, and detract from the mourning of Jewish people.

“Demonstrating while Jews are mourning on Oct. 7 weaponizes the anniversary,” Peter explained. “It serves two purposes for the activists: One is to manipulate the public by interrupting the mourning before empathy settles on Jewish suffering and responsibility points to Hamas.”

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“The other is to show power over the mourners, telling them, ‘Even in your grief, in your memory, in your most vulnerable day, we can invade,” she added.

Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News Digital covering breaking news.

特朗普自认应获诺贝尔和平奖 但坦言获奖希望渺茫

2026年10月8日 07:10 / 联合早报

10月7日，美国总统特朗普在白宫南草坪向媒体记者发表讲话。 （彭博社）

美国总统特朗普星期三（10月7日）说，自己理应获得诺贝尔和平奖，但同时称自己获奖的希望渺茫。目前，特朗普正对伊朗发动军事打击，且尚未促成俄乌停火。

挪威诺贝尔委员会将于本星期五（9日）公布2026年和平奖得主。特朗普在谈及该奖项时说：“我不知道他们会做出什么决定。他们似乎一贯不会把奖颁给我这样的人。”

自去年重返白宫以来，特朗普已多次宣称自己配得上这项举世瞩目的荣誉。

他星期三在白宫椭圆形办公室对记者说：“也到时候了。不过，上次能以间接方式获奖我也感到非常荣幸。当时的得主说，历史上没人比特朗普总统更应得此殊荣。”

今年1月，委内瑞拉反对派领袖马查多为争取美国支持，将获得的2025年诺贝尔和平奖奖章转赠特朗普。

特朗普强调，自去年1月上任以来，他已介入调解八起国际冲突，因此应当获奖。柬埔寨、以色列及巴基斯坦领导人均宣称已提名特朗普，但相关说法无法得到官方证实。

此外，部分冲突方质疑特朗普的外交斡旋成效，而刚果（金）及柬泰边境等地的局势也再度恶化。

在俄乌局势上，特朗普曾承诺在第二个任期首日即结束战争，但至今仍未取得突破。而在中东，美以对伊朗的空袭引发了持续七个月的局势动荡，不仅颠覆了全球能源供给，也在今年11月美国中期选举前推高了国内汽油价格。

据悉，今年获奖的热门人选包括教宗良十四世、国际刑事法院（ICC）以及联合国巴勒斯坦领土问题特别报告员等。

Exclusive: Nicolás Maduro and his wife expected to face new charges over alleged torture of Americans

2026-10-07T20:05:19.798Z / CNN

By Evan Perez, Hannah Rabinowitz, Kara Scannell, Jennifer Hansler

Updated 1 hr 31 min ago

Updated Oct 7, 2026, 5:33 PM ET

PUBLISHED Oct 7, 2026, 4:05 PM ET

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro at the Miraflores Presidential Palace in Caracas, on October 15, 2021.

Federico Parra/AFP/Getty Images

Prosecutors in New York are expected to bring new charges against former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores over the alleged torture of Americans who were held in Venezuelan government custody in recent years, according to multiple people familiar with the investigation.

An announcement could come as soon as Thursday, the people said.

The new charges relate to what the US government has said was the wrongful detention of more than a dozen US citizens in Venezuelan prisons during the time Maduro led a repressive regime in Venezuela, the people briefed on the investigation said.

Investigators have also discussed charging several additional people for their alleged role in the torture of Americans, according to a source familiar with the matter.

CNN has reached out to lawyers for Maduro and Flores.

Maduro and his wife were captured in a US military raid in January from the presidential palace in Caracas. They have pleaded not guilty to narcoterrorism conspiracy and other charges and are held without bail in New York.

Flores is expected to appear at a hearing Thursday where her lawyer will ask that she be moved to house arrest ahead of trial.

Maduro’s lawyer is challenging the legality of the arrest and argues the former president should have immunity since the alleged conduct occurred while he was in office.

The Venezuelan government is not joining in claiming immunity on his behalf, according to the prosecution.

Related article Nicolas Maduro is seen in handcuffs after landing at a Manhattan helipad, en route to a Federal courthouse in Manhattan on January 5. XNY/Star Max/GC Images/Getty Images/File Nicolas Maduro heads back to court arguing that the US is trying to hamstring his defense 4 min read

Allegations of torture

More than a dozen Americans were detained by the Maduro government, which was accused by US government and advocates of using them as political pawns.

Several of the Americans have spoken out about the torture say they were subjected to while they were imprisoned. Matthew Heath and Osman Khan, who were freed in a prisoner swap in October 2022, alleged in a lawsuit that they were subjected to waterboarding, electrocution, threats of sexual assault, use of mind-altering drugs, and periods of solitary confinement. Heath, a US Marine veteran, attempted suicide while he was detained.

The “CITGO 6,” a group of six American oil executives who were lured to Venezuela in 2017 and detained for nearly five years, also say they were subjected to brutal conditions while in Venezuelan detention. In lawsuits filed against their employer — Citgo — Tomeu Vadell, Alirio Jose Zambrano and Jose Luis Zambrano said they were subjected to torture while imprisoned.

All of them had been held in the notorious General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM) — which was “responsible for arbitrary detentions, ill-treatment and torture of political opponents and their relatives,” according to a United Nations report.

That report found that DGCIM “routinely resorted” to torture practices “including electric shocks, suffocation with plastic bags, waterboarding, beatings, sexual violence, water and food deprivation, stress positions and exposure to extreme temperatures” in order to “extract information and confessions, intimidate, and punish the detainees.”

This story was updated with additional information.

Maduro expected to face new charges alleging torture of Americans in Venezuelan prisons, sources say

2026-10-07 5:21 PM EDT / CBS News

By Jacob Rosen, Jennifer Jacobs, Sarah N. Lynch

Jake Rosen is a reporter covering the Department of Justice. He was previously a campaign digital reporter covering President Trump’s 2024 campaign and also served as an associate producer for “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”

Read Full Bio

Jacob Rosen, Jennifer Jacobs, Sarah N. Lynch

Federal prosecutors are expected to bring new charges against former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, for allegedly torturing Americans who were held in Venezuelan prisons, according to multiple sources familiar with the case.

The sources said that additional people could be charged in their role for the torture of more than a dozen Americans who were wrongfully detained by the Venezuelan government while Maduro was in power.

One source said the new charges could be announced as soon as Thursday.

Barry Pollack, an attorney for Maduro, told CBS News that he has not been provided any notice that additional charges could be coming.

Flores is due in federal court on Thursday in the Southern District of New York for a bond hearing, and a trial date has been tentatively set for June 2027.

CNN was first to report the potential new charges.

A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

blob:https://www.cbsnews.com/0387e219-5040-4079-8a0e-ab43f5b77154

Maduro and Flores were indicted by a federal grand jury in January on charges stemming from what prosecutors said was his role in a scheme to import “thousands of tons” of cocaine into the United States and enrich themselves, their family and senior members of the Venezuelan government. The U.S. military took the couple into custody in an overnight operation and brought them to the U.S. to face the charges. They have pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors said Maduro was at the “forefront of the corruption” and that he and his associates worked with drug traffickers and narco-terrorists to flood the U.S. with drugs.

Maduro faces four charges: narco-terrorism conspiracy; cocaine importation conspiracy; possession of machine guns and destructive devices; and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices.

The case against them was brought in the Southern District of New York, where Maduro and 14 others were first indicted in March 2020, during the first Trump administration.

Maduro and his wife have asked U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein to dismiss the drug trafficking indictment against them on the grounds that they have immunity as the leaders of a foreign country. The judge has not heard arguments on those motions yet.

In September, Alex Saab, a former minister of industry in Maduro’s government, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering tied to an alleged bribery conspiracy and agreed to cooperate in ongoing federal investigations into the regime after being deported to the U.S. from Venezuela.

In May, CBS News reported that federal prosecutors in Miami were ordered to open a new criminal investigation into Maduro amid some concerns that the pending prosecution against him is weak.

国际能源署同意加快释放1亿桶石油储备

2026年10月8日 07:16 / 联合早报

今年3月11日，国际能源署（IEA）宣布32个成员国一致同意释放4亿桶战略石油储备，以应对因中东局势升级导致全球石油供应紧张的局面。 （路透社档案照片）

今年3月11日，国际能源署（IEA）宣布32个成员国一致同意释放4亿桶战略石油储备，以应对因中东局势升级导致全球石油供应紧张的局面。 （路透社档案照片）

国际能源署（IEA）周三发表声明说，IEA成员国政府同意加快落实今年3月宣布的石油储备释放计划。若此前承诺但尚未释放的储备全部投放市场，预计还可再释放约1亿桶石油。

声明指出，针对当前全球柴油市场供应紧张的情况，成员国同意在条件允许的情况下优先投放柴油储备。

据IEA统计，截至目前，成员国已依照今年3月达成的集体行动计划累计释放约3.25亿桶石油，部分国家释放规模已超过此前承诺。目前IEA成员国仍持有约11亿桶公共应急石油储备，其中包含超过2亿桶柴油。如有需要，可进一步动用这些储备以稳定市场供应。

今年3月11日，IEA宣布32个成员国同意释放4亿桶战略石油储备，以应对因中东局势升级导致全球石油供应紧张的局面。IEA说，将继续与各成员国协调跟进落实情况，并将在下周举行的理事会会议上再次研判能源市场形势。

针对外界关注，分析人士及部分政府澄清，这1亿桶并非全新的干预规模，而是3月承诺额度的加速投放。

德国经济部说，德国将参与落实3月已确定的分配份额，但未承诺额外增加数量。欧洲委员会发言人也证实，欧盟成员国一致认为任何释出行动均须限制在3月核准的既定总量之内。

在IEA发表声明前，七国集团（G7）已于上周五同意立即释放1亿桶原油及柴油。

与此同时，为缓解本国燃料价格压力，法国总理勒科尔尼周三宣布，法国将向国内分销商投放1000万桶柴油储备。这批柴油是在近期价格大涨前购入，将按成本价供应，预计可使加油站零售油价每升直接下调12至18欧分。

尽管IEA与多国相继推出释储举措，市场对总体供给安全的担忧依然存在。沙特阿美（Saudi Aramco）首席执行官纳瑟尔警告，全球石油库存已处于令人担忧的低位，且绝大部分储备属于保障基础设施运转的最低留存，实际可动用的“可用库存”占比不足10%。