Cuba acknowledged that 32 of its citizens — described by the government as members of the island’s armed forces and intelligence services — were killed during the U.S. operation that seized Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in Caracas, declaring two days of national mourning in their honor.

Havana did not specify where the personnel were stationed during the raid. But their deaths have renewed scrutiny of years of reporting and international investigations documenting Cuba’s deep and covert involvement inside Venezuela’s military and intelligence structures.

Jorge Jraissati, a Venezuelan political analyst, said Cuba’s intelligence role was critical to the consolidation of power first under Hugo Chávez and later under Maduro. ‘Experts usually link Cuba as the most important intelligence provider of Venezuela. This includes issues like running elections, building diplomatic leverage with other countries and keeping the security forces in check, among others,’ he told Fox News Digital.

Jraissati said any transition in Venezuela ‘would require the American government, in partnership with the Venezuelan people, to work together on minimizing the Cubans’ influence over Venezuela’s state apparatus and society at large.’

A Reuters investigation published in August 2019 found that two confidential agreements signed in 2008 granted Cuba sweeping access to Venezuela’s armed forces and intelligence services. Under those agreements, Cuban officials were authorized to train Venezuelan troops, restructure intelligence agencies and help build an internal surveillance system focused on monitoring Venezuela’s own military, according to the report.

Those arrangements played a central role in transforming Venezuela’s military counterintelligence agency — the General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM) — into a force designed to detect dissent, instill fear within the ranks and ensure loyalty to the government, the investigation found.

The findings were later echoed by the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela, which said it reviewed a 2008 memorandum of understanding between Cuba and Venezuela. The U.N. mission reported that the agreement provided for Cuban advisory oversight in the restructuring of Venezuelan military intelligence, including the creation of new agencies, training of counterintelligence officers and assistance with surveillance and infiltration techniques.

Former Venezuelan officials cited by Havana Times and El Toque have described Cuban advisers embedded across some of the country’s most sensitive institutions, including the civilian intelligence service SEBIN, DGCIM, the defense ministry, ports and airports and Venezuela’s national identification system.

Human rights organizations and international investigators say those structures were central to the government’s response to mass protests in 2014 and 2017, when Venezuelan security forces carried out widespread arrests and deadly crackdowns on demonstrators.

The U.N. fact-finding mission documented patterns of extrajudicial executions, arbitrary detention and torture, and reported that Cuban advisers helped train Venezuelan personnel in methods used to track, interrogate and repress political opponents.

Experts say Cuba’s admission that its military and intelligence personnel were killed during a U.S. operation inside Venezuela has sharpened focus on the alliance’s true depth, turning years of documentation into an immediate geopolitical issue.

Democrats’ anger over President Donald Trump’s weekend operation in Venezuela is now turning into demands for his impeachment by some members of the party’s leftmost flank.

Several progressives have now called for proceedings against Trump after the administration carried out strikes in Caracas and captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. 

‘Many Americans woke up to a sick sense of déjà vu. Under the guise of liberty, an administration of warmongers has lied to justify an invasion and is dragging us into an illegal, endless war so they can extract resources and expand their wealth,’ Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., a member of the House’s ‘Squad,’ posted on X over the weekend.

‘We must pass Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s War Powers Resolution that asserts Congress’ authorities, and Trump must be impeached.’

Ramirez was referring to a resolution led by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., aimed at blocking Trump from carrying out military action against Venezuela.

Meanwhile, Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., who is facing a primary challenge from his left, criticized Trump for bypassing Congress to launch what he called a ‘war’ with Venezuela, and he argued the administration failed to give lawmakers ‘any satisfactory explanation.’

‘This violation of the United States Constitution is an impeachable offense,’ Goldman said in a statement. ‘I urge my Republican colleagues in the House of Representatives to finally join Democrats in reasserting congressional authority by holding this president accountable for this gross violation of the Constitution.’

Rep. April McClain Delaney, D-Md., did not mention Trump by name, but she posted on X, ‘Let’s be clear, invading and running another country without a congressional declaration of war is an impeachable offense. Whether it makes sense to pursue impeachment as the best strategy to end this lawlessness is a tactical judgment that our Caucus needs to seriously deliberate.’

And Golden State gubernatorial hopeful Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., did not rule out supporting Trump’s impeachment when asked at a press conference in California, according to local outlet Pleasanton Weekly.

Progressive House candidates also spoke up, including Kat Abughazaleh, who is running for an open seat in Illinois.

‘I demand that Congress exercise its power, halt this conflict, and impeach this war criminal president,’ Abughazaleh posted on the Bluesky app.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for a response.

Republicans and Democrats have, for the most part, been sharply divided in their responses to the operation in Venezuela.

Democrats have accused Trump of running afoul of U.S. laws to launch an illegal invasion of a sovereign country.

Republicans, meanwhile, have defended it as a successful move to take out a dictator and longtime hostile actor to the U.S. and in the region as a whole.

Top GOP lawmakers have also argued there was no need to notify Congress prior to what they called a law enforcement action rather than a military operation.

President Donald Trump was photographed with a signed ‘Make Iran Great Again’ hat alongside Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., as nationwide demonstrations in Iran continued against the regime’s political and economic corruption.

In a photo posted Monday morning on Graham’s X account, the senator could be seen flashing a thumbs up next to Trump as the president holds the black hat emblazoned with his signature.

‘Another great day with @POTUS who has brought America back, stronger than ever, at home and abroad,’ Graham wrote. ‘God bless our Commander in Chief and all of the brave men and women who serve under him.’

‘I’m proud to be an American,’ the post continued. ‘God bless and protect the brave people of Iran who are standing up to tyranny.’

Demonstrations have spread to more than 220 locations across 26 of Iran’s 31 provinces, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported early Monday. At least 20 people have been killed, the group said, and more than 990 have been arrested.

What began as protests over economic hardship quickly escalated, with demonstrators chanting anti-government slogans.

Iran’s collapsing currency has fueled a deepening economic crisis. Prices for staples such as meat and rice have surged, while the country grapples with inflation of around 40%.

In December, the government introduced a new pricing tier for its heavily subsidized gasoline, raising the cost of some of the world’s cheapest fuel and adding to public anger. Tehran has signaled that further increases may follow, with officials now set to review fuel prices every three months.

The protests have continued even after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday said that ‘rioters must be put in their place.’

Khamenei’s branding of the pro-democracy activists as ‘rioters’ came a day after Trump’s unprecedented message of solidarity with the demonstrators.

Fox News Digital’s Benjamin Weinthal and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have unveiled a new spending bill totaling at least $174 billion that could get a vote in the House of Representatives as early as this week.

It’s a significant step toward avoiding another government shutdown come Jan. 30, the deadline congressional leaders set after ending the recent 43-day shutdown — the longest in U.S. history — in November.

The legislation released on Monday is a package of three of the 12 annual spending bills that Congress is charged with passing: commerce, justice, science and related agencies; energy and water development and related agencies; and interior, environment and related agencies.

Senior Republicans and Democrats both signaled support for the bill, which was expected after it was created as the result of bipartisan discussions between the Senate and House Appropriations Committees.

‘This bipartisan, bicameral package reflects steady progress toward completing FY26 funding responsibly. It invests in priorities crucial to the American people: making our communities safer, supporting affordable and reliable energy, and responsibly managing vital resources,’ House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said in a statement. ‘It also delivers critical community projects nationwide, along with investments in water infrastructure, ports, and flood control that protect localities and keep commerce moving.’

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the panel, said the bill ‘is a forceful rejection of draconian cuts to public services proposed by the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress’ that is free of what she called ‘Republican poison pill’ provisions.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said its release is a step toward avoiding a ‘bloated omnibus bill’ and would ‘spend less than another continuing resolution’ in an apparent bid to ease conservative fiscal hawks’ concerns.

Two of those fiscal hawks, Reps. Chip Roy, R-Texas, and Ralph Norman, R-S.C., sit on the House Rules Committee, the panel that acts as the final gatekeeper before most legislation gets a House-wide vote. It’s not immediately clear whether they will support the bill.

In a sign of potential support from conservatives, however, House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., told Fox News Digital of the legislation, ‘We are still going through this minibus — but it appears to be in line with keeping this year’s discretionary spending below last year’s level — which is a good first step to actually lowering spending next year to control our runaway federal debt.’

The House Rules Committee is meeting to advance the legislation on Tuesday evening, with a final vote likely on Thursday. A subsequent procedural vote in the House, called a ‘rule vote,’ will need support from nearly all GOP lawmakers in order to advance.

The largest chunk of funding is aimed at the Commerce and Justice Departments, as well as related agencies. It provides roughly $78 billion in funding for NASA, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Prisons, among other areas.

Coming in second is the energy funding bill, which would devote just over $58 billion in funding largely to the Department of Energy. Notably, the bill beefs up nuclear defense and energy production funding, allocating roughly $25 billion to the National Nuclear Security Administration. A large chunk of that funding would be directed toward nuclear weapons activities and stockpile modernization. 

Rounding out the trio is the interior funding bill, which would provide over $38 billion in funding spread across the Interior Department, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Forest Service and other related agencies.

Notably, the package includes just over $3 billion in ‘Community Project Funding,’ also known as earmarks, which lawmakers request for specific initiatives on their home turf. 

While the last shutdown originated in the Senate, it appears that Senate Democrats are willing to play nice with Republicans ahead of the deadline.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said ahead of Congress’ holiday break that Democrats’ goal was to complete the remaining slate of funding bills by the Jan. 30 deadline and noted that ‘we want to get through the process.’

Given that the latest package is a bicameral, bipartisan product, Senate Democrats are likely to support it. 

Advancing the package in the Senate would go a long way toward funding the government but still falls short of the entire list of a dozen bills needed to fund the government. And there are still some more difficult spending bills lurking in the background, like defense, which Democrats rejected during the shutdown. 

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, touted in a statement that the funding package put Congress back into the driver’s seat of funding the government, taking the keys from President Donald Trump and Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought.

‘Importantly, passing these bills will help ensure that Congress, not President Trump and Russ Vought, decides how taxpayer dollars are spent — by once again providing hundreds of detailed spending directives and reasserting congressional control over these incredibly important spending decisions,’ Murray said.

If the legislation passes both the House and Senate, Congress will have advanced six of its 12 spending bills. It’s worth noting that another shutdown would only affect the agencies and offices left unfunded at the time of its beginning.

While many Democrats erupted at President Donald Trump’s decision to arrest Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro on drug trafficking and terrorism charges, one particular prior taunt from former President Joe Biden resurfaced Sunday and promptly got ratioed.

Responding to an Axios report on June 21, 2020, that Trump would consider meeting with Maduro after the despot ignored the disputed election versus opposition leader Juan Guaidó, Biden said, ‘Trump talks tough on Venezuela, but admires thugs and dictators like Nicolás Maduro.’

‘As President, I will stand with the Venezuelan people and for democracy,’ Biden added.

Soon after the weekend operation at Miraflores – the Venezuelan dictator’s official residence – conservatives and at least one left-leaning political activist highlighted how, in the words of several civilian respondents, the comment ‘aged like milk.’

‘Whoops,’ remarked Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., who is also running for the Yellowhammer State’s governorship this year.

‘And now, every Democrat is denouncing an operation to execute a federal warrant while we slept,’ Tuberville said.

The Auburn football legend went on to claim Biden’s comment showed ‘Democrats have no principles [and] it’s about whatever way the left wind is blowing to gain power.’

‘Yesterday’s margaritas with Kilmar Abrego Garcia is today’s Maduro,’ he said. ‘They’ll support a drug-trafficking dictator because this was another Trump win. Guaranteed.’

The Trump campaign arm’s ‘Rapid Response 47’ X account also re-upped Biden’s message, responding with a photograph of Maduro blindfolded on a U.S. government aircraft following his capture.

‘A tweet that did not age well,’ added Fox News host and former Trump press secretary Kayleigh McEnany.

‘Has anyone called to see if Joe is still sleeping?’ remarked Pennsylvania state Rep. Aaron Bernstine, who represents Butler County, where Trump was nearly assassinated in 2024.

One respondent on X replied with a clip of Earl Sinclair from the 1990s ABC sitcom, ‘Dinosaurs,’ expressing surprise and dropping a glass.

‘This aged well,’ Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, said of Biden’s comment.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., added in a statement on social media that Trump ‘doesn’t just talk tough, he is tough.’

‘Does Joe Biden have anything to say now?’ she asked, as other critics cited a second Biden comment from that timeframe wherein the Delaware Democrat called Maduro a dictator and criticized his ‘human rights violations and extrajudicial killings.’

‘Wait. You mean ‘Don’t’ diplomacy didn’t get it done?’ remarked former NYPD inspector Paul Mauro, who is also a Fox News contributor.

Mauro had referenced Biden’s widely circulated response to an inquiry about what his message to Iran would be to prevent them from intervening in Israel. ‘Don’t,’ Biden replied before leaving the stage where he was speaking at MS-NOW host Al Sharpton’s National Action Network.

In 2022, Biden climate envoy John Kerry – a former Massachusetts senator – was videotaped shaking hands and smiling in brief conversation with Maduro at the United Nations’ climate change summit that year in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

When pressed on the surprisingly jovial greeting, Kerry spokesman Ned Price said the Venezuelan leader had ‘interrupted what was an ongoing meeting at COP27’ and called the exchange ‘very much an unplanned interaction.’

Other critics pointed out that former President Barack Obama established the first bounty on Maduro’s head in 2015 via executive order, which was increased by the Biden administration, then doubled to $50 million by Trump more recently.

‘Joe Biden hated Maduro just as much. He just wasn’t bold enough to get him,’ said Ja’Mal Green, a former Chicago mayoral candidate and community activist who previously aligned with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., but appeared to sour on some of the far-left’s policies under current Mayor Brandon Johnson and now identifies as ‘politically independent.’

‘All [Biden] did was impose sanctions and never get the money owed. Democrats have to stop.’

‘Under Biden, he watched as Maduro slaughtered and oppressed the people of Venezuela. He watched as Maduro lost the election but still declared himself the winner. He then just allowed millions of Venezuelans to come to America to claim refuge, costing us hundreds of billions of dollars,’ said Green, who has also criticized Johnson over Chicago’s response to the illegal immigration crisis.

‘Under Trump, Maduro FAFO. He swooped in and took him out of the country altogether,’ Green said.

‘Regardless of our disagreements, sometimes diplomacy doesn’t work, and we must use aggression to free a nation. Trump freed Venezuelans today and I hope one day they can go home to a stable country.’

Green referenced recent nationwide protests against Trump and said the craziest part of ‘socialist[s] crying about Trump taking Maduro [was] saying it’s because he wanted a regime change. Maduro didn’t win the election. He’s only there because he took over the country. I thought y’all didn’t want kings.’

Fox News Digital reached out to representatives for Biden for comment.