Maduro orders deployment of 4.5 million militia after U.S. doubles reward for his arrest

Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro has ordered the deployment of 4.5 million members of the country’s militia across the nation after the United States doubled its reward for information leading to his arrest.

The announcement was made during a televised address on Tuesday, in which Maduro said, “This week I’m going to activate a special plan to guarantee coverage with more than 4.5 million militiamen in the entire national territory.”

Maduro described the move as part of a “peace plan” and urged the militias to be “prepared, activated and armed.” Maduro added, “The plan of peace, which is to deploy all the militia capacity in the territory and by sectors, establish the capacity of the Bolivarian national militia in all the country’s territories.”

The decision comes after the Justice and State Departments raised the reward for Maduro’s arrest to $50 million, citing his alleged role in drug trafficking and ties to criminal groups including Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa cartel, and the Cartel of the Suns.

U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi has described Maduro as “one of the largest narcotraffickers in the world and a threat to our national security,” accusing him of working with foreign terrorist organizations and overseeing cocaine shipments, some laced with fentanyl, that have fueled overdoses in the United States.

Last Thursday, the Trump administration announced the deployment of U.S. air and naval forces to the Southern Caribbean to address threats from Latin American drug cartels. The Pentagon confirmed that the deployment will include P-8 reconnaissance aircraft, at least one warship, and one attack submarine.