States must not threaten or use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. And this is what we are seeing,” UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva
By Titilope Adako
The United Nations has condemned the US air strikes and the weekend seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, saying the operation “undermined a fundamental principle of international law.”
“States must not threaten or use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. And this is what we are seeing,” UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.
She urged the international community to “come together with one voice… to make clear that this is an action that is in contravention of international law.”
US commandos, supported by warplanes, naval forces, and air strikes, forcibly captured Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores early on Saturday.
Maduro appeared in a New York court on Monday, denying drug trafficking and other charges brought by Washington, and insisted he remained Venezuela’s legitimate president.
The US and European Union have accused Maduro of staying in power through rigged elections — most recently in 2024 — imprisoning opponents, and overseeing widespread corruption.
Shamdasani dismissed US claims that the operation was justified on human rights grounds, saying, “Accountability for rights violations cannot be achieved by unilateral military intervention in violation of international law. Using human rights arguments as a justification for this kind of military intervention is unacceptable.”
She warned that the intervention could worsen the situation, pointing out that a state of emergency declared by Venezuelan authorities on Saturday allows property seizures, restricts free movement, and suspends the right to protest.
The UN’s humanitarian office OCHA said nearly eight million Venezuelans —a quarter of the population already required humanitarian assistance before the US operation, while UNHCR said it had not yet observed mass displacement but was monitoring the situation closely.
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