The US Venezuela operation could have major implications for the Middle East

For years, Israel and Western intelligence agencies have viewed Venezuela as a strategic outpost for Iranian influence, Hezbollah activity and sanctions evasion. The sudden collapse of President Nicolás Maduro’s grip on power therefore carries implications not only for Tehran’s regional posture, but also for Israeli security planning.

What unfolded in Caracas is being closely watched in Jerusalem, Tehran and Washington, not just as a regime change in South America, but as a potential warning shot in a much larger confrontation between the US and Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance”.

For more than two decades, Israel and Western intelligence agencies have viewed Venezuela under Nicolás Maduro, and before him Hugo Chávez,  as Iran’s primary gateway into Latin America. The relationship has been both ideological and strategic. Chávez severed diplomatic relations with Israel in 2009 and openly aligned Caracas with Tehran as part of a broader anti-US, anti-Western axis. Maduro deepened that alliance, positioning Venezuela as a reliable partner for Iran across political, military and economic spheres.

Intelligence assessments have long suggested that Iranian-backed Hezbollah established a foothold in Venezuela, while senior figures linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards reportedly acquired Venezuelan citizenship. This allegedly allowed them to move freely across South America, strengthening Iran’s regional reach. Israel also suspects that Iran used Venezuela as a platform for terrorist infrastructure, including cells linked to a recently foiled plot to assassinate Israel’s ambassador to Mexico.