WILLEMSTAD — For the first time, previously unseen video footage has been released showing the dramatic secret operation that brought Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado out of Venezuela in December 2025 as she made her way toward Europe to eventually receive the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize in Norway.
The video, shared by U.S.-based civilian rescue team Grey Bull Rescue and featured in international media, captures the tense moments at sea during Machado’s clandestine departure from Venezuelan waters. In the footage, Machado is seen boarding a rescue vessel at night and speaking directly to the camera, assuring viewers of her safety: “I am María Corina Machado. I am alive, I am safe and very grateful.”
Operation “Golden Dynamite” and Caribbean Crossing
The rescue mission — reportedly code-named Operation Golden Dynamite — was designed to extract Machado from Venezuela under heavy surveillance and avoid government checkpoints. According to reports, the operation involved a coordinated land and sea route that culminated in a nighttime embarkation from Venezuelan waters. The live-action footage shows the opposition leader being helped aboard a larger rescue vessel after a prolonged journey under challenging sea conditions.
Once safely aboard, the team headed toward the Caribbean island of Curaçao, a key waypoint in her escape. After reaching Curaçao, Machado continued on to Oslo by air. She missed the December 10 Nobel ceremony due to delays and perilous conditions but arrived later to receive the honor and reunite with family.
Context and Significance
At the time of her escape, Machado had been in hiding in Venezuela for nearly a year amid increasing political pressure and restrictions imposed by the government of Nicolás Maduro. International reporting has shown that her journey included avoiding informal checkpoints, enduring rough seas, and dealing with significant risks to secure her safe passage out of the country.
The release of these images provides rare visual insight into her extraction and highlights the perilous nature of her escape — a topic that had previously been reported in text form but lacked public visual documentation.
International and Regional Reactions
Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights … and her struggle for a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.” However, her departure and subsequent safety have remained subjects of intense global interest, especially as international attention focuses on Venezuela’s future and Machado’s role as a leading opposition figure.
The footage confirms that her route passed through Curaçao, underscoring the island’s ongoing role as a strategic transit point in the Caribbean — and offering a significant update to earlier reports that Curaçao Chronicle and others published about her escape.
As political debates over Venezuela’s situation continue, these visuals are likely to renew discussions among international observers and within Venezuelan opposition circles about the lengths taken to ensure Machado’s safety and her continued influence abroad.