Inside Venezuela, the mood was radically different. A capital already battered by blackout and hunger now trembled under the roar of jets and the echo of explosions. The government raged about imperialism and called people to the streets, even as no one could say who was actually in charge. Foreign capitals split along familiar lines, some hailing a “new dawn,” others warning of naked aggression. Between celebration and condemnation lies a dangerous vacuum, where a country’s fate hangs on unanswered questions about law, legitimacy, and the human cost of regime change.
