As doors slam shut on Caracas, Venezuela’s Jews come to grips with their country’s mounting isolation

Photo: AP Images

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uring a relatively quiet Shabbos, Venezuela’s Jews were unaware that Donald Trump had just ratcheted up pressure, already intense, on the regime of dictator Nicolás Maduro. On social media, the American president had posted an unambiguous warning: “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela to be closed in its entirety.”

The announcement marked yet another escalation in the campaign Washington has waged in recent months against the government in Caracas — a campaign spectacularly illustrated by the now-circulating images of rafts allegedly ferrying drugs from the Caribbean nation to North America being blown out of the water.

What most frightens Venezuela’s increasingly dwindling Jewish community is uncertainty of what comes next. “Will the United States invade or not? If they decide to attack, will it be a surgical operation? Or something larger that could endanger anyone walking down the street?” wondered Rabbi Oshri Arguane of the Tiferet Israel del Este community in a conversation with Mishpacha. “People still try to continue with normal life — schools are open, businesses too. But it’s undeniable that there’s a lot of tension in the streets.”

Rabbi Arguane noted that many Venezuelan Jews are now grappling with the consequences of the country’s mounting isolation. Just days earlier, the US Federal Aviation Administration had issued a security notice urging airlines and pilots to avoid Venezuelan airspace, citing “a worsening security situation,” increased military activity, and potential GPS interference. In turn, Venezuela revoked operating rights for six major international airlines that had suspended routes to the country after the FAA’s warning.

That decision unleashed two serious complications. On one hand, it sharpened the sense that some form of US strike might be imminent, prompting many Venezuelans to try to flee — a task made vastly more difficult by the scarcity of flights. (Only eight carriers had been operating international routes to Venezuela, and no US airline has flown there since 2019.) Prices soared as a result.

“Tickets that used to cost around $700 now can’t be found for less than $4,000 — and that’s if you can find them at all,” explained Rabbi Arguane.

On the other hand, countless Venezuelans who had planned to return home were suddenly stranded abroad. In fact, as we spoke, the rabbi was waiting for a call from his wife, stuck in Spain with no way to get back to Caracas. The desperation is such that, according to members of the Jewish community who requested anonymity, many people have begun hiring drivers to take them to the Colombian border, from where they attempt to reach the most sought-after destinations — Miami or Madrid.

Since 2007 Venezuela has been governed by the Socialist Party: first under Hugo Chávez, and after his death, under his vice president, Nicolás Maduro, who has ruled since 2013. Elections in the country are widely regarded as a farce, and the ruling party has managed to hold on to power at the expense of ordinary Venezuelans, who have been impoverished at staggering rates. Once Latin America’s fourth-largest economy, Venezuela has slipped to eleventh place.

But that is not what most concerns Trump. The US president has accused Maduro of serving as the de facto leader of a narcotrafficking network shipping its product to the United States. Few dispute, however, that Venezuela possesses immense wealth beneath its soil: the largest proven oil reserves in the world — more than 300 billion barrels.

Another crucial question is how China will respond. The Asian giant is Venezuela’s largest creditor and the primary buyer of its oil, and just days ago President Xi sent a letter to Maduro assuring him that their countries are “intimate friends” while denouncing what he called “interference by external forces in Venezuela’s internal affairs under any pretext.”

If there is ultimately a change of regime, it’s reasonable to expect that China’s bargain price on Venezuelan oil would go up. Could that trigger a new chapter in the trade war between Trump and Xi? We’ll have to wait and see…

Next Up...Jacob Accords?

Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, has managed to capture the imagination of Jews around the world — and Israelis in particular — with an enthusiasm rarely seen in contemporary politics. It is not every day that a head of state is seen weeping at the Western Wall, dropping in on a late-night shiur at the Ohel in New York, or quoting passages from the weekly parshah in official speeches.

Yet the initiative he unveiled in recent days aims for something more enduring than emotional symbolism. Inspired by the “Abraham Accords” championed by his political idol, Donald Trump, Milei announced — during the visit of Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar — that Argentina will spearhead what he calls the “Isaac Accords,” a Latin American parallel to the normalization agreements signed by several Arab states. Here are four things worth knowing about the project.

1 More Than a Name

The challenge for the ambitiously titled “Isaac Accords” is to become something more than a diplomatic label. The initiative seeks tangible outcomes on two fronts. First, there are the political and economic dimensions: cooperation in technology, cyber-defense, agriculture, energy, and natural resources. Put simply, Israel brings technological prowess; Latin America brings raw potential. But there is also an ideological component — one that appeals deeply to Milei. He envisions a regional coalition of leaders openly supporting Israel, confronting anti-Semitism, and rejecting terrorist ideologies.

2 A Shifting Landscape

South America, a continent fond of political pendulums, is currently experiencing a rightward swing that Jerusalem is eager to leverage. Argentina, Paraguay, and Ecuador are already aligned with Israel, but the landscape has shifted even in countries that, after October 7, had taken sharply anti-Israel positions. In Bolivia, the ruling socialist bloc was defeated, and president-elect Rodrigo Paz has expressed interest in reestablishing diplomatic ties with Israel. In Chile, polls suggest that the far-left government — staunchly pro-Palestinian — may soon give way to José Antonio Kast, a center-right politician known for his sympathy toward Israel.

3 Israel Should Look for New Friends

The war in Gaza has clarified Israel’s diplomatic ledger: who stands with it, and who, quite decisively, does not. To the surprise of many in Jerusalem, several European heavyweights — France, Spain, the United Kingdom — have chosen to distance themselves. In this climate, the warmth of South American allies may prove a strategic balm.

4 Those Unlikely to Join

The true prize, in terms of political and economic weight, would be Brazil (which, Brazilians will hasten to remind you, does not consider itself “Latin American” in the cultural sense, owing to its Portuguese language). But as long as Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s socialist government remains in power, that prospect seems remote. Lula has adopted overtly anti-Israel rhetoric, which his voter base expects him to maintain, despite Brazil’s sizeable Jewish community. Colombia appears equally improbable: its president, Gustavo Petro, is regarded as one of the most openly hostile leaders toward Israel in the region.

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 1089)