An update on combating terrorists abroad and sending them to the “depths of hell” prompted a callback as President Donald Trump proved, “I am your retribution.”
Contrasted with the open borders policies of his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, the Trump administration has not only acted to halt the waves of illegal immigration but has also made moves against the criminal organizations operating amidst the chaos, both at home and abroad.
Friday, the commander-in-chief announced the latest action had been a successful strike at the center of the designated terrorist organization Tren de Aragua, eliminating its leader, Hector Rusthenford Guerroro Flores.
Harkening back to the campaign trail, White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller shared the president’s message with the caption, “I am your justice…I am your retribution,” as the accompanying unclassified video from U.S. Southern Command showed the explosive end of Niño Guerrero.
“I am your justice…I am your retribution” https://t.co/wSbXu7SO4w
— Stephen Miller (@StephenM) June 13, 2026
“At my direction, the United States Southern Command delivered a swift and lethal kinetic strike to successfully execute Niño Guerrero, the infamous leader of Tren De Aragua, one of the most bloodthirsty Terrorist Organizations on Planet Earth,” said Trump.
Calling out former President Joe Biden and reminding of his own promise to “bring Justice” to the families of victims of the “monsters” that had been allowed entry into the United States, the commander-in-chief went on, “With this action, the United States Military has brought retribution for them, their families, and their loved ones.”
During his March 2023 speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), then former President Trump had said, “In 2016, I declared I am your voice. Today I add I am your warrior, I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed, I am your retribution.”
Having designated Tren de Aragua as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, and working in coordination with Venezuela, Trump declared the “terrorists no longer have safe haven in Venezuela or anywhere else and, under my leadership, we will find these vicious murderers and [drug] lords anytime, anyplace, and send them to the depths of hell where they belong.”
Of note, Guerrero Flores was among those named by the Justice Department as a defendant in addition to Nicolás Maduro in its indictment of the Venezuelan dictator.
Adding his own statement on the strike, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said, “Earlier this week, the @DeptofWar — in full collaboration with Venezuelan security forces — conducted a kinetic strike on a Tren de Aragua (TdA) compound in Venezuela. TdA founder & leader Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, aka ‘Niño Guerrero,’ was confirmed killed during the strike.”
“The operation underscores the shared U.S. and Venezuelan commitment to take the fight to narco-terrorists and deny them any safe haven in our hemisphere,” added the secretary. “We will continue to work closely with security partners, like Venezuela — and [countries] in the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C) partners — to take the fight to our enemies.”
In addition to extending his thanks to Venezuela regarding the joint operation, SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovon said in his own statement, “Guerrero was a wanted fugitive charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with ordering, directing, and facilitating acts of terrorism and violence in the United States.”
“We extend our gratitude to the Venezuelan security forces for their support to the successful joint operation against a Tren de Aragua compound that resulted in the death of the narco-terrorist organization’s leader Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, alias “Niño Guerrero.”… https://t.co/GT4z4FMyYq
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) June 13, 2026
