As U.S. special operations forces (SOF) conducted operations off the coast of Venezuela in preparation for the possible ouster of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, SOF veteran Bryan Stern was making quiet plans to exfiltrate Maduro’s strongest opponent, María Corina Machado, from the city where she had been living in hiding for months.
Though Machado was set to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway for “her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy,” Stern told Fox News that Machado is “perceived by the Maduro regime the way we perceived Osama bin Laden…that level of manhunt if you will.”
To get Machado to safety, Stern’s Grey Bull Rescue Foundation began Operation Golden Dynamite with a daring snatch-and-grab in a suburb of the Venezuelan capital, hiding Machado in a disguise and a wig so that she would not risk identification.
After making their way through ten roadblocks, Stern’s team put Machado aboard a fishing skiff, warning U.S. defense officials in advance to avoid being targeted in a counternarcotics strike. Stern brought Machado aboard his own vessel to continue their travels to Curaçao, though in international waters, he feared being pursued by the Venezuelan government.
After arriving in Curaçao, Machado continued on her 5,500-mile voyage to Norway by air. Though Machado arrived too late to personally receive the Nobel award, Stern’s donor-funded evacuation effort gave Venezuelans hope for a future beyond Maduro, as evidenced by the supporters who assembled below Machado’s hotel balcony to chant “freedom” as she waved to the crowds.
Machado told Face the Nation that her Nobel prize “is a recognition to a nation that has fought tirelessly, courageously against a criminal, narcoterrorist structure and- and I came to receive that prize, that award, and I’m going to bring it back home to the Venezuelan people as soon as possible.”
Even as U.S. special operations forces prepare for high-stakes missions off Venezuela’s coast, veterans like Bryan Stern prove that the ethos of service never fades when the uniform comes off. Whether pulling a trigger in defense of national security or piloting a rescue through hostile waters to save a symbol of democracy, today’s SOF warriors remain united by one purpose—to defend freedom and protect lives. Their actions show that America’s quiet professionals continue to stand watch for liberty not only on the battlefield, but in every corner of the world where courage still matters.
