Operation Golden Dynamite: U.S. Veteran Leads Rescue of Venezuelan Opposition Leader
A daring rescue operation, dubbed Operation Golden Dynamite, successfully extracted Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel laureate María Corina Machado from Venezuela. The mission, led by U.S. special forces veteran Bryan Stern, involved disguises, a perilous sea journey, and a flight to Oslo, Norway, where Machado was to receive her Nobel Peace Prize. Machado had been in hiding following Venezuela's disputed elections and had not been seen publicly since January. The operation was financed by donors and not the U.S. government, although informal coordination with some nation states and intelligence services occurred. Stern's organization, Grey Bull Rescue Foundation, specializes in evacuations from conflict zones and had been preparing for potential operations in Venezuela. 
