The United States is facing a serious threat to its national security following the leak of Venezuelan intelligence documents revealing a massive fraud in passport issuance.
According to the Daily Mail, over 10,000 citizens from Iran, Syria, and Lebanon — many with alleged ties to terrorist organizations — have reportedly obtained Venezuelan passports fraudulently, opening a dangerous unrestricted gateway to U.S. territory.
The Network That Operated for Years
The leaked files, covering nearly a decade of illegal activity, contain personal data and passport numbers of individuals who never had the right to Venezuelan citizenship.
At the center of the scheme is Ghazi Nasr Al-Din, a Venezuelan diplomat of Lebanese descent, designated a global terrorist in 2008 for his support for Hezbollah. The FBI added him to its terrorist list in 2015, accusing him of facilitating travel and operations for this organization.
The operation also implicates former Venezuelan Vice President Tareck El Aissami, arrested in April 2024. Authorities believe that, alongside Al-Din, he issued visas and nationalities to citizens from the Middle East, bolstering this dangerous network.
Threat in the U.S. Backyard
U.S. security agencies fear that Iranian agents have used these passports to settle in South America and then cross into the U.S.
The risk is heightened because Venezuelan passports allow visa-free travel to over 130 countries, making it easier for potential operatives to move.
Alarming Data
1,504 Iranians were apprehended by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) between 2021 and 2024 while attempting to illegally enter the U.S.
729 of them were released.
CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott warned that the possibility of sleeper cells within the U.S. “has never been higher.”
🛑 Denial and Background
The Venezuelan Embassy in Damascus denied the accusations, labeling them as “false.”
However, a 2006 State Department report had already warned that Venezuelan travel documents were highly vulnerable to forgery.
This isn’t just a corruption case. It’s a ticking time bomb at the border.
Massive fraud of Venezuelan passports issued to Middle Eastern citizens
Connection between Venezuela and terrorist groups like Hezbollah
How Venezuelan passports are forged for international terror networks
Threat to U.S. national security from fraudulent Venezuelan documents
Involvement of Tareck El Aissami in fraudulent passport network
Ghazi Nasr Al-Din and his role in the illegal issuance of Venezuelan documents
Venezuelan passports in the hands of Iranian, Syrian, and Lebanese citizens
Risk of sleeper cells in the U.S. from Venezuelan document fraud
Fake Venezuelan passports and their value in the international black market
Intelligence leak regarding corruption in Venezuelan passport issuance