Long seen as a powerful figure, Flores has also faced allegations of corruption and nepotism.
Watch LiveBritish Broadcasting CorporationHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationHealthCultureArtsTravelEarthAudioVideoLiveDocumentariesHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationWatch DocumentariesTechnologyScienceArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindHealthCultureWatch DocumentariesFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsWatch DocumentariesArts in MotionTravelWatch DocumentariesDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthWatch DocumentariesNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingAudioPodcast CategoriesRadioAudio FAQsVideoWatch DocumentariesBBC MaestroLiveLive NewsLive SportDocumentariesHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationHealthCultureArtsTravelEarthAudioVideoLiveDocumentariesWeatherNewslettersWatch LiveWho is Cilia Flores, Venezuela's first lady seized by the US? 21 hours agoShareSaveTom BennettShareSaveGetty ImagesCilia Flores, left, has been in a relationship with Maduro since the 1990s. The pair married in 2013When US forces conducted a night raid on the Venezuelan capital Caracas, they didn't just drag President Nicolás Maduro from his compound and put him on a flight to New York - they took his wife too.
Cilia Flores, 69, has long been seen as one of the most powerful figures in Venezuela, a political operator in her own right who for decades has shaped the country's fortunes.
After years leading Venezuela's National Assembly, she helped consolidate her husband's grip on power after his 2013 presidential election victory.
As First Lady, she was dubbed &quo