A number of Venezuelans in Ireland have welcomed the removal of Nicolas Maduro from power but questioned what is next for the South American country.
It comes as Venezuela's toppled leader is in a New York detention centre awaiting drug charges after President Donald Trump ordered an audacious raid to capture him, saying the US would take control of the oil-producing nation.
Liliana Fernandez has lived in Ireland since 2013 and said that the people "have tried literally everything".
Speaking on RTÉ's This Week, Ms Fernandez said: "I mean, we are eight million abroad for a reason. "The only reason our families [in Venezuela] are surviving is because we sent remittances."
Ms Fernandez said when Irish politicians condemn the international intervention or only talk about oil resources, Venezuelans like her "feel betrayed".
"For so many years, basically no one has said anything about the violation of human rights on a daily basis.
"So, it seems that politicians are concerned about the oil extraction, but no one is talking about the needs and what the local people think.
"I also feel that they are underestimating, in a way, our own capacity to deal with this situation. It's like very paternalistic.
"Most people think of the regime; Maduro, and Trump, and that this is like a battle between the two," Ms Fernandez said.
"But people forget that there is an opposition in Venezuela - it allowed this to happen."
Ms Fernadez said she is worried about the "lack of clarity" in Mr Trump's declaration yesterday to "run" Venezuela "until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition".
"We basically were so desperate for a change," she explained, "we question the process, but at the same time, we know that something had to happen.
"Now, the question is, what's actually going to happen?"
While she has questions about the transition of power, she said they are most worried about the local people.
"I mean, it cannot get worse for them. Basically, they've been in misery.
"They've been lacking access to services for so many years, not being able to buy food for years."
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Speaking on the same programme, Betzy Nina, who has lived in Ireland since 2010 but is from Venezuela, said that her reaction to the removal of Nicolas Maduro is "confusing".
"Every Venezuelan person that I talk to is happy.
"We want him out. We tried; our own people tried to do it so many times. So many people died. There's a lot of people that fought for that, and they are not with us and others had to leave the country."
Ms Nina hopes that her family in Venezuela will get clarity on what will happen next, but they feel positive that Mr Maduro is no longer in the country.
"It was rock bottom already," Ms Nina said, adding that a month's minimum wage is not enough money to buy food.
"When I was living there as an adult. I went protesting, I saw people being killed. I saw people looking for food in the bins, well-dressed, like middle class."
Ms Nina said that she wants people in Ireland to listen to Venezuelans.
"You don't really know if you haven't lived it. We lived through all this mess. It's been too long, too complicated to just say, 'they just want your oil'."
'I haven't risked going back'
Rennis Quijada left Caracas for Dublin almost two decades ago for "a better quality of life" and is living in Lucan with his wife and children.
His parents, who arrived over late last year to spend Christmas with them, have delayed their return home to the Venezuelan capital because of the current chaos.
Mr Quijada said that while there is uncertainty about what happens next, he believes " things could not get any worse than they have been" under Mr Maduro's leadership.
"15 years, 25 years of this government where there is no education, no food and people starving over there. Let's say there is 5% that have wealth, but the rest don't have the chances and we are waiting for someone to come in and support us."
He is hopeful that regardless of who ends up running the country, it will result in significant improvements for people.
His friend Luis Diaz said he feels much safer living here, and he has not visited Venezuela in the last decade. "I haven't risked going back. It is just a different country."
While nostalgic for how his native country once was, he remains hopeful for its future.
"It is the memory of going to the beaches, it's the culture, it's the food. All that is sadly lost at the moment. It doesn't exist. We don't need any more riots, we just need a new democratic state and Venezuela will be what it used to be."
He is firmly of the view that Venezuela will be "a great nation again".
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Protest outside US Embassy
Meanwhile, more than 60 people gathered outside the US Embassy in Dublin to protest against US actions in Venezuela.
The protest was organised by Anti-Imperialist Action Ireland and the Irish Anti-War Movement, as well as a number of student groups.
A passing couple from Venezuela said the protest did not represent their views and they hoped Mr Maduro's removal would mean they could eventually return home to visit family, but they declined to speak to the media.
Attending today's protest, Dr Clare O'Grady Walshe who has a doctorate in politics and international relations, said: "Sovereignty is a fundamental principle of international relations."
Whilst she said she is not a member of any political organisation, she said it was important to show up at such a protest.
"The US has just invaded a country. I'm no lover of Maduro. Most people who are looking at international relations realise this guy is a dictator. But to go into a country and actually take him out and do so in this manner, completely in breach of international law, it actually threatens all of us."
Former TCD Students' Union president and activist Jenny Maguire said she was protesting because she believes "the people of Venezuela deserve self-determination".
"I think the US, in its breaking of international law should send red flags up for everyone across the world.
"The people of Venezuela deserve self-determination, they deserve safety and I think the US is only looking after its own interest and the interests of tech billionaires and oil companies."
Shiraz Nazar, who is a student from Pakistan said he did not support US intervention in Venezuela.
"The US has already invaded and intervened in so many other countries and has messed up and screwed up a lot of countries already," he said.
He said he could not understand how some Venezuelans could support the US intervention.
"I hate Nicholas Maduro as much as the next guy but I don't support the US intervening and overthrowing him because it doesn't guarantee that there will be a new leader who will be for the Venezuelan people. It is likely they'll just put in a US puppet instead."
Additional reporting: Eleanor Burnhill
