Venezuela has released a “large number” of high-profile political prisoners, including several foreigners, in an apparent concession to the United States less than a week after its forces abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.The releases on Thursday were the first since Maduro’s former deputy Delcy Rodriguez took office as interim leader, with the backing of US President Donald Trump, who says he is content to let her govern as long as she gives Washington access to the country’s oil.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listFormer Venezuelan opposition candidate Enrique Marquez – who opposed Maduro in the contested 2024 presidential election – was among those released on Thursday.“It’s all over now,” Marquez said in a video filmed by a local journalist of him and his wife, accompanied by another released opposition member, Biagio Pilieri.Delcy Rodriguez’s brother, parliament speaker Jorge Rodriguez, said “a large number of Venezuelan and foreign nationals” were being immediately freed for the sake of “peaceful coexistence”.He did not say which prisoners would be released, nor how many or from where.Venezuelan rights NGO Foro Penal estimates more than 800 political prisoners are in the country’s jails.Venezuela’s opposition leader Maria Corina Machado hailed the releases, saying in an audio message on social media: “Injustice will not last forever and … truth, although it be wounded, ends up finding its way.”Renowned Spanish-Venezuelan activist Rocio San Miguel was among five Spanish citizens freed, according to Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Advertisement San Miguel has been imprisoned since February 2024 over a purported plot to assassinate Maduro, which she denied.The White House credited Trump with securing the prisoners’ freedom.“This is one example o …
