WASHINGTON (AP) — Multiple Americans who were detained in Venezuela have been released, the Trump administration said Tuesday.
“We welcome the release of detained Americans in Venezuela,” the State Department said.
“This is an important step in the right direction by the interim authorities.” It comes after the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a stunning nighttime raid earlier this month.
The head of Venezuela’s national assembly,
Jorge Rodríguez, said last week that a “significant number” of Venezuelan and foreigners imprisoned in the country would be released as a gesture to “seek peace” following the military operation that deposed Maduro.
As of Tuesday evening, the Venezuela human rights group Foro Penal had confirmed 56 prisoners it said were detained for political reasons had been freed. The group criticized the lack of government transparency over the releases. Venezuela’s government negated the organization’s count, and reported a far higher figure of 400 Tuesday afternoon.
But the government did not provide evidence of the releases or a time range in which they were carried out, nor did it identify those freed, making it impossible to determine whether those freed were behind bars for political or other reasons.
In July, Venezuela released 10 jailed U.S. citizens and permanent residents in exchange for getting home scores of migrants deported by the United States to El Salvador under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
