MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Venezuela releases three Argentine political prisoners

Assembly Speaker Jorge Rodríguez made the announcements

Venezuela's interim Government of caretaker President Delcy Rodríguez released a series of foreign and domestic political prisoners on Thursday, including three Argentine nationals, it was reported in Caracas.

National Assembly Speaker Jorge Rodríguez —Delcy's brother and next in line to the presidential succession amid the ongoing transition following the US capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro— mentioned that a “significant number” of political prisoners was beginning to be set free as a “unilateral gesture of peaceful coexistence,” but denied the move was a response to pressure from “extremist sectors.”

“These releases are taking place as we speak,” said Jorge Rodríguez as he thanked Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, and the Government of Qatar for their involvement in reaching this decision.

In Buenos Aires, the Libertarian Government of President Javier Milei confirmed that Border Guard (Gendarmería Nacional) NCO Nahuel Gallo and lawyer Germán Giuliani had been handed over to Argentine envoys.

“The fact that they are beginning to release political prisoners is great news. We hope Gallo and Giuliani will be freed in the coming hours,” Senator Patricia Bullrich pointed out.

Later Thursday, Gallo's release from the El Helicoide detention center was confirmed. He was said to be “stable but weakened,” undergoing a medical check-up. On the other hand, Giuliani has already been in contact with his family in Argentina via a brief phone call.

The Venezuelan interim government is yet to publish an official list of individuals being freed, it was explained. Earlier this week, opposition leader María Corina Machado of the Unitarian Democratic Platform (PUD) warned that the release of all prisoners was a non-negotiable requirement for any “democratic transition.”

However, Clarín confirmed that among those released was also Yacoov Harar, a 72-year-old man holding dual Argentine-Israeli citizenship, who had been arrested on Oct. 10, 2024, when crossing by land from Colombia into Venezuela.

In the case of Venezuelan nationals, journalist and political activist Roland Carreño has been spotted exiting El Helicoide. Additionally, at least 12 lower-ranking officers previously accused of “conspiracy” under dictator Nicolás Maduro have been released from the Ramo Verde military prison.

Furthermore, sources in Madrid suggest that at least two Spanish-Venezuelan dual nationals were among those benefiting from Rodríguez Zapatero's mediation. No US detainees have been officially confirmed as free yet, though buses have been seen departing from the detention centers under heavy escort.