The number of prisoners freed in Venezuela has increased to 18, human rights organisations reported on Saturday, up from nine on Friday afternoon.
The release of political detainees in the South American nation has long been demanded by rights groups, international bodies and opposition figures, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado, who has several close allies still behind bars.
Both U.S. President Donald Trump and Venezuela’s leading lawmaker Jorge Rodríguez, brother of acting president Delcy Rodríguez, have described the releases as a gesture of peace; Trump added in a post on Truth Social that he had called off a second wave of attacks on Venezuela after securing cooperation from Caracas.
The announcements cap a week of intense political upheaval in Caracas, marked by the U.S. strike on Venezuela, the dramatic capture and arraignment of President Nicolás Maduro on narcoterrorism charges in New York, Rodríguez’s swearing‑in as acting president, and the U.S. plan to refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan crude.
Opposition and human rights groups have long accused the Venezuelan government of using detentions to suppress dissent — allegations authorities deny. There is no official list of those to be released, nor confirmation of how many will ultimately be freed.
Local rights group Foro Penal estimates around 811 political prisoners remain in the country, including more than 80 foreigners, among them two U.S. citizens and one U.S. resident.
Five Spanish nationals, including Venezuelan‑Spanish rights activist Rocío San Miguel, were the first confirmed freed on Thursday and arrived in Madrid the next day. Former opposition presidential candidate Enrique Marquez is also among those who have been released.
Leaders of countries from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have agreed to hold coordinated population censuses around 2030. They took t...
Saudi Arabia has restored its vital East-West oil pipeline to near-full capacity, but escalating Houthi attacks on energy facilities, airports and ...
Here's your AnewZ Daily Brief for 9 October 2026 with five key developments from the CIS summit in Turkmenistan....
Leaders of countries from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have agreed to hold coordinated population censuses around 2030. They took the decision at the CIS Council of Heads of State meeting in Awaza, Turkmenistan on Friday, media reported.
The Saudi-led coalition says it has carried out a series of military operations against Houthi targets in Yemen after attacks on two Saudi airports left three people dead and dozens injured.
Azerbaijan and the five Central Asian states have signed two key documents at the 8th Consultative Meeting of Heads of State in Turkmenbashi, formalising a broader framework for regional cooperation in transport, trade, energy, digitalisation and security.
It started with classrooms. Too many students, not enough teachers, deteriorating buildings and growing anxiety over what comes after high school. But within weeks, a movement that began outside French lycées had spread across the country.
Britain and Israel have reached a temporary compromise over the future of the British Consulate General in East Jerusalem, easing a diplomatic dispute that had threatened to further strain relations between the two countries.
South African judge Navanethem “Navi” Pillay won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday “for her efforts to promote peace and international law,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said.
U.S. federal immigration agents shot and wounded a man in a car with a five-year-old boy inside in New York City’s Bronx neighbourhood on Thursday, city officials, police and witnesses say.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sharply criticised the United States following a series of Russian attacks that killed more than 70 people over two days, arguing that Washington is not doing enough to help Kyiv counter Moscow's continued assault.
Britain and Israel have reached a temporary compromise over the future of the British Consulate General in East Jerusalem, easing a diplomatic dispute that had threatened to further strain relations between the two countries.
The United States has unveiled a new round of sanctions targeting Iran's energy exports, taking aim at vessels, companies and individuals accused of helping move Iranian crude oil, petroleum products and petrochemicals to overseas markets.
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