Accused of terrorism, conspiracy, and even treason, at least seven political and social leaders detained in Venezuela have been released in recent hours.

Following the message from the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodriguez, in which he announced the Following the release of "a significant number of people," several detainees regained their freedom. Among them were Venezuelan-Spanish lawyer Rocio San Miguel, former presidential candidate Enrique Marquez, detained in January 2025, and activist and journalist Biagio Pilieri, who spent 16 months in prison. Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares confirmed that the four Spaniards detained in El Rodeo I prison in Miranda state—Jose Maria Basoa, Andres Martinez Adasme, Miguel Moreno Dapena, and Ernesto Gorbe Cardona—in addition to Rocio San Miguel, had been released. "The five compatriots released today in Venezuela are already flying to Spain. They will soon be home with their loved ones. I have spoken with them to convey my joy at their release," he posted on X. The releases come just days after the US attack that led to the capture and the arrest of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were taken to New York.

“This day matters because it recognizes what we always knew: that injustice will not last forever and that the truth, though deeply wounded, is finally breaking through,” said Maria Corina Machado in a message sent to the families of those released.

“We will not rest until all prisoners are free and until Venezuela can one day embrace itself in full democracy and freedom. May this day bring you a little peace,” added Machado, who leads the Venezuelan opposition.

From Foro Penal, the Venezuelan human rights NGO that provides legal assistance to prisoners, they say they have “high expectations for the release of all political prisoners,” said its president, Alfredo Romero.in a statement released on their social media.

However, they are cautious that this is not “a mere gesture and a charade of releasing some people and then imprisoning others. Let's hope this is the beginning of dismantling the repressive system in Venezuela,” Romero added.

The announcement made by Jorge Rodriguez, who in addition to presiding over Parliament is the brother of Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, was received with enthusiasm by the detainees' families, even though they did not specify names or the number of prisoners who would be released.

Diego Casanova, from the non-governmental organization Committee for the Freedom of Political Prisoners, remarked to the press that the announcement was made with a veil of “opacity,” which initially generated uncertainty.

As of January 5, there were 806 political, military, and social leaders detained in Venezuela, according to Foro Penal.

Most Many of them had been arrested in the days following the 2024 presidential elections, especially after Nicolas Maduro was proclaimed the winner amid allegations of fraud.

The Maduro government is criticized for the arbitrary detention of opponents of his administration.

Jorge Rodriguez implied that the measure is not the result of negotiations with the Trump administration but rather a “unilateral gesture” to “consolidate peace and peaceful coexistence in the country.”

In recent hours, rumors circulated about the possible closure of one of Caracas' most emblematic prisons, El Helicoide, after Trump announced on Wednesday the end of what he described as “a torture chamber” in the Venezuelan capital.

Who are the people released and what is known about them?

Rocio San Miguel

“Rocio is already in “Freedom,” her lawyer confirmed to AFP.

Almost two years ago, dozens of Venezuelans took to social media to ask “Where is Rocio?” after the arrest of Rocio San Miguel, a renowned human rights activist in the country.

Two years after her arrest, which occurred on February 9, 2014, at Maiquetia Airport, while she was trying to board a flight with her daughter, according to the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela.

After being detained at El Helicoide, the headquarters of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service in Caracas, San Miguel was released this Thursday.

She is a lawyer, an expert in military affairs, and president of Control Ciudadano, a non-governmental organization dedicated to monitoring security, defense, and armed forces issues in Venezuela from a civil society perspective.

She was accused by Maduro's authorities of "terrorism," "conspiracy," and "treason" for her alleged involvement in a plot to assassinate the Venezuelan leader, now detained in the U.S.

According to the United Nations and various international organizations, her arrest was considered an "orchestrated detention" intended to silence one of the country's leading experts on military matters.

San Miguel's family members have stated that she was held incommunicado and that during her detention she was denied access to legal counsel of her choosing.

Enrique Marquez

"It's all over now," Enrique Marquez told his wife, in their first embrace immediately after his release.

Marquez, a former presidential candidate in 2024, was one of the first to be released, along with former congressman Biagio Pilieri, who was detained on August 28, 2024, and imprisoned in El Helicoide.

Both were seen in the street in a video released by the National Union of Press Workers of Venezuela, moved to tears, at the moment of their reunion with their families.

An engineer by profession and a professor at the University of Zulia, Marquez came to run for president after a long political career, which included having been the rector of the country's National Electoral Council.

In addition, he was vice president of the National Assembly and a leader of the party Un Nuevo Tiempo, a splinter group of the historic Accion Democratica. But, a few months after the presidential election, Marquez was intercepted by four armed men in civilian clothes, who took him to prison.

After the arrest, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello maintained that Marquez had promoted the proposal to hold Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia's inauguration as president at a Venezuelan embassy abroad.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights stated in November that his detention conditions were marked by “the lack of communication” with his family and “the absence of information about his detention conditions.”

Biagio Pilieri

The journalist and national coordinator of the Christian Democratic party Convergencia had been in prison for a year and four months after being incarcerated following the 2014 elections.

He was one of the first to be released, along with former presidential candidate Enrique Marquez, from El Helicoide prison.

In a video shared on social media after his release, he can Pilieri was seen emotionally embracing his family.

After being mayor of Bruzual, Pilieri served for a decade as a deputy in the National Assembly of Venezuela for the state of Yaracuy.Pilieri is also a close associate of Maria Corina Machado, who, after learning of his arrest, referred to him in these terms: “Biagio is a great friend and ally, a man who, when he gives his word, means what he says. He knew the risk he was taking and yet he accompanied the Venezuelans in Caracas today as a testament to his responsibility and dedication to this cause.” The Spanish prisoners: Along with the Venezuelan-Spanish Rocio San Miguel, four other Spanish prisoners have been released, as confirmed by the Spanish Foreign Minister, Jose Manuel Albares. They are Andres Martinez Adasme, Jose Maria Basoa, Miguel Moreno Dapena, and Ernesto Gorbe Cardona. Adasme and Basoa were arrested in September 2024 in Puerto Ayacucho, the capital of Amazonas state, and accused of being agents of the Spanish National Intelligence Center, something that Moncloa denied it. The Minister of the Interior, Diosdado Cabello, said at the time that they intended to buy weapons and commit murders and that they were part of an alleged terrorist conspiracy to kill Nicolas Maduro. According to their families, they had traveled to Venezuela for tourism. The arrest of both men occurred amid a diplomatic crisis between Spain and Venezuela after the Spanish Minister of Defense described the Chavista government as a “dictatorship.” Miguel Moreno Dapena, a sailor and journalist from the Canary Islands, was arrested in June 2025 while aboard the ship N35 with eight other crew members, searching for ships wrecked during World War II. The ship was in disputed waters between Venezuela and Guyana, amidst escalating tensions over the Essequibo territorial conflict. Ernesto Gorbe Cardona, a former manager of a telephone company, was arrested in December 2024. He was accused of having an expired visa. His name appeared on the lists of Spaniards imprisoned for political reasons or without full due process guarantees.