Venezuela frees 17 political prisoners

Venezuela freed 17 political prisoners, according to the human rights committee of opposition movement Vente Venezuela posted on X.



CLIPPVE, a nongovernmental organization, separately reported the release of ⁠the political prisoners, who included 10 men and seven women from the Zona 7 Prison in Caracas.



Relatives outside the prison joined a hunger strike initiated by prisoners after only 17 of more than 50 detainees were released.



CLIPPVE said the protest is a demand for the government to fulfill a pledge made last week by Jorge Rodriguez, head of Venezuela's National Assembly, to grant liberty to everyone held at the center.



Venezuela has been gradually releasing detainees following the January 3 capture of President Nicolas Maduro by the United States, though the process has drawn criticism from rights groups and families who say the pace has been slow and lacks transparency.



The releases come after Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday postponed ​a debate on an amnesty bill that is meant to grant immediate clemency to individuals jailed for participating in political protests.