in what officials described as a goodwill gesture. Spain's foreign ministry said five of its nationals had been released. Among them is prominent Venezuelan-Spanish rights activist, Rocío San Miguel, her family confirmed to US media. The move comes after the US seized Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro in a lightning raid on the capital, Caracas, on Saturday, to face drug trafficking charges in New York. The release of political prisoners in Venezuela has been a long-held US demand, especially during moments of heightened repression around elections or protests.

Jorge Rodríguez, the head of Venezuela's National Assembly and the brother of its interim president Delcy Rodríguez, announced on state television that "a significant number" would be released immediately, without specifying the number or identity of prisoners being freed. Hundreds of political prisoners are detained in Venezuelan prisons, with only a handful thought to have been released so far. Jorge Rodríguez said the interim government was releasing them in the interest of "national unity and peaceful coexistence".

Rocío San Miguel, a vocal critic of Maduro and a defence expert, was the first prisoner confirmed to be freed. Her family told the New York Times that she was taken to the Spanish embassy in Caracas. (BBC)