Jan 10 (Reuters) – The number of prisoners released in Venezuela has risen to 18, human rights groups said on Saturday, from nine on Friday afternoon.  

The release of hundreds of political prisoners in the South American country is a long-running demand of human rights groups, international bodies and opposition figures, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, who has several close allies imprisoned.

Both U.S. President Donald Trump and Venezuela’s top lawmaker Jorge Rodriguez, the brother of acting President Delcy Rodriguez, have said the releases are a gesture of peace. Trump added in a post on Truth Social that he had canceled a second wave of attacks on Venezuela following cooperation from the South American nation.

The releases cap a week of political turmoil in Caracas: the U.S. attack on Venezuela, the stunning capture of President Nicolas Maduro, his arraignment in a New York court on narcoterrorism charges, the swearing-in of Rodriguez and the announcement that the U.S. would refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of crude oil from Venezuela.

For years, Venezuela’s opposition and human rights groups have said the government uses detentions to stamp out dissent, a charge authorities have consistently denied. There is no official list of exactly how many prisoners will be released, nor who they are.

Local rights group Foro Penal estimates there are 811 political prisoners in the country. That figure includes more than 80 foreign detainees, including two from the United States and one with American residency.

Five Spanish citizens, including Venezuelan Spanish rights activist Rocio San Miguel, were the first confirmed releases on Thursday. They arrived in Madrid the following day.

Former Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Enrique Marquez is also among the prisoners who have been released.

(Reporting ReutersEditing by Rod Nickel)