Venezuela petitions UN for Maduro’s release
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Nicolas Maduro was ousted as Venezuela President in a Jan 3 raid by the United States.
PHOTO: AFP
CARACAS - Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto on Feb 23 demanded the immediate release of Nicolas Maduro, who was ousted as president in a Jan 3 raid by the United States
Maduro, 63, who ruled Venezuela between March 2013 and his capture by US forces, is in custody in New York along with his wife, awaiting trial.
He has pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges and declared that he was a “prisoner of war”.
Addressing the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Mr Gil demanded “the immediate release” by the US of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.
“Jan 3, 2026, marked a turning point of extreme gravity,” Mr Gil said, adding that the “illegal military action” by US forces left more than 100 people killed.
“Despite this action, carried out in a context of profound technological and military asymmetry between our country and the nuclear power of the United States... we have chosen to open a diplomatic channel to resolve our differences with that country,” he said.
Venezuela’s top diplomat stressed that his country was “working towards a process of acknowledging past wounds, forgiveness and reconciliation”, referring to a new amnesty law passed. The country’s legislature unanimously adopted the landmark law
Ms Rodriguez’s brother, Parliament chief Jorge Rodriguez, said 1,500 people had applied for the amnesty, which covers a range of charges used to lock up dissidents during 27 years of hardline socialist rule.
Some 600 political prisoners remain behind bars throughout the country, according to Foro Penal – a non-governmental organisation dedicated to the defence of political prisoners – despite approximately 500 people being released since January.
On Feb 23, at least 30 prisoners were released from the Rodeo I penitentiary east of Caracas to scenes of rejoicing from waiting relatives.
“We are free,” shouted several prisoners with shaved heads as they exited the prison gates, ending an anguished wait by their families.
Thaw with West
Opposition figures have criticised the new legislation, which appears to exclude some offences previously used to target Maduro’s political opponents.
It also does not include military offences, such as attempted coups.
The amnesty law has helped accelerate a thaw in Venezuela’s ties with the West.
The European Union’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said on Feb 23 she would propose lifting EU sanctions on Ms Rodriguez.
Elsewhere, the UN rights office said it was in talks with Caracas to reopen its mission in Venezuela. Its staff were expelled in February 2024.
In a further sign of a break with the past, Ms Rodriguez on Feb 23 dismissed from her Cabinet the wife of a businessman accused of serving as Maduro’s frontman in corruption schemes.
Alex Saab was indicted in the US for money laundering but returned to Venezuela in 2024 as part of a prisoner swop to take up the role of industry minister.
Ms Rodriguez removed him from his position in January.
On Feb 23, she sacked his wife Camilla Fabri, who served as deputy minister for international communication. AFP
