CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Maria Corina Machado announced on Thursday that twenty-four Venezuelans had been released as part of the recent prisoner exchange deal with the United States.
On Wednesday, the United States revealed that President Joe Biden had granted clemency to Colombian businessman Alex Saab, an ally of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, in exchange for the release of 10 Americans, at least 20 opposition-linked Venezuelans, and the extradition of a fugitive Malaysian businessman from Venezuela.
Alex Saab, accused by U.S. prosecutors of siphoning off $350 million from Venezuela through the United States by bribing Venezuelan government officials, has denied the charge.
Machado, in a social media post, provided no further details on the released individuals in Venezuela and emphasized that the opposition still faces significant challenges in the future.
“The electoral path toward liberty is complex and faces multiple threats,” she said.
The agreement, following months of mediation by Qatar between OPEC member Venezuela and the United States, came after the White House indicated that it required progress in prisoner releases to continue with energy sanctions relief for Caracas.
The sanctions relief was announced in October in response to an accord between the Venezuelan government and the opposition, which outlined certain conditions for the 2024 elections.
Analysts and critics of Biden have suggested that Maduro will likely use the exchange to enhance his political strength in the run-up to the elections, as he celebrated Saab’s return.
Many aspects of the electoral agreement between the opposition and the government have yet to be implemented, including a provision allowing barred opposition figures to appeal their bans on holding public office.
Machado has requested the supreme court to clarify whether she is subject to a ban. Despite a publicly shared letter confirming the ban in June, Machado contends that she has never been formally informed and thus the ban cannot be considered legitimate.
The comptroller general has until Friday to respond to the court’s request for information about Machado’s ban, but the duration for the court to review the information and deliberate on its response remains uncertain.
(Reporting by Vivian Sequera; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
