Venezuela Political Prisoners Dip to 322, 31 Foreigners
VENEZUELA · HUMAN RIGHTS
Key Facts
- —The country Oil-producing Venezuela has been run by interim president Delcy Rodríguez since the United States captured Nicolás Maduro in January.
- —What happened Foro Penal, a Venezuelan rights group, counted 322 Venezuela political prisoners as of Monday 5 October 2026, in figures released on Friday 9 October.
- —The change That is two fewer than the 324 counted on 28 September, after five releases and three newly reported cases.
- —Foreigners 31 of the prisoners hold a foreign nationality, down from 32 on 28 September; Foro Penal does not say which countries.
- —The US angle The US Embassy for Venezuela said on 30 January that all known detained Americans were freed; Washington still advises Americans to reconsider travel.
- —Still open The government denies holding political prisoners, and Foro Penal says it does not know where one detainee is held.
Venezuela political prisoners now number 322, according to Foro Penal, a Venezuelan human rights group that tracks political detentions case by case. Its count, dated Monday 5 October 2026, includes 31 people with a foreign nationality.
The tally, released on Friday 9 October, is two lower than a week earlier and 22 lower than in mid-September. For US readers, it is an independent gauge of the transition since the United States captured Nicolás Maduro in January.
What Foro Penal Counted
Foro Penal is a network of Venezuelan lawyers and volunteers, led by its director-president Alfredo Romero, that defends people jailed for political reasons. It publishes and updates its count of political prisoners on its own website.
The figures on Venezuela political prisoners, updated to 5 October 2026, list 308 men and 14 women, all adults. Of the 322, 182 are civilians and 140 are members of the armed forces.
Courts have convicted 152 of them, while 170 are still held without a conviction. Foro Penal also says it does not know where one of the political prisoners is being held.
The Venezuelan news site Caraota Digital reported the count on Friday 9 October, citing a Foro Penal bulletin issued that day.
How the Count Has Changed
A week earlier, on 28 September, Foro Penal counted 324 Venezuela political prisoners. Since then it has recorded five releases, three newly reported cases and no new arrests.
On 14 September, the count stood at 344. Civilians have since fallen from 200 to 182 and military prisoners from 144 to 140.
Part of that drop came from 24 releases on Friday 25 and Saturday 26 September, which Foro Penal verified at the time. The number of women held stayed at 14.
The decline is steeper since June. On 1 June 2026, Foro Penal counted 404 political prisoners, including 179 from the military.
Its running total of political arrests since 2014 now stands at 19,253. For 2026 alone, the group records 1,104 releases and 32 new political detentions.
The Foreigners Still Held
Foro Penal lists 31 Venezuela political prisoners with a foreign nationality, one fewer than the 32 it counted on 28 September. Its public tally does not say which countries they come from.
On Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 October, Foro Penal’s website highlighted foreign cases taken up by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). The IACHR is the Washington-based rights body of the Organization of American States.
On Monday 5 October, the commission granted precautionary measures to two jailed Colombians, Jhon Jairo Cardona Reyes and Dumar Andrey Agudelo Vélez. Such measures are formal requests to a state to protect a person’s life and health.
The same day, it granted measures to an Italian-Venezuelan couple held in Venezuela, Dennys Coromoto Abache and Aquiles Antonio Di Marcantonio Di Rocco. In both cases, the commission said Venezuela had sent it no information.
The Government’s Position
Delcy Rodríguez, who served as Maduro’s vice-president, has led the government as interim president since his capture by the United States in January. Her government denies holding political prisoners and says those detained committed crimes.
Her government announced releases after Maduro’s capture, and the National Assembly, Venezuela’s parliament, approved an amnesty law in February. Many rights groups call that law exclusionary, Caraota Digital reported.
From 20 February to 5 October, Foro Penal records 188 prisoners who won full freedom or had their cases dismissed under the amnesty. Another 585 people who were free under court restrictions got the same outcome.
On Thursday 8 October, relatives of prisoners from the Alliance for the Freedom of Political Prisoners, a Venezuelan NGO, went to the Palace of Justice. Their letter to John Parody, president of the Caracas judicial circuit, asks for faster hearings.
What It Means for You
For Americans, the most direct question is whether any US citizens remain in Venezuelan cells. On Friday 30 January, the US Embassy for Venezuela said all US citizens known to be detained had been freed, Ecuador’s Primicias reported.
Washington also asked for information about any other Americans who might still be held. Foro Penal’s list of Venezuela political prisoners is not broken down by country, so it neither confirms nor rules out US nationals.
The US State Department rates Venezuela at Level 3, “Reconsider travel”, in an advisory last issued on 27 June 2026. In a 19 March update, it removed wrongful detention from its list of risk indicators.
It still warns that it may not be told of an arrest, particularly when the detainee also holds Venezuelan citizenship. The US Embassy in Caracas resumed operations in March 2026 but offers US citizens emergency services only.
For investors and companies weighing a return to Venezuela, the tally is one independent measure of the rule-of-law climate under the new authorities.
What Is Not Known
Foro Penal has not published the nationalities of the 31 foreigners among Venezuela political prisoners. It is not known whether any Americans or US residents are among them.
Nor is it clear whether the foreign detainees named by the IACHR are in that count. Foro Penal also does not know where one detainee is held.
The government rejects the very term political prisoner. It is also unclear whether courts will speed up hearings, as families ask.
More: Venezuela news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many political prisoners does Venezuela hold?
Foro Penal counted 322 Venezuela political prisoners as of 5 October 2026: 182 civilians and 140 members of the military. The government denies holding any political prisoners.
Are Americans among Venezuela’s political prisoners?
The US Embassy for Venezuela said on 30 January 2026 that all US citizens known to be detained had been freed. Foro Penal counts 31 foreign nationals among Venezuela political prisoners but does not list their countries.
What is Foro Penal?
Foro Penal is a Venezuelan network of lawyers and volunteers, led by Alfredo Romero, that defends people detained for political reasons. It keeps a case-by-case count of political prisoners.
What does the US government advise travellers to Venezuela?
The State Department advises US citizens to reconsider travel to Venezuela, its Level 3 warning. The US Embassy in Caracas offers emergency services only.
Sources: Foro Penal, balance of political prisoners to 5 October 2026, 9 October 2026; Foro Penal, La represión en cifras (figures to 5 October 2026), 5 October 2026; Foro Penal, balance of political prisoners to 28 September 2026, 29 September 2026; Foro Penal, balance of political prisoners to 14 September 2026, 18 September 2026; Foro Penal, balance of political prisoners to 1 June 2026, 3 June 2026; Foro Penal, release update 25–26 September 2026, 27 September 2026; Foro Penal, IACHR measures for two Colombians, 7 October 2026; Foro Penal, IACHR measures for an Italian-Venezuelan couple, 8 October 2026; US State Department, Venezuela Travel Advisory, 27 June 2026; Caraota Digital, 9 October 2026; Primicias, 30 January 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error