Behind Venezuela’s Slow Prisoner Releases: A Test of Maduro’s Weakening Grip and American Resolve

As Venezuelan detainees slowly trickle out of prisons days after a dramatic U.S. military raid ousted Nicolás Maduro, the question looms: Is this token gesture of prisoner releases enough to signal change, or merely a desperate ploy by a crumbling dictatorship? Diógenes Angulo, detained for over a year simply for documenting opposition protests, embodies the plight of hundreds still languishing behind bars. His release—amidst the government’s promise to free many—has been painfully slow and suspiciously limited. With only 11 freed out of more than 800 imprisoned political opponents and activists, Caracas reveals its unwillingness to genuinely respect liberty. Is Maduro's...