Jorge Rodríguez, brother of acting President Delcy Rodríguez and head of the National Assembly, did not specify on Thursday who they would be releasing or how many would be released, but said the release of prisoners "is happening right now".
Venezuelan authorities have freed political prisoners before, but the releases on Thursday were the first since Maduro was deposed.
Human rights groups were encouraged by the releases, but it was not clear yet whether this might represent the early stages of a government in transition or more of a symbolic effort to please the Trump administration, which has allowed Maduro's loyalists to stay in control.
While a group of journalists, lawyers and human rights activists were freed on Thursday, the number of prisoners to be released remained unclear.
"Consider this a gesture by the Bolivarian government, which is broadly intended to seek peace," Rodríguez said in an announcement publicised over TV.
Alfredo Romero, president of Foro Penal, an advocacy group for prisoners based in Caracas, praised Thursday's release as "good news" that lifted Venezuelans' hopes that all political detainees in the country may walk free.
But he stressed that he wanted this to become "the beginning of the dismantling of the repressive system" of Maduro's government and not remain "a mere gesture, a charade of releasing some prisoners and incarcerating others".
Despite a widespread crackdown during the tumultuous 2024 election - in which the government said it detained 2000 people - Venezuela's government denies that there are "political prisoners" and accuses those detained of plotting to destabilise Maduro's government.
Romero's organisation said that as of December 29, 2025, there were 863 people detained in Venezuela "for political reasons".
The Spanish government announced on Thursday that five Spanish citizens were among those released in Venezuela and would soon return to Spain.
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares confirmed the group includes prominent Venezuelan-Spanish lawyer and human rights activist Rocío San Miguel. Speaking to Spanish broadcaster RNE, he also confirmed that Spanish citizens Andrés Martínez, José María Basoa, Ernesto Gorbe and Miguel Moreno were freed.
Basoa and Martínez were arrested in Venezuela in September 2024, accused by officials of being involved in a plot to destabilise Maduro's government as Spanish intelligence agents, allegations that Spanish authorities denied at the time.
Spain's El País newspaper reported on Thursday that Gorbe had been living in Venezuela and was arrested in 2024, accused of being in the country illegally with an expired visa.
On Wednesday, the Trump administration sought to assert its control over Venezuelan oil, seizing a pair of sanctioned tankers transporting petroleum and announcing plans to relax some sanctions so the US can oversee the sale of Venezuela's petroleum worldwide.
Both moves reflect the administration's determination to make good on its effort to control the next steps in Venezuela through its vast oil resources after US President Donald Trump pledged after the capture of Maduro that the US will "run" the country.
