Multiple Americans who were detained in Venezuela have been released, the Trump Administration said late on Tuesday, hailing the move by the nation's interim leader.

"We welcome the release of detained Americans in Venezuela. This is an important step in the right direction by the interim authorities," the State Department said.

It was not immediately clear how many American detainees were released.

The Associated Press news agency reported that four Americans were released as a group on Tuesday and one was quietly released on Monday, citing an unnamed source.

What prompted the release?

The move comes after US forces kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a nighttime raid and brought him to the US to face trial.

Jorge Rodriguez, the head of Venezuela's national assembly and brother of interim President Delcy Rodriguez, had said last week that a "significant number" of Venezuelan and foreign prisoners in the country would be released as a gesture to "seek peace" after Maduro's capture. 

The gesture was lauded by US President Donald Trump who said he would call off a second wave of strikes in response. The US has long made freeing its nationals overseas a priority, and even secured freedom for some in a deal with Maduro last year. 

Many of the political prisoners — Venezuelan and foreign — were jailed for taking part in protests over the 2024 election results, which saw Maduro declared the victor despite widespread allegations of vote-rigging.

Edited by: Rana Taha