Trump Says He Called Off 2nd Wave of Venezuela Attacks

President Trump says the US and Venezuela are working so well together that he has called off a second wave of attacks. In a Truth Social post early Friday, the president praised cooperation on oil infrastructure and Venezuela's release of high-profile prisoners on Thursday, CNBC reports.

• "Venezuela is releasing large numbers of political prisoners as a sign of 'Seeking Peace.' This is a very important and smart gesture," Trump wrote. "The U.S.A. and Venezuela are working well together, especially as it pertains to rebuilding, in a much bigger, better, and more modern form, their oil and gas infrastructure. Because of this cooperation, I have cancelled the previously expected second Wave of Attacks, which looks like it will not be needed, however, all ships will stay in place for safety and security purposes."

• "At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House," Trump wrote.

On Thursday, Venezuela released a number of imprisoned high-profile opposition figures, activists and journalists—both citizens and foreigners—in what the government described as a gesture to "seek peace" less than a week after former President Nicolas Maduro was captured by US forces to face drug-trafficking charges, the AP reports. Trump, who has been pressuring Maduro allies now leading the country to fold to his vision for the future of the oil-rich nation, said the releases came at the request of the United States. In an interview on Fox News on Thursday night, Trump praised the government of acting President Delcy Rodríguez, telling Sean Hannity: "They've been great. ... Everything we've wanted, they've given us."

Jorge Rodríguez, brother of the acting president and head of Venezuela's National Assembly, said a "significant number" of people would be freed, but as of late Thursday night it was still not clear who or how many people would be released. The US government and Venezuela's opposition have long demanded the widespread release of imprisoned politicians, critics and members of civil society. The Venezuelan government insists it does not hold prisoners for political reasons.

• Among those released was Biagio Pilieri, an opposition leader who was part of Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado's 2024 presidential campaign, according to Foro Penal, an advocacy group for prisoners based in Venezuela's capital, Caracas. Also released was Enrique Márquez, a former electoral authority and candidate in the 2024 presidential election, the organization said.
• Five Spanish citizens—including the prominent Venezuelan-Spanish lawyer and human rights activist Rocío San Miguel—were also released in the afternoon. As the night wore on, reports trickled out of more detainees walking free. Relatives who waited for hours outside a prison in Guatire, about an hour east of Caracas, chanted, "Libertad! Libertad!" meaning "Freedom! Freedom!"
• Human rights groups and members of the opposition were encouraged by the move, though it wasn't clear yet what it represented—whether the growing pains of a government in transition or a symbolic overture to placate the Trump administration, which has allowed Maduro's loyalists to stay in power as it exerts pressure through crippling sanctions.
• Alfredo Romero, president of Foro Penal, expressed cautious hope "that this is indeed the beginning of the dismantling of a repressive system in Venezuela ... and not a mere gesture, a charade of releasing some prisoners and incarcerating others." Romero's organization said that as of Dec. 29, 2025, there were 863 people detained in Venezuela "for political reasons."