BSS/AFP) - Venezuela said on Monday 116 political prisoners had been released since the government announced last week it would begin freeing those jailed under president Nicolas Maduro, who was seized by US forces in a raid on Caracas.

"These measures have benefited individuals deprived of liberty for acts related to disrupting the constitutional order and undermining the Nation`s stability," the Ministry of the Penitentiary Service said in a statement.

The statement put the number of those released at 116, although opposition and rights groups have reported lower figures.