The arrest of Gendarme Nahuel Gallo in Venezuela: The United States says it is working to release all illegally detained foreigners.

Natalia Molano, the Spanish-language spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department , stated during an interview that her country's diplomats are "working hard to seek opportunities to secure the release of foreigners in Venezuela."

The statement came in response to a question about the illegal detention of Argentine gendarme Nahuel Gallo , who has been illegally detained in that country since December 8. The man had traveled to Venezuela to reunite with his wife and son, but was detained upon crossing the border from Colombia .

Molano emphasized that his administration's priority was the release of all detained U.S. citizens and advised against travel to Venezuela. However, he added: "For those of other nationalities who unfortunately remain detained in Venezuela, we continue to work with other partners and fellow citizens, diplomatic entities, and countries to try to secure the release of these citizens ."

"Unfortunately, there are still people of other nationalities unjustly detained in Venezuela ," the spokesperson added Tuesday.

"We continue to demand the release of any Venezuelan national who is abroad in Venezuela, but also of Venezuelan political prisoners, which is clear evidence of the political repression carried out by the Maduro dictatorship," the spokesperson also stated.

According to Molano, his country does not have an official diplomatic presence in Venezuela, and therefore operates from its embassy in Colombia. However, he clarified that they maintain diplomatic relations with other countries in the region and that their diplomats in the region continue to work to find opportunities to secure the release of detained foreigners.

The official also called for international cooperation and pressure "on the [Nicolás] Maduro dictatorship to release the detained foreign nationals ."

The release of the last US prisoners detained in Venezuela had been confirmed on July 18 by the US State Department through a statement in which they highlighted "President Trump's leadership and commitment to the American people" and affirmed that "all Americans unjustly detained in Venezuela are now free and back ."

Argentine gendarme Nahuel Gallo was arrested on December 8, 2024, in San Antonio del Táchira, while attempting to enter Venezuela from the Colombian border. Since then, the Maduro regime has never provided details about his whereabouts and has only shared photos of him as proof of life.

María Alexandra Gómez, Gallo's wife, said that the last time she heard her partner was asking for help , when he was being illegally detained. Gómez is in Argentina with her son Benjamín (2), after an operation by the Ministry of Security managed to get her out of Venezuela.