Diplomacy and intelligence are working tirelessly, across multiple platforms, to bring home Alberto Trentini, the Venetian aid worker detained in Venezuela for over four hundred days, and the other Italian prisoners. Following the release of the first two—Biagio Pilieri and Luigi Gasperin— hopes are growing that a breakthrough may be near for the 46-year-old arrested on November 15, 2024, and held in El Rodeo prison on the outskirts of Caracas. However, it won't be a short time, as evidenced by the slow releases by Venezuelan authorities. According to the NGO Foro Penal, only 12 inmates have been freed to date, with three new releases in the last few hours. Among them is reportedly the Venezuelan-Italian Antonio Gerardo Buzzetta Pacheco, better known as "Nino," arrested on September 30, 2024. For Trentini, therefore, it could still be a matter of a few more days.
At the moment, sources following the matter believe that the detainees who were released (including Pilieri) were part of the immediate agreement between the United States and the new Venezuelan authorities. For the others who were not included in this agreement, more time would be needed, partly due to the complex bureaucratic machinery. The next few hours could be crucial and will serve to advance the contacts already underway at the diplomatic and intelligence levels. This is also true at the Vatican level, given that diplomatic efforts have been moving behind the scenes since the beginning of the affair. Several sources, moreover, confirm that the Vatican and Italy are currently working together to open the right path for bringing the compatriots home. Negotiations are being held at multiple levels and with the utmost discretion, therefore. And to provide further impetus, it is not out of the question that, following Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's comments at the press conference, new assistance may be given to the new Venezuelan president, Delcy Rodriguez.
Italy, according to the reasoning being spread across the Atlantic, is ready to make every effort to support the Caribbean country's new direction, including mediating at international level and in its relations with the United States. However, the release of the prisoners also involves legal issues, given that some—Trentini and one of them—are in prison without a conviction or even specific charges. One possibility is that the Venezuelan authorities could proceed with a general amnesty. "We are waiting in respectful silence, so as not to upset the family. Like everyone else, we are waiting with confidence; we believe in it," explains actress Ottavia Piccolo, president of Articolo 21 and a resident of the Venice Lido. In addition to Trentini, hopes remain high for Turin accountant Mario Burlò, whose lawyer Maurizio Basile yesterday called it a "matter of hours."
Detained since November 2024, he was supposed to attend his trial in Italy yesterday morning via video link, where he is charged with conspiracy to commit tax crimes. Meanwhile, in Venezuela, another night of vigils and prayers was held outside detention centers. Family members and human rights activists remained outside the prisons awaiting news. The unanimous demand is "that all prisoners be released" ('que sean todos'), while the lack of information is considered yet another form of "psychological torture" to which opponents are subjected.
(Unioneonline)