Venezuelan Political Prisoner Dies in Police Custody

Jose Manuel Garcia, a former municipal councilman, died while in detention at a Venezuelan police station, marking another death in the country's crackdown on political opposition. Garcia's death adds to a troubling pattern of fatalities among political prisoners that has been documented by Foro Penal, a human rights organization that monitors political persecution in Venezuela. According to the organization, approximately 20 people have died in custody since 2014, highlighting the dangerous conditions facing those detained for political reasons under President Nicolas Maduro's authoritarian government.