Aides to Venezuela opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said she was detained Thursday, followed moments later by official denials, in a confusing episode that capped a day of protests seeking to block President Nicolás Maduro from clinging to power.

Venezuela’s popular opposition leader, María Corina Machado, was detained during an anti-government protest in Caracas on Thursday, according to a statement on X by her party, Vente Venezuela. Ms. Machado had been living in hiding amid threats of arrest from government officials, and this was her first public appearance since August.

The brief arrest of Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado provoked swift condemnations on Thursday from political leaders across the globe, punctuated by calls for her right to free speech and personal safety.