Thousands of protesters took to the streets on Saturday in Venezuela to demand the release of political prisoners and voice their discontent with the socialist administration of embattled President Nicolás Maduro, the Associated Press reported.

Marchers across the South American country heeded a call by Leopoldo López, a Harvard-educated politician who has been jailed for 15 months in connection with his leadership of protests in the spring of 2014; Venezuela's opposition coalition, however, did not endorse the rallies, "underscoring longstanding (internal) fissures," the newswire noted.

In the streets of the Venezuelan capital Caracas, about 3,000 citizens assembled in a peaceful protest, United Press International detailed. The event lasted three hours, and similar rallies were held nationwide, including in the cities of San Cristobal in the state of Táchira and in Puerto La Cruz in the state of Anzoategui.

Lilian Tinori, Lopez's wife, called for "a day of fasting in solidarity with political prisoners," the newswire noted. 

"The regime is crumbling," Tinori said about the government headed by Maduro, which has come under intense pressure because of Venezuela's dire economic situation and sanctions imposed by the United States, which has said it considers the country's leadership a threat to its national security.

"We must prepare for the reconstruction of the country; we have taken to the streets, we will not abandon (Venezuela)," Tinori insisted. She added that her husband would continue a hunger strike until all political prisoners are released, media censorship ends and the dates of the parliamentary elections are announced.

María Fernanda Zerpa, a student wearing a tie-dye T-shirt and peace sign necklace, joined the rally to voice support for López, whom opinion polls peg as Venezuela's most popular politician, the AP recounted. But Zerpa said she does not trust the rest of the opposition coalition and might not vote in the upcoming vote.

"The elections are, like, 'whatever,' because we know the people who run them have been bought by the government," the young woman argued. And Gov. Henrique Capriles, arguably the opposition's most influential figure, "is a scaredy-cat who didn't fight Maduro for the presidency," Zerpa added.