Death scare prompts demand to visit jailed Venezuelan leader

May 4 (UPI) -- After a death scare, the family, friends and supporters of Leopoldo López are demanding to see the imprisoned Venezuelan opposition leader who has been denied visits for more than a month.

Lilian Tintori, Lopez's wife, traveled to the Ramo Verde military prison after widespread social media reports indicated López was taken to the hospital in a serious condition -- possibly without displaying any vital signs. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and prominent Venezuelan journalist Leopoldo Castillo were among those who shared reports about Lopez's well-being on social media.

Hours later, Diosdado Cabello, a key ally of President Nicolas Maduro who served as the leader of the National Assembly from 2012 until 2016, released a "proof of life" video of López during a televised event.

"They tell me this is a proof of life message for my family. Today is the third of May, it's nine o'clock at night. A message for Lilian: I don't understand the reason why I'm being asked for proof of life at this moment," López said in the video. "I send a message to my family and my children that I'm well."

Cabello, who the U.S. government has previously investigated for possible involvement in drug trafficking and money laundering, linked to the video on his Twitter account, saying: "They wanted proof of life? Here is the proof that Leopoldo Lopez is alive and kicking."

Tintori has remained at the Ramo Verde prison since Wednesday night, demanding to see her husband, who has been isolated fore more than a month.

"Leopoldo has been held without communication for a month. We demand to see him today! It is not a favor, it is our right. It is the right of his children to know how he is," Tintori said in a statement on Thursday. "Their inhuman strategies cannot hide the truth: This is a cruel dictatorship that represses, murders and torture.

Others are also calling for Maduro's government to grant López visits.

"I demand to visit Leopoldo López based on the commitments that Venezuela has with the Inter-American System of Human Rights," Organization of American States Secretary General Luis Almagro said in a statement.

Amnesty International on Wednesday also expressed concern about López's "situation of solitary confinement and isolation."

"Amnesty International believes that Mr. López is a prisoner of conscience because he has been convicted through a clearly unfair process that has not complied with international, constitutional and legal guarantees in Venezuela for the simple fact of being a leader of an opposition party," Amnesty International Americas Director Erika Guevara-Rosas wrote in an open letter. "Our organization believes that Mr. López should be released immediately and unconditionally."