WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has agreed to pay El Salvador $6 million to detain around 300 suspected members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang for one year, marking one of the first instances of the Central American nation hosting migrants from the United States. The deal, reached after discussions between El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, involves housing the migrants in El Salvador’s infamous prison system. Since 2022, Bukele’s government has detained over 84,000 individuals, sometimes without proper legal procedures, in a bid to curb gang violence in the country.
Specifics regarding the identification of the individuals as Tren de Aragua members were not disclosed in the transfer memos. Trump had repeatedly singled out this gang during his campaign, designating it as a terrorist organization. El Salvador’s foreign affairs ministry confirmed in a memo obtained by the Associated Press that the country will hold these individuals for a year while awaiting the U.S. decision on their long-term fate.
Last month, the U.S. and El Salvador inked a deal to house migrants detained in the United States, extending the possibility to include American citizens, although the U.S. cannot deport its citizens to another country. Discussions between Rubio and Bukele outlined the terms of the transfer, with each prisoner’s housing estimated to cost around $20,000 for the year. Additionally, a State Department document suggests setting aside $15 million to accommodate more gang members in El Salvador.
El Salvador also agreed to take in two individuals identified as MS-13 gang members, a group initially formed by Salvadoran migrants in the U.S. that had gained prominence in El Salvador prior to Bukele’s crackdown. Cesar Eliseo Sorto Amaya, convicted of a double homicide in El Salvador before being caught illegally entering the U.S., was among those mentioned. The other individual was charged by President Joe Biden’s administration as a high-ranking MS-13 leader.
The Tren de Aragua gang, originating in a South American prison, emerged alongside millions of Venezuelan migrants seeking improved living conditions following economic turmoil in their home country. Trump and his supporters have portrayed this gang as a significant threat posed by undocumented immigrants in the U.S., officially labeling it a “foreign terrorist organization” recently.
While several countries have reported arrests of Tren de Aragua members, the Venezuelan government insists the criminal organization has been dismantled. President Nicolás Maduro’s government has rarely accepted deported immigrants from the U.S., with only a handful being repatriated recently, some of whom spent time at Guantanamo Bay. Trump’s government has accused these individuals of belonging to the Tren de Aragua gang without substantial evidence.
No immediate response was received from Caracas regarding the U.S.-Salvadoran agreement. ___Garcia Cano reported from Caracas, Venezuela. Asso
The contribution from Denver was made by Associated Press writer Nicholas Riccardi.
