Venezuelan Lawmaker Says Men Deported to El Salvador by US Were Denied Due Process

Venezuelans deported to El Salvador by the United States over the weekend were denied due process, the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly, Jorge Rodriguez, said on Monday.

Speaking at a press conference, Rodriguez stated that the deported individuals had not been accused of committing crimes in either the US or El Salvador. He added that Venezuela would take all necessary steps to bring them back home. 

The Trump administration, however, claims the deportees are members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which has been linked to kidnapping, extortion, and contract killings.

The Trump administration invoked wartime powers under the Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport over 200 alleged members of the gang, despite a court order blocking the removals.

Rodriguez also said he would urge President Nicolas Maduro’s government to issue a travel advisory warning Venezuelans against visiting the US, arguing that it is not a safe destination. He also encouraged Venezuelans who have migrated there to return home.

“We will do everything we have to do so that our compatriots will return home. We will send all the planes we have to send to any part of the world,” he said.

Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, speaking on state television, said that of the more than 600 migrants deported from the US and Mexico since February, only 16 had pending judicial cases, and none were members of Tren de Aragua.

Maduro’s government has long been accused by the political opposition of arbitrary arrests and detentions of its critics. The government frequently claims the opposition collaborates with foreign entities, such as the US Central Intelligence Agency, to plot attacks on Venezuela—allegations both the opposition and the US deny.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier this month that nine Americans are currently wrongfully detained in Venezuela. The Venezuelan government has previously accused some US citizens of involvement in terrorist plots.

Faridah Abdulkadiri

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