Rubio Announces Deportation of 10 Additional Alleged Gang Members to El Salvador
The deportation occurred just as President Donald Trump and El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele are set to convene at the White House on Monday.
On Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that U.S. authorities had sent back 10 more suspected gang members to El Salvador over the weekend.
Rubio noted that the deported individuals were linked to the MS-13 and Tren de Aragua gangs, both categorized as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government, without going into additional specifics.
Trump and Bukele are set to meet at the White House on Monday. The President remarked on Sunday that his administration is collaborating closely with El Salvador to “eliminate terrorist organizations.”
Trump commended Bukele for his commitment to accept and accommodate undocumented immigrants deported from the U.S. in El Salvador.
Human Rights First, based in Washington, criticized the decision to host Bukele at the White House, referencing his government’s alleged human rights abuses, which include implementing a state of exception in March 2022 that suspended constitutional rights in El Salvador.
The Epoch Times reached out to the El Salvador Embassy in Washington for a comment, but did not receive a reply by the time of publication.
In his proclamation, Trump asserted that numerous Tren de Aragua gang members had “illegally entered the United States and are engaged in irregular warfare and hostile actions” against the nation.
The president indicated that available evidence suggested the criminal gangs “have invaded the United States and continue to threaten, invade, and perpetrate irregular warfare; they have weaponized drug trafficking against our citizens.”
An immigration judge had previously determined substantial evidence existed regarding his MS-13 membership, but a different judge granted a withholding of removal, preventing his deportation back to his home country due to safety concerns.
Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.