A group of 238 alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang, deported under Donald Trump’s orders, has arrived in El Salvador. These individuals were taken to a maximum-security facility as part of a new immigration agreement allowing the US to send criminals to Central America. The Tren de Aragua is recognized as a significant transnational criminal organization, engaged in various illegal activities.
The first group of accused members of the Tren de Aragua gang, recently banned by former President Donald Trump, has arrived in El Salvador. US President Trump shared and praised videos depicting these men, handcuffed and shackled, being escorted by heavily armed police into the notorious mega-jail of El Salvador.
El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, reported that 238 alleged members of this Venezuelan criminal gang were deported. He confirmed on X that these individuals represent the first wave of deportees, greeted coldly upon their arrival. They were immediately transferred to the country’s Terrorism Confinement Center, which has a capacity for 40,000 inmates.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, criticized current President Joe Biden for his handling of immigration, alleging that Biden permitted the entry of members of Tren de Aragua into the United States. He emphasized his gratitude towards President Bukele for addressing this issue and called for recognition of the administrations’ failures that allowed the situation to escalate.
In addition, Trump had previously deported 23 members of the MS-13 gang as part of a broader response to gang-related crime. These mass deportations occurred shortly after a US District Judge temporarily blocked the use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, which would have facilitated the removal of alleged gangsters without court hearings. However, the White House asserted that the judge’s ruling did not affect this particular deportation operation.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio lauded the agreement made with Bukele, which allows the US to send its most dangerous criminals to El Salvador’s mega-jails. This unprecedented immigration agreement permits the deportation of individuals from any nationality to serve their sentences in a Central American facility, further tightening the collaboration between the two nations in managing criminal activity.
The Tren de Aragua gang is a transnational criminal organization, designated by the US as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, believed to have over 5,000 members. Its origins date back to a prison gang in Venezuela, founded by Hector Guerrero Flores, who transformed it into a global criminal network. The gang is known for profiting millions from its illicit activities, including drug trafficking and gold mining. Following a raid by Venezuelan authorities, which aimed to regain control of the prison where he was incarcerated, Flores has been on the run since 2023.
The recent deportation of members of the Tren de Aragua gang marks a significant development in the apprehension of transnational criminal organizations. The agreement between the US and El Salvador to exchange dangerous criminals signals a strategic partnership in combating gang-related violence. This initiative, underscored by a series of political narratives, highlights the ongoing challenges posed by global criminal networks and the measures taken to address them.
Original Source: www.thesun.co.uk
