U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined a chorus of Trump administration leaders thanking El Salvadorian President Nayib Bukele for taking in more than 200 alleged Venezuelan gang members.
"We have sent 2 dangerous top MS-13 leaders plus 21 of its most wanted back to face justice in El Salvador," Rubio stated in an X post shared Sunday, shortly after news of the deportations was confirmed by Bukele.
"Also, as promised by @POTUS, we sent over 250 alien enemy members of Tren de Aragua which El Salvador has agreed to hold in their very good jails at a fair price that will also save our taxpayer dollars," he continued.
The Trump administration will pay $6 million for El Salvador to hold the prisoners in its Terrorism Confinement Center, the country's 40,000-inmate "mega-prison," the Epoch Times reported. Bukele deemed the payment "very low" for the U.S., but a "high one" for his own country in an X post shared Sunday.
"President @nayibbukele is not only the strongest security leader in our region, he's also a great friend of the U.S. Thank you!" Rubio added.
We have sent 2 dangerous top MS-13 leaders plus 21 of its most wanted back to face justice in El Salvador. Also, as promised by @POTUS, we sent over 250 alien enemy members of Tren de Aragua which El Salvador has agreed to hold in their very good jails at a fair price that will…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) March 16, 2025
El Salvador took in 238 alleged members of Venezuela's Tren de Aragua and 23 alleged members of MS-13, fulfilling part of a controversial deal between the country's president and the Trump administration. It marks the first time El Salvador has accepted deported "criminal" immigrants from the U.S.
Bukele confirmed the transfer in a video shared to X. In it, prisoners were seen exiting a plane with handcuffs and leg shackles, getting their heads shaven and entering prison cells.
Today, the first 238 members of the Venezuelan criminal organization, Tren de Aragua, arrived in our country. They were immediately transferred to CECOT, the Terrorism Confinement Center, for a period of one year (renewable).
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) March 16, 2025
The United States will pay a very low fee for them,… pic.twitter.com/tfsi8cgpD6
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