Caracas - Saba:
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has accused El Salvador’s authorities of "detaining and torturing Venezuelan migrants" who were deported from the United States under what he described as illegal circumstances.
He warned that Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele "will be held accountable sooner or later" for the treatment of the migrants.
Speaking at a farmers' conference in Caracas on Friday, Maduro said:
"Migration is not a crime. But kidnapping and torturing migrants is a crime. Bukele must know that there will eventually be justice for what he has done to these Venezuelans in detention and torture camps."
The Venezuelan president revealed that 252 Venezuelan migrants had been detained since March without trial or legal defense at El Salvador’s "CECOT" mega-prison, a high-security facility designed for individuals accused of terrorism. He confirmed that the migrants have now been released and are on their way back home.
Maduro stated that these migrants "committed no crimes in El Salvador" and were detained after being deported from the United States, stressing that initial testimonies from the released individuals described severe mistreatment, including physical torture, food deprivation, or being served spoiled food. One migrant reportedly lost a kidney due to beatings.
All returnees will undergo medical evaluations upon arrival in Venezuela, he said, noting that their release was secured through direct negotiations with U.S. officials, led by Venezuelan National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez.
Maduro also thanked former U.S. President Donald Trump for his role in facilitating the return of the migrants, saying:
"I want to thank President Donald Trump for his decision to correct this completely illegal situation."
Two planes carrying dozens of Venezuelan migrants arrived Friday at Simón Bolívar International Airport near Caracas, after their release from what Maduro called a notorious detention facility in El Salvador, where they had been held under U.S. direction.