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US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is visiting El Salvador’s controversial Terrorism Confinement Centre (Cecot) prison. The US recently deported 238 Venezuelans there, claiming they were part of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
The Trump Administration used the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to send them to El Salvador without any kind of idividual due process. The US administration has refused to publicly release their names or the offences they are accused of, or how they are identified as gang members, though it is believed that a lot of the evidence is in the form of (alleged) gang tattoos worn by the men who were deported.
However, some of their families insist they are not criminals. In one case the man deported as a gangster is said to be a former professional soccer player who had sought asylum in the US.
Jerce Reyes Barrios is a 36-year-old former professional soccer player from Venezuela. He fled his country in 2024 after allegedly being detained and tortured for protesting against the Maduro regime. Seeking asylum, Reyes Barrios entered the United States legally through the CBP One application and was awaiting a court hearing scheduled for April 2025.
U.S. immigration officials accused Reyes Barrios of being a member of the Tren de Aragua gang, primarily based on a tattoo resembling the Real Madrid logo and a hand gesture in a social media post, which they interpreted as gang-related.
His attorney, Linette Tobin, contended that the tattoo is a tribute to his favorite soccer team, Real Madrid, and that the hand gesture signifies “I love you” in sign language.
Despite these explanations and his lack of a criminal record, Reyes Barrios was deported to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a statute invoked by the Trump administration to expedite the removal of individuals deemed threats to national security.
A US federal judge, James Boasberg, has now blocked further deportations under this law, and a Washington Court of Appeals judge has criticized the move, saying even “Nazis got better treatment.”
Noem’s visit supports El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, who built the Cecot prison to combat gang violence. Bukele has offered to hold US deportees there, a move praised by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio but condemned by human rights activists.
Lawyers in El Salvador, working with the Venezuelan government, are now trying to free the deported men. Meanwhile,
Trump continues his crackdown on illegal immigration. In January, he declared Tren de Aragua and MS-13 as terrorist groups. Being accused or even convicted of terrorism does not eliminate a person’s legal protections. However, governments may impose stricter measures that push the boundaries of due process, sometimes leading to controversial or legally disputed actions.
Sources: BBC, US Department of State.
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