The US Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, visited the Latin American country of El Salvador. She conducted inspections at a prison where Venezuelan refugees who were deported from their country are detained. The American Secretary sent a threatening message to other refugees in her country. US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem visited El Salvador’s mega prison.
Facing the prisoners, the Secretary, behind iron bars, threatened the refugees in her country.
Noem shared images showing the iron bars where the prisoners are held from her social media platform X account. In her post, Noem stated that she visited the prison and said, “President Trump and I have a clear message for illegal immigrants who commit crimes: Leave immediately! If you do not leave, we will find you, arrest you, and you may find yourself in this El Salvador prison.” Noem’s visit was noted to be aimed at strengthening the diplomatic and security cooperation between the two countries, according to El Salvador authorities.
The American Secretary examined cells with rows of loaded guns and magazines and also cells with shaved-haired prisoners in white uniforms.
Among the prisoners were hundreds of Venezuelan refugees deported by US President Donald Trump.
Earlier in the month, the Trump administration accused these refugees of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang and deported them to El Salvador.
Moreover, this operation was carried out despite the American judiciary halting Trump’s deportation order. Kristi Noem sent a threatening message to refugees in her country at the end of her visit.
She posted an image on social media platform X, saying, “If you do not leave our country, we will hunt you down, and you may eventually find yourself in the El Salvador prison.” A new cooperation protocol was also signed during the visit, based on the “Secure Agreement for Fugitive Apprehension” (SAFE) between the US and El Salvador.
This agreement aims to facilitate the faster sharing of criminals’ criminal records and data on fugitives.
Officials highlighted that the collaboration between the US and El Salvador against gangs would be strengthened. According to human rights organizations, many more innocent refugees are at risk of being imprisoned.
According to the White House, the Washington administration paid about $6 million to send Venezuelan refugees to El Salvador.
It was announced that El Salvador will continue to detain refugees deported from the United States in the massive detention facility, which is the largest prison in Latin America housing around 15,000 inmates while having a capacity for 40,000.