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).
The United States will pay a very low fee for them,… pic.twitter.com/tfsi8cgpD6
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) March 16, 2025
President Donald Trump’s administration has deported alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua from the United States to El Salvador despite a court order prohibiting their expulsion from the country.
Sunday’s move is the latest in a series of steps by the Trump administration to expel foreign nationals – some accused of being in the US without documentation, others targeted over campus protests.
Here is what happened and whether it violated the court order:
What happened?
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele said on Sunday that his country had received 238 Tren de Aragua members and an additional 23 members of the Salvadoran gang MS-13 from the US.
Bukele had agreed to jail members of these groups on behalf of the US in a meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio last month.