List of Venezuelans Kidnapped in El Salvador Published

US news outlet CBS has published an internal government list containing the names of Venezuelans kidnapped by the Trump administration and sent to El Salvador, sparking a legal battle in the US empire and condemnation from the Venezuelan government.

Notably, the list the US government has provided, published this Thursday, March 20, contains almost no details about the deportations themselves, and has not publicly disclosed the specifics of those sent to El Salvador.

Venezuela’s Minister of Interior, Justice, and Peace, Diosdado Cabello, also stated on Thursday that “not a single one” of the 919 migrants who have returned to Venezuela since February belongs to the criminal organization known as the Tren de Aragua, despite accusations from the US empire.

Cabello claimed that so-called “coyotes” (human traffickers) now “are operating from El Salvador, bargaining with the lives and futures of Venezuelans sent by the US to this prison under allegations of criminality, despite being kidnapped without trial.”

“I can prove, one by one, that none are from the Tren de Aragua,” he said following the arrival of a flight carrying 311 repatriated individuals—the fifth flight in the last two months—after the Venezuelan government’s meeting with Richard Grenell, Special Representative of US President Donald Trump, in Caracas.

The group’s expulsion from the US entity was carried out under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, invoked following a presidential proclamation by Trump, a wartime-only measure heavily criticized by US public opinion.

Trump justified using the archaic law by claiming the US empire had supposedly been “invaded by criminals, gang members, and the worst elements” through its southern border.

Judge James Boasberg blocked the order, and the federal government defied it, provoking Trump’s outrage. After failing to obtain the required answers from the administration about these flights, the court extended the deadline for the order to this Thursday.

On Tuesday, Trump called for the removal of Boasberg—appointed by Barack Obama (2009–2017) and now chief judge of the US District Court in Washington—labeling him a “radical leftist lunatic.” This prompted Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to rebuke Trump for attacking the judge and suggesting his dismissal.

Meanwhile, complaints and criticisms from families and human rights advocates have begun to surface not only in Venezuela but within the US empire itself.

The weekend deportations were also heavily criticized by US lawmakers of the Democratic Party and by civil rights groups, who insist the Trump administration is acting beyond its authority.

Democratic Senator Richard Durbin (Illinois) warned that the US empire was “deporting immigrants without due process, solely based on their nationality,” Prensa Latina reported.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the government would not disclose “operational details about a counterterrorism operation.”