UK – The Guardian, April 21, 2025
Venezuela’s chief prosecutor hits back at ‘cynical’ offer by ‘neofascist’ Salvadoran leader and demands rights for Venezuelan prisoners
El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, has proposed sending 252 Venezuelans deported from the US and imprisoned in his country to Venezuela, in exchange for “political prisoners” held by Venezuela.
On Sunday, Bukele asked that the Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, hand over 252 “of the political prisoners you are holding” under his proposed deal.
The Salvadoran leader did not say whether the prisoners would be incarcerated again upon an exchange.
Venezuela’s chief prosecutor, Tarek William Saab, said Bukele’s proposal was cynical and accused El Salvador of unlawfully detaining 252 Venezuelans. Saab demanded to know what crimes the detainees were accused of, whether they had appeared before a judge, had access to legal counsel, or were allowed to contact family members. In a statement, Saab’s office called Bukele a “neofascist” and added: “The treatment received by Venezuelans in the United States and El Salvador constitutes a serious violation of international human rights law and constitutes a crime against humanity.”
Among those Bukele proposed for release from Venezuela were journalist Roland Carreno, human rights lawyer Rocio San Miguel, and Corina Parisca de Machado, mother of the Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
