Trump Administration Deports Gang Members to El Salvador Prison \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ The Trump administration deported 17 alleged violent gang members to El Salvador, part of its controversial policy of sending immigrants to third countries. Detainees included Venezuelans and Salvadorans linked to Tren de Aragua and MS-13. Legal and human rights groups are challenging the practice in court, citing lack of due process and transparency.
Trump’s Gang Deportation Tactics: Quick Looks
- 17 suspected MS-13 and Tren de Aragua gang members deported
- Detainees included Venezuelans and Salvadorans, flown by U.S. military
- Deportees imprisoned in El Salvador’s maximum-security facility
- Deportation part of Trump’s third-country removal strategy
- Critics cite human rights, lack of transparency, legal overreach
- Deportations rely on Alien Enemies Act of 1798
- Supreme Court petitioned to allow deportations to resume
- Federal judge temporarily blocked third-country deportations Friday
- Advocates demand due process and safety review for deportees
- Over 200 Venezuelans previously sent to El Salvador this month
Deep Look
The Trump administration is intensifying its efforts to deport suspected gang members, announcing on Monday that 17 individuals linked to the MS-13 and Tren de Aragua criminal organizations were removed from the U.S. and transferred to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador. The move is part of a broader and increasingly controversial policy of deporting non-citizens to third countries, even when those nations are not the deportees’ countries of origin.
According to a statement from the U.S. State Department, the 17 individuals—identified as “violent criminals,” including murderers and rapists—were deported Sunday night aboard a U.S. military aircraft. The department did not disclose specific details regarding the nationalities or criminal histories of those involved. However, the office of El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele confirmed that both Salvadorans and Venezuelans were among the deported.
Upon arrival in El Salvador, the deportees were transported under heavy security to the country’s notoriously harsh maximum-security prison. Footage released by the Salvadoran government showed the men in white prison uniforms, their heads shaved, shackled at the wrists and ankles, and forced to march hunched over with guards gripping their necks. One man appeared to vomit during the process. Some detainees were made to kneel on the floor, tightly restrained, as prison authorities barked commands.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised the removal operation, emphasizing that these individuals would no longer pose a threat to U.S. communities. He expressed appreciation for El Salvador’s cooperation, calling the partnership “unparalleled.”
This operation marks the latest instance of the Trump administration’s controversial third-country deportation strategy. Earlier in March, more than 200 Venezuelans were flown to El Salvador under a similar arrangement. Unlike traditional deportations, which return individuals to their country of citizenship, this strategy involves removing immigrants to other nations willing to detain them—most notably, El Salvador.
The roots of the policy can be traced to a February meeting between Rubio and President Bukele, during which Bukele offered to detain any individuals the U.S. sought to remove, regardless of their nationality. El Salvador has since become the only nation actively imprisoning deported non-citizens under this arrangement.
To facilitate these removals, Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a centuries-old wartime law that grants the president expansive powers to remove non-citizens during times of conflict. The administration claims that Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan criminal organization, poses a national security threat and is “invading” the U.S., thereby justifying the use of the law. This legal strategy enabled the deportation of dozens before a federal judge temporarily blocked further removals under the act last week.
Now, the administration is appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court to reinstate the policy and resume the deportations.
However, legal and civil rights advocates argue the administration is violating core human rights protections. Anwen Hughes, an attorney with Human Rights First—one of the organizations suing the government—voiced concerns Monday about the lack of transparency and the risks posed to deportees. “We’re still trying to determine who was deported, what crimes they were accused of, and under what legal authority they were removed,” Hughes said.
She emphasized that when immigrants are returned to their country of origin, they are more likely to understand the local context, have support networks, and enjoy some form of legal protection. In contrast, deportations to third countries leave them exposed and vulnerable, often without the rights or safety nets available to citizens.
Friday’s ruling by a federal judge reinforced those concerns, stating that individuals with final orders of removal must be granted “a meaningful opportunity” to argue that being sent to a third country would expose them to significant danger. The decision temporarily halted the administration’s third-country deportations but left the door open for future court action.
Despite this setback, the Trump administration doubled down. On Sunday, it asked the court to reconsider its ruling and submitted internal Homeland Security guidelines that outline how the agency evaluates whether deportees can be safely relocated to countries other than their own.
Human rights groups and immigration experts say this aggressive strategy marks a significant departure from longstanding U.S. immigration norms and raises alarming questions about due process and the treatment of vulnerable individuals. Critics argue that the administration is using fear of crime and gangs as a pretext for sweeping, extra-judicial deportations.
Meanwhile, the use of El Salvador—a country with a prison system known for its brutality—as a holding ground for deportees continues to spark international concern. Human rights organizations have long criticized conditions in Salvadoran prisons, and the move to place foreign nationals in that system, without guarantees of legal protection or appeal, is being closely watched by global observers.
As the legal battle intensifies and deportations continue, the Trump administration’s use of third-country deportations could redefine immigration enforcement in the U.S., setting a precedent that both supporters and critics agree is without modern precedent.
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