
What We Know About Americans Freed in Venezuela Prisoner Swap
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A group of 10 Americans freed in a hostage exchange with Venezuela included a U.S. Navy sailor and a water sports fan, reports say.
When contacted for comment, the U.S. State Department told Newsweek on Saturday that for privacy reasons, the individuals would not be identified nor their cases disclosed.
However, a statement to Newsweek by the Foley Foundation, which advocates for captives held overseas, named four of the U.S. nationals who had been held for months in the South American country. Hostage Aid Worldwide named another two U.S. nationals.
The group was exchanged for more than 250 Venezuelans deported from the U.S. and flown in March to El Salvador's high-security prison.
A detained Venezuelan being assisted off the plane upon arrival at Simon Bolivar International Airport during a prisoner exchange between Venezuela and the U.S. on July 18.
A detained Venezuelan being assisted off the plane upon arrival at Simon Bolivar International Airport during a prisoner exchange between Venezuela and the U.S. on July 18.Why It Matters
The complicated deal involving three countries gives Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro a diplomatic coup, helps U.S. President Donald Trump in his goal of bringing home Americans jailed abroad and offers a political boost to Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, who proposed the exchange.
What To Know
On Friday, Venezuela released 10 jailed U.S. citizens and permanent residents in exchange for migrants deported by the United States to El Salvador in March under the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
Bukele said El Salvador had handed over all the Venezuelan nationals in its custody, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday that the Americans were being repatriated.
The Foley Foundation named four American citizens: Wilbert Castaneda, who had been in custody for 325 days; Jorge Marcelo Vargas, in prison for 304 days; Renzo Castillo, in prison for 299 days; and Lucas Hunter, in prison for 192 days.
Hostage Aid Worldwide named another two American nationals: Jonathan Pagan González, who was arrested in October, and Fabian Buglione Reyes, a Uruguayan national living in the U.S. who was arrested at a checkpoint in October.
Diane Foley, the founder and president of the Foley Foundation, said in a statement to Newsweek that she applauded "the unprecedented pace set by the Trump administration in securing the release of Americans wrongfully detained around the world."
Castaneda, a former Navy SEAL, had been detained in Venezuela while on personal travel and was later accused of leading a CIA-linked plot, CBS News reported.
In a statement, his family said he had been "used as a political pawn by the Maduro regime," the outlet reported.
Hunter was on a windsurfing and motorcycling trip through Paraguachón, Colombia, near the border with Venezuela, when Venezuelan guards coerced him into crossing and arrested him in January, his family wrote on a website created for him.
Sophie Hunter, his sister, said in a statement via the group Global Reach, "My family and I are so happy to hear that my brother, Lucas, was released by Venezuela today."
A detained Venezuelan arriving at Simon Bolivar International Airport as part of a prisoner swap between Venezuela and the United States on July 18.
A detained Venezuelan arriving at Simon Bolivar International Airport as part of a prisoner swap between Venezuela and the United States on July 18.Central to the exchange were the 250 Venezuelan migrants freed by El Salvador, which had housed them in its notorious Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT, after the Trump administration used the Alien Enemies Act to deport them.
The Trump administration accused them of belonging to the Tren de Aragua street gang in a case condemned by rights groups. The deportation resulted in a legal fight that reached the U.S. Supreme Court.
The U.S. State Department released an image of the 10 U.S. nationals and said in a statement on Saturday that the president had made it a priority to bring home Americans being held hostage or wrongfully detained.
"We also welcome the release of Venezuelan political prisoners and detainees from Venezuelan prisons," the statement continued.
It added, "The United States continues to support the restoration of democracy in Venezuela and call for the release of all remaining political prisoners."
What People Are Saying
The U.S. State Department said in a statement: "President Trump has made it a priority to bring home Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained, and the State Department will continue to work to ensure every American held unjustly abroad is released and returned home."
Diane Foley, the founder and president of the Foley Foundation, said in a statement: "We applaud the unprecedented pace set by the Trump administration in securing the release of Americans wrongfully detained around the world. Today's release of 10 U.S. nationals held captive by the Maduro regime extends that record of success."
What Happens Next
The U.S. secretary of state has said every wrongfully detained American in Venezuela is now free and "back in our homeland." However, the fate of the Venezuelans returning home is unclear.
Maduro can use the deal to reaffirm support among his base as he asserts himself as president despite evidence that he lost reelection last year and the U.S. and other nations viewing him as an illegitimate leader.
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Since the U.S. Attorney's office for D.C. also functions as the local prosecutor for the district, Pirro is leaning on her local prosecution record and emphasizing how she will help victims in the community. 'No more tolerance of hatred,' Pirro said after her swearing in at the White House. 'No more mercy for criminals. Violence will be addressed directly with the appropriate punishment. And this city again will become a shining city on a hill in an America that President Trump has promised to make great again and will make safe again.' Sen. Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California, said shortly before voting against her confirmation that this experience was not enough. Padilla noted she hasn't litigated in more than 20 years, is not admitted to the D.C. bar, and never practiced in a federal court before Trump appointed her. 'These are serious law enforcement jobs,' Padilla said of being U.S. attorney. 'They are not patronage positions to be handed out to the president's unqualified friends and allies as a thank you for their loyalty.' Trump has appointed many other Fox News hosts to his administration, most notably Pete Hegseth to run the Department of Defense and Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Some of his judicial appointments have been criticized for their perceived lack of experience. Trump has also staffed top Justice Department positions with his former personal lawyers, sparking fears among Trump critics that the lawyers could place loyalty to Trump over neutrally enforcing the law. 'She may belong on Fox News, but she does not belong in a federal law enforcement role,' Padilla said of Pirro. 'Reckless maniac' Pirro was one of the most outspoken critics of the 2020 election, and documents from the Dominion lawsuit show her skepticism started more than a month before Trump lost. When a Fox News employee asked her Sept. 27, 2020 if she would accept the results of the election, the lawsuit says she responded, 'I will accept the results, but I reserve my right to challenge the massive fraud I am justifiably anticipating.' The Dominion suit was settled just before opening arguments in the trial, with Fox News agreeing to pay the company $787.5 million. A Fox News spokeswoman said in a statement that the network acknowledged the court's rulings that some Dominion statements were false, and that the settlement reflected the network's commitment to high journalistic standards. By Nov. 7, 2020, the Saturday after the presidential election, executives were 'worried about her discussion conspiracy of theories' and canceled her show for that day. A few days later, a Fox producer emailed Pirro saying she would need to include statements from Dominion on her show, and then forwarded it to another person calling her a 'reckless maniac.' Pirro cited a Hugo Chavez conspiracy theory On Nov. 14, 2020, the day of her next scheduled show, the lawsuit says a Fox News producer received information from the network's internal research department debunking conspiracy theories about the Dominion machines. The lawsuit also says Pirro 'flashed Dominion's general denial on air for fifteen seconds.' That night, she hosted Sidney Powell, another Trump-affiliated lawyer who aggressively challenged the legitimacy of the 2020 election results. Before introducing Powell to discuss 'what she has unearthed in the creation of Dominion," Pirro said: 'The Dominion software system has been tagged as one allegedly capable of flipping votes.'' Pirro discussed with Powell how she might 'get to the bottom of exactly what Dominion is, who started Dominion, how it can be manipulated if it is manipulated at all.' Powell suggested Dominion machines were originally designed to alter votes for Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez, and that military intelligence officials should investigate the issue. Pirro agreed about the investigation. 'Yes, and it — hopefully, the Department of Justice, but — but who knows anymore,' Pirro replied. 'Sidney Powell, good luck on your mission.' On Nov. 21, 2020, during a segment she would refer to as her opening statement, Pirro described the case that Trump's lawyers were laying out: 'An organized criminal enterprise, a conspiracy by Democrats, especially in cities controlled and corrupted by Democrats,' and 'a company called Dominion which they say started in Venezuela with Cuban money and with the assistance of Smartmatic software' in which 'a back door is capable of flipping votes.' Democrats objected to her nomination The Senate Judiciary Committee did not hold a confirmation hearing on Pirro's nomination, but the committee's Republicans voted to advance her nomination on July 17. Democrats spent a few minutes before the vote criticizing Pirro. Sen Maizie Hirono, a Democrat from Hawaii said: 'Like all of president Trump's nominees, she has demonstrated unwavering loyalty to him, and if confirmed, we can expect that she will misuse the U.S. attorney's office to go after President Trump's political enemies.' Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, said when he met with Pirro personally she refused to answer whether it was appropriate to terminate prosecutor in the U.S. attorney's office for their work on the Jan. 6 prosecutions. Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa who chairs the committee, entered a letter of recommendation into the record from the National Fraternal Order of Police that he quoted as saying Pirro is 'widely praised in her work prosecuting domestic abusers, sexual abusers, stalkers, and rapists.'