Latest news with #1798AlienEnemiesAct
Global News
29 minutes ago
- Politics
- Global News
Venezuelans deported to El Salvador describe ‘horror movie' mega-prison
Venezuelan migrants who were deported from the U.S. to a notorious mega-prison in El Salvador without due process are describing the treatment they received as like a 'horror movie' and 'hell.' More than 250 Venezuelan nationals were released to their home country from CECOT, whose name translates roughly to the Terrorism Confinement Centre, last Friday in a prisoner exchange deal after they were removed from the U.S. under the Alien Enemies Act. During their four-month stay, they say they were denied adequate medical care, beaten by guards, fed rotten food and shot with rubber pellets. One of the detainees, 32-year-old makeup artist Andry Hernandez Romero, called his stay at CECOT 'an encounter with torture and death.' 'Many of our fellows have wounds from the nightsticks; they have fractured ribs, fractured fingers and toes, marks from the handcuffs, others have marks on their chests, on their face … from the projectiles,' he told journalists at his home in Capacho, near the Colombian border. Story continues below advertisement 1:12 'I thought they would kill us': Venezuelan migrant details alleged abuse in El Salvador prison U.S. President Donald Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport the men, whom his government accuses of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang, without normal immigration procedures. The deportations sparked a legal battle led by civil rights groups. Families and lawyers of many of the men have denied they have gang ties. Romero, detained at the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden administration, had an active asylum case when he was deported to CECOT. His case was widely covered in the media. Romero, a gay man, fled Venezuela last summer and sought asylum in the U.S. He used a U.S. Customs and Border Protection phone app to arrange an appointment at a U.S. border crossing in San Diego. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy That's where he was asked about his tattoos. U.S. immigration authorities use a series of 'gang identifiers' to help them spot gang members. Story continues below advertisement 3:55 'Give us back our children': Venezuelan families demand release of detained migrants in El Salvador Romero, who is in his early 20s and insists he has no ties with the gang, has a crown tattooed on each wrist. One is next to the word 'Mom,' the other next to 'Dad.' The crowns, according to his lawyer, also pay homage to his hometown's Christmastime 'Three Kings' festival, and to his work in beauty pageants, where crowns are common. View image in full screen Andry Hernandez Romero, a Venezuelan migrant deported months ago to El Salvador by the United States under an immigration crackdown, shows tattoos on his wrists that read 'mom' and 'dad' after arriving home in Capacho Nuevo, Venezuela, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. Ariana Cubillos / The Associated Press Romero was taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody and transferred to a California detention centre. He was eventually flown to CECOT amid Trump's immigration crackdown. Story continues below advertisement He isn't the only detainee speaking out about alleged abuse at CECOT. '(The guards) tortured us physically and psychologically,' José Mora, one of the released, told CNN. 'It was a nightmare. I heard many brothers asking for help, shouting, 'Mom, help!'' another detainee, Rafael Martínez, told the outlet. 'They beat us, they kicked us. I even have quite a few bruises on my stomach,' Carlos Uzcátegui, another detainee, told The Associated Press. View image in full screen Carlos Uzcátegui, one of the Venezuelan migrants deported months ago to El Salvador by the United States under an immigration crackdown, is embraced by his mother, Lisa Uzcátegui, upon arriving home in Lobatera, Venezuela, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. Ariana Cubillos / The Associated Press Neiyerver Adrián Leon Rengel, 27, told the AP that CECOT guards hit him with fists and batons and, at one point, brutally beat him after taking him into an area of the prison that didn't have cameras. Immigration agents took Rengel into custody on March 13 in the parking lot of his apartment building in Irving, Texas, claiming his tattoos reflected an affiliation with Tren de Aragua. He had entered the U.S. in 2023, was working as a barber and was scheduled to appear before an immigration judge in 2028. Story continues below advertisement Now, Rengel is taking steps toward suing the U.S. government, filing a US$1.3-million claim against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, seeking compensation for emotional and psychological injuries. In the claim, he says that, along with abuse, he was denied contact with a lawyer or his family during his time at CECOT. 'Federal officials lied to Rengel, telling him he was being sent to his country of origin, Venezuela,' the claim states, according to ABC News. 'Instead, for more than four months, Rengel languished in El Salvador – which is not his country of origin and a place where he has no ties – where he suffered physical, verbal, and psychological abuse.' In an email to the AP, Homeland Security called Rengel's claims a 'sob story' and said he had entered the country illegally. 'President Trump and (DHS) Secretary (Kristi) Noem will not allow foreign terrorist enemies to operate in our country and endanger Americans,' the email said. 'We hear far too much about gang members and criminals' false sob stories and not enough about their victims.' Venezuela's attorney general told Reuters his office will investigate El Salvador President Nayib Bukele over the alleged abuses. Bukele's office has not responded to Reuters' requests for comment on the alleged torture. The Trump administration's use of the Alien Enemies Act to expedite deportations has been the subject of contention and multiple legal challenges. Story continues below advertisement In March, U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg ordered the deportation flights to return to the U.S. He's since said that the U.S. government may be in contempt of court for failing to do so. In June, he further ruled that the deported Venezuelan men must be given the opportunity to challenge their removals in U.S. courts. His decision indicated that there was 'significant evidence' that many of the men were languishing 'in a foreign prison on flimsy, even frivolous, accusations.' — With files from The Associated Press and Reuters
The Hill
15 hours ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Kagan: Judicial orders ‘need to be respected'
Liberal Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan said Thursday that threats against judges should stop and emphasized that judicial orders 'need to be respected.' 'That's just not the way our system works, not the way rule of law in this country works. That's true for the Supreme Court, and it's also true for every district court. Unless and until an appellate court or the Supreme Court says otherwise, judicial orders are judicial orders and need to be respected,' Kagan said at a judicial conference in Monterey, Calif., according to multiple outlets. Kagan, one of the three liberal jurists on the nation's highest court, advised judges not to be 'aggravated or maddened' by the criticism they face over their rulings. 'The response to perceived lawlessness of any kind is law, and the way an independent judiciary should counter assaults on an independent judiciary is to act in the sorts of ways that judges are required to act,' the associate Supreme Court justice said. President Trump, administration officials and their allies have slammed judges as unfair and at times 'radical' when courts would not rule in their favor, particularly on the topic of immigration. Trump argued in May that the judge who ruled to pause the deportation of Venezuelan migrants under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act should be 'IMPEACHED!!!' Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, in a rare statement, rebuked the president. 'For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,' Roberts said. 'The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose,' Roberts added. The U.S. Marshals Service has warned some federal judges earlier this year about an increase in threats against them. 'Judges are fair game for all kinds of criticism, strong criticism, pointed criticism, but vilifying judges in that way is a step beyond and ought to be understood as such,' Kagan said on Thursday.
Los Angeles Times
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
‘Hell on earth.' A Venezuelan deportee describes abuse in El Salvador prison
CARACAS, Venezeula — When Jerce Reyes Barrios and other Venezuelan deportees entered a maximum security prison in El Salvador this spring, he said guards greeted them with taunts. 'Welcome to El Salvador, you sons of bitches,' Reyes Barrios said the guards told them. 'You've arrived at the Terrorist Confinement Center. Hell on earth.' What followed, Reyes Barrios said, were the darkest months of his life. Reyes Barrios said he was regularly beaten on his neck, ribs and head. He and other prisoners were given little food and forced to drink contaminated water. They slept on metal beds with no mattresses in overcrowded cells, listening to the screams of other inmates. 'There was blood, vomit and people passed out on the floor, he said. Reyes Barrios, 36, was one of more than 250 Venezuelans sent to El Salvador from the United States in March after President Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang without normal immigration procedures. Many of the men, including Reyes Barrios, insist that they have no ties to the gang and were denied due process. After enduring months in detention in El Salvador, they were sent home last week as part of a prisoner exchange deal that included Venezuela's release of several detained Americans. Venezuela's attorney general said interviews with the men revealed 'systemic torture' inside the Salvadoran prison, including daily beatings, rancid food and sexual abuse. One of the former detainees, Neiyerver Adrián León Rengel, filed a claim Thursday with the Homeland Security Department, accusing the U.S. of removing him without due process and asking for $1.3 million in damages. Reyes Barrios spoke to The Times over video Thursday after returning to his hometown of Machiques, a city of 140,000 not far from the Colombian border. He was overjoyed to be reunited with his mother, his wife and his children. But he said he was haunted by his experience in prison. A onetime professional soccer player, Reyes Barrios left Venezuela last year amid political unrest and in search of economic opportunity. He entered the U.S. on Sept. 1 at the Otay Mesa border crossing in California under the asylum program known as CBP One. He was immediately detained, accused of being a gangster and placed in custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A court statement earlier this year from his attorney, Linette Tobin, said authorities tied Reyes Barrios to Tren de Aragua based solely on an arm tattoo and a social media post in which he made a hand gesture that U.S. authorities interpreted as a gang sign. The tattoo — a crown sitting atop a soccer ball, with a rosary and the word 'Díos' or 'God' — is actually an homage to his favorite team, Real Madrid, Tobin wrote. She said the hand gesture is sign language for 'I Love You.' While in custody in California, Reyes Barrios applied for political asylum and other relief. A hearing had been set for April 17, but on March 15, he was deported to El Salvador 'with no notice to counsel or family,' Tobin wrote. Reyes Barrios 'has never been arrested or charged with a crime,' Tobin added. 'He has a steady employment record as a soccer player as well as a soccer coach for children and youth.' The surprise deportation of Reyes Barrios and other Venezuelans to El Salvador drew outcry from human rights advocates and spurred a legal battle with the Trump administration. Reyes Barrios was not aware of the controversy over deportations as he was ushered in handcuffs from the airport in San Salvador to the country's infamous Terrorism Confinement Center, also known as CECOT. There, Reyes Barrios said he and other inmates were forced to walk on their knees as their heads were shaved and they were repeatedly beaten. He said he was put in a cell with 21 other men — all Venezuelans. Guards meted out measly portions of beans and tortillas and told the inmates they 'would never eat chicken or meat again.' El Salvador's president, Nayib Bukele, has detained tens of thousands of his compatriots in CECOT and other prisons in recent years, part of a gang crackdown that human rights advocates say has ensnared thousands of innocent people. Bukele garnered worldwide attention and praise from U.S. Republicans after he published dramatic photos and videos showing hundreds of prisoners crammed together in humiliating positions, wearing nothing but underwear and shackles. During a meeting with Bukele at the Oval Office this year, Trump said he was interested in sending 'homegrowns' — i.e. American prisoners — to El Salvador's jails. A spokeswoman for Bukele did not respond to requests for comment Thursday. Reyes Barrios said guards told him and the other detained Venezuelans that they would spend the rest of their lives in the prison. Reyes Barrios said he started praying at night: 'God, protect my mother and my children. I entrust my soul to you because I think I'm going to die.' Then, several days ago, he and the other prisoners were awakened by yelling in the early morning hours. Guards told them they had 20 minutes to take showers and prepare to leave. 'At that moment, we all shouted with joy,' Reyes Barrios said. 'I think that was my only happy day at CECOT.' After arriving in Venezuela, Reyes Barrios and the other returnees spent days in government custody, undergoing medical checks and interviews with officials. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has seized on the treatment of prisoners, airing videos on state television in which some deportees describe suffering abuses including rape, beatings and being shot at with pellet guns. Venezuelan authorities say they are investigating Bukele over the alleged abuse. Maduro, a leftist authoritarian who has ruled Venezuela since 2013, has maintained his grip on power by jailing — and sometimes torturing — opponents. Many of the 7.7 million Venezuelans who have fled the country in recent years have cited political repression as one reason for leaving. In Tobin's court statement, she said Reyes Barrios participated in two demonstrations against Maduro in early 2024. After the second, Reyes Barrios was detained by authorities along with other protesters and tortured, she wrote. Reyes Barrios said he did not wish to discuss Venezuelan politics. He said he was just grateful to be back with his family. 'My mother is very happy, ' he said. He was greeted in his hometown by some of the young soccer players he once coached. They wore their uniforms and held balloons. Reyes Barrios juggled a ball a bit, gave the kids hugs and high fives, and smiled. Linthicum reported from Mexico City and Mogollón, a special correspondent, from Caracas. Times staff writer Patrick J. McDonnell contributed from Mexico City.
The Star
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Venezuelan makeup artist returns home, describes torture during El Salvador detention
Andry Hernandez, who was held for months in an El Salvador prison after the U.S. alleged he was a member of the Tren de Aragua gang, talks with friends at his home following his release, in Tachira, Venezuela July 23, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Eduardo Ramirez CAPACHO, Venezuela (Reuters) -A makeup artist who became the face of more than 250 Venezuelan migrants deported by the U.S. to El Salvador's most notorious prison arrived home to his family on Wednesday after what he described as "an encounter with torture and death." Andry Hernandez, 32, and the other detainees returned to Venezuela on Friday as part of a prisoner exchange, after spending four months in El Salvador's CECOT prison, where they and the Venezuelan government allege they were beaten, shot with rubber projectiles, held in dark cells, and served rotten food. "Many of our fellows have wounds from the nightsticks; they have fractured ribs, fractured fingers and toes, marks from the handcuffs, others have marks on their chests, on their face ... from the projectiles," Hernandez told journalists at his home in Capacho, near the Colombian border. U.S. President Donald Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport the men, who his government accuses of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang, without normal immigration procedures. The deportations sparked a legal battle led by civil rights groups. Families and lawyers of many of the men have denied they have gang ties. Hernandez, detained at the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden administration, had an active asylum case when he was deported to CECOT. His case was widely covered in the media. Advocates in the U.S. have voiced concerns that Hernandez, who is gay, faces risks in Venezuela due to LGBTQ persecution. The U.S. alleged Tren de Aragua membership based on his tattoos: crowns on his wrists that read "mom"and "dad." Hernandez denied the allegation. In a video broadcast on state television on Monday, Hernandez alleged sexual abuse by the guards at CECOT, and Venezuela's attorney general has said his office will investigate El Salvador President Nayib Bukele over alleged abuses. Bukele's office has not responded to requests for comment on the alleged torture. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson has referred allegations of mistreatment to El Salvador's government, while the U.S. Department of Homeland Security dismissed the allegations of abuse on Tuesday, calling the men "criminal, illegal gang members." Reuters was not able to immediately confirm the abuse allegations. Hernandez's parents, Felipe Hernandez and Alexi Romero, have been anxiously awaiting his return since Tuesday, when he called to say he was on the way from Caracas, some 820 kilometers (510 miles) away. Hernandez said he was most happy to see them and his brother, but was also touched to find out that friends and family held vigils on his behalf and campaigned for his return. "It fills me with so much peace, so much comfort, so much tranquility that I was never alone, from day one. There were many people who worried for me," he said. (Reporting by Tathiana Ortiz in Capacho, additional reporting by Kristina Cooke in San FranciscoWriting by Julia Symmes CobbEditing by Rod Nickel)
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Venezuelan makeup artist returns home, describes torture during El Salvador detention
Andry Hernandez, who was held for months in an El Salvador prison after the U.S. alleged he was a member of the Tren de Aragua gang, talks with friends at his home following his release, in Tachira, Venezuela July 23, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Eduardo Ramirez CAPACHO, Venezuela - A makeup artist who became the face of more than 250 Venezuelan migrants deported by the U.S. to El Salvador's most notorious prison arrived home to his family on Wednesday after what he described as "an encounter with torture and death." Andry Hernandez, 32, and the other detainees returned to Venezuela on Friday as part of a prisoner exchange, after spending four months in El Salvador's CECOT prison, where they and the Venezuelan government allege they were beaten, shot with rubber projectiles, held in dark cells, and served rotten food. "Many of our fellows have wounds from the nightsticks; they have fractured ribs, fractured fingers and toes, marks from the handcuffs, others have marks on their chests, on their face ... from the projectiles," Hernandez told journalists at his home in Capacho, near the Colombian border. U.S. President Donald Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport the men, who his government accuses of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang, without normal immigration procedures. The deportations sparked a legal battle led by civil rights groups. Families and lawyers of many of the men have denied they have gang ties. Hernandez, detained at the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden administration, had an active asylum case when he was deported to CECOT. His case was widely covered in the media. Advocates in the U.S. have voiced concerns that Hernandez, who is gay, faces risks in Venezuela due to LGBTQ persecution. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Judge asks prosecution for more information on Kpods in first case involving etomidate-laced vapes World In landmark opinion, World Court says countries must address climate change threat Singapore 5 teens arrested for threatening boy with knife, 2 charged with causing hurt Singapore Male victim of fatal Toa Payoh fire was known to keep many things, say residents Sport Bukayo Saka the difference as Arsenal beat AC Milan at National Stadium Singapore HDB launches 10,209 BTO and balance flats, as priority scheme for singles kicks in Singapore Over 1.15 million Singaporeans aged 21 to 59 have claimed SG60 vouchers Singapore Cyclist charged after allegedly hitting elderly pedestrian, killing him The U.S. alleged Tren de Aragua membership based on his tattoos: crowns on his wrists that read "mom" and "dad." Hernandez denied the allegation. In a video broadcast on state television on Monday, Hernandez alleged sexual abuse by the guards at CECOT, and Venezuela's attorney general has said his office will investigate El Salvador President Nayib Bukele over alleged abuses. Bukele's office has not responded to requests for comment on the alleged torture. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson has referred allegations of mistreatment to El Salvador's government, while the U.S. Department of Homeland Security dismissed the allegations of abuse on Tuesday, calling the men "criminal, illegal gang members." Reuters was not able to immediately confirm the abuse allegations. Hernandez's parents, Felipe Hernandez and Alexi Romero, have been anxiously awaiting his return since Tuesday, when he called to say he was on the way from Caracas, some 820 kilometers (510 miles) away. Hernandez said he was most happy to see them and his brother, but was also touched to find out that friends and family held vigils on his behalf and campaigned for his return. "It fills me with so much peace, so much comfort, so much tranquility that I was never alone, from day one. There were many people who worried for me," he said. REUTERS
