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Three-Nation Prisoner Exchange Reunites 252 Venezuelans With Caracas and Secures Release of U.S. Citizens

Diplomats brokered the triangular exchange on July 19 to resolve a months-long standoff

Los detenidos venezolanos abordan el avión desde San Salvador con destino a Caracas
Venezuelan detainees are shown being sent home in a prison exchange for Americans held in Venezuela, according to El Salvador President Nayib Bukele, at El Salvador International Airport, in San Luis Talpa, El Salvador, in this handout picture obtained by Reuters on July 18, 2025. El Salvador Government/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES
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Aterrizan en Venezuela dos aviones con los 252 migrantes que estaban presos en El Salvador

Overview

  • 252 Venezuelans held since March in El Salvador’s CECOT prison flew to Caracas after President Bukele handed them over under terrorism allegations
  • Venezuela simultaneously released 10 U.S. citizens and an unspecified number of political detainees in synchronized operations in Caracas and San Salvador
  • The migrants had been deported from the United States under President Trump’s revival of the 1798 Foreign Enemies Act without formal hearings
  • Spanish mediator José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and U.S. envoys overcame internal policy disputes to bridge severed U.S.-Venezuela diplomatic ties
  • Human rights groups remain concerned about reports of pellet gun fire on detainees and the absence of due process during their four-month detention