Overview

• The swap completed July 18 saw Venezuela release 10 US citizens, including former Navy SEAL Wilbert Joseph Castaneda and dual US-French national Lucas Hunter; eight others joined the group in exchange for more than 250 Venezuelan migrants deported by the US in March
• El Salvador handed over all Venezuelan nationals detained under a $6 million arrangement to house alleged Tren de Aragua gang members in its CECOT prison
• The deal also secured the freedom of an unspecified number of Venezuelan political prisoners, boosting President Nicolás Maduro’s domestic legitimacy campaign
• Rights groups have documented hundreds of deaths and torture in CECOT; US courts halted further deportations under the Alien Enemies Act over due-process challenges
• President Trump hailed the outcome as an ‘America First’ achievement that brings home wrongfully detained citizens; Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele framed it as validation of his security credentials