Trending 
El Salvador has proposed taking in “dangerous criminals” currently held in US prisons, including American citizens, according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
During his visit to the Central American nation, Rubio met with President Nayib Bukele and expressed deep gratitude for the offer, stating, “No country has ever extended a gesture of friendship like this.”
Additionally, El Salvador has agreed to accept deported criminals of any nationality who are residing unlawfully in the US, Rubio confirmed.
The secretary of state also praised Bukele’s tough stance on gang violence, which has drastically reduced crime in a country once infamous for its high murder rates. However, human rights groups have criticised these measures.
Rubio told reporters: “He has offered to house in his jails dangerous American criminals in custody in our country, including those with US citizenship and legal residency.”
“We are profoundly grateful. I spoke to President Trump about this earlier today,” he added.
Rubio is on his first overseas tour as the US’s top diplomat, pushing the Trump administration’s regional priorities, including urging Panama to “immediately change” China’s “influence and control” over the Panama Canal.
He also confirmed that Bukele has agreed to take back Salvadoran citizens and deport Latin American gang members such as MS-13 and Tren de Aragua.
Since returning to the White House, President Trump has prioritised speeding up the removal of undocumented migrants, promising “mass deportations.”
Alongside these efforts, more active-duty troops have been sent to fortify the US-Mexico border, and Trump has issued an executive order halting the processing of migrants and asylum seekers.
Bukele hinted that his prison proposal expands on a 2019 migration deal.
In a post on X, he described it as an opportunity for the US to “outsource part of its prison system.”
“We are willing to take in only convicted criminals (including convicted US citizens) into our mega-prison… in exchange for a fee.”
Bukele first rose to power in 2019, vowing to transform El Salvador by tackling gang violence and corruption and improving US relations.
His popularity surged after an aggressive anti-crime crackdown, turning El Salvador from the murder capital of the world into one of Latin America’s safest nations.
During his first term, his government carried out mass arrests of suspected gang members, with an estimated 75,000 detained under emergency laws that have been repeatedly extended—raising concerns from human rights groups.
Amnesty International has condemned the “gradual replacement of gang violence with state violence.”
