Can we criminals be sent to Mega-Jail of Al Salvador?

US State Secretary Marco Rubio could not praise the deal with the President of Al Salvador on Monday.

The top diplomats of the Trump administration appeared to be pleased with the fact that President Naib Bowkele should “agree to the most unprecedented, extraordinary, extraordinary migrant agreement anywhere in the world”.

Bukele offered to take people out of the US, regardless of their nationality, and placed them in Mega-Jail, Al Salvador.

“We can send them and he will put them in his jails,” said Rubio.

While it was already a win for President Donald Trump, the priority of which was in the pace of removing the migrants from America, the real surprise came to the part of the deals given further.

Rubio said, “He (Kapale) has also offered to detain for dangerous criminals and serve his sentences in the United States, even if he was American citizens or legal residents,” said Rubio.

The Salvadorian leader confirmed that he had “given the United States an opportunity to outsource the share of his prison system”.

He clarified that Al Salvador would “be ready to take only among the guilty criminals” and his government would do so in exchange for the fee.

Bukele also revealed where he would take the deported people from America: “Our Mega-Jail”.

Mega-Jail, also known as CECOT (Short for Terrorism Conference Center for Terrorism), has become a symbol of an iron-related approach to crime and punishment.

Maximum security prison, one of the largest in Latin America, opened in January 2023 and can give home to 40,000 prisoners according to government data.

The prisoners are limited to window -free cells, sleeping on bare metal beds and continuously monitored by armed guards – some of which look at them from above the forged roof.

BBC News Mundo’s Lear Ventus, who was allowed to make an official visit to the facility last year after being asked by the BBC for repeated access, was described as to how the temperature in cells would reach 35C.

Take a look at the graphics and maps of the mega-gel

Access to prison was severely banned and journalists allowed only on topical and careful choreographed official tourism, the number of cell prisoners per cell prisoners is not clear.

Some rights groups placed it on 80 prisoners, while others say it can go up to more than 150.

When asked by our journalist what was the maximum capacity, the director of the jail replied “where you can fit 10 people, you can fit 20”.

The prisoners are closed inside their cells 24 hours a day – leaving a 30 -minute group exercise in a window -free corridor.

The layout of the jail is no coincidence.

After a particularly bloody weekend in 2022, when more than 70 people were killed in the small Central American nation, the President called on social media: “Message to gangs: Due to your actions, not seeing your” homeboy ” Will find a ray of sunlight “.

The construction of Cecot Mega-Jail was started shortly after.

Conditions in jail and treatment of prisoners have come under serious criticism from human rights groups.

Miguel Sarre, a former member of the United Nations Subcommittee, has described it as “concrete and steel pits” for prevention of torture.

Can the Trump administration send American citizens there?

On Tuesday, Trump told reporters that he would adopt the idea but question its validity.

During an executive order signature ceremony at the Oval Office, he said, “If we had a legal right to do so, I would have done it in a heartbeat,” he said during a ceremony signing an executive order in the Oval office. “I don’t know whether we do this or not. We are watching now, but we can do deals where we will take out these animals out of our country.”

But any attempt to legally deport the US citizens or people in a foreign prison is bound to face legal challenges.

American citizens born in the United States enjoy legal protection from exile.

However, there are some cases in which natural citizens – who were not born in the US and who had gained American citizenship after birth through a legal process – their citizenship could be canceled.

This happens when in question the person used fraud to get citizenship in the first place.

A case at Western Reserve University in Ohio, an immigration lawyer and professor Alex Quic told the BBC that American citizens suspected a relationship with criminal gangs or terrorist organizations – such as train de argua criminal gangs or mara salvatucha, who are known as MS Goes – 13 – Also, in principle, can snatch from American citizenship.

“If they come to know that you were members of any group who used to persecute or threaten to persecute others, they can try to separate you,” said Mr. Quike.

“So, if you had a gang relationship and never disclosed them, they could use it that you could use you as a reason to separate you.”

Once a person has been “denaturalized”, he is in danger of exile.

Mr. Qiq said that any such step will have to be held before the “formal court process” held in a federal court.

But the lawyer warned that “citizenship is not the thing that is definitely forever if you are natural”.

He insisted that he had “never heard” about the matters of natural-born American citizens, who were sent abroad for imprisonment for crimes committed in the US.

Shaw Dalal-Sadhini, director of the government relations for the American Immigration Counsels Association, similarly said that he had never heard of “such a suggestion” for the form of sending American citizens abroad to serve American jail sentence abroad In.

While he admitted that there were various scenario in which American citizens could lose their citizenship naturally, he said that “you cannot separate a natural-birth citizen”.

The status of legitimate permanent residents in the US, however, is more uncertain than American citizens.

If they violate some of the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act, they can be deported, including drug offenses, violent offenses or crimes such as theft, fraud or attacks.

Like natural citizens, they can also be deported if they get their residence through fraud.

Permanent valid residents who are involved in any activity that are involved in terrorism, espionage or any activity that are in danger of American national interest.

This final point is important in light Executive order was issued by President Trump on his inauguration day, in which he nominated drug cartel as “foreign terrorist organizations”.,

The two criminal organizations nominated in the executive order, Train D. Aragua and MS -13, were mentioned last week by Trump’s Special Envoy for Latin America, Mauricio Clever -Caron.

Speaking in a briefing about Marco Rubio’s visit to Al Salvador, Claver -Caron not only praised the handling of MS -13 -a gang that lies deeply in Al Salvador and has long been its citizens Has been terrorized – but also said that you can offer the buckets to the way of dealing with the Gang Train Day Argu in Venezuela.

Claver-caron also argued that the possibility of being sent to a Salvadorian jail could be taken back to her motherland.

“I am sure they want to go back to Venezuela instead of dealing with the Mara Jails in Al Salvador,” he said about members of the train de Argua gang.

Marco Rubio also emphasized that the Trump administration wants to send members of these two notorious gangs to Al Salvador jails first and at the forefront.

Rubio said after a conversation with Bookle, “Any illegal immigrant and illegal immigrants in the United States, who are a dangerous criminal-MS-13, Train D Argua, whatever it is-has offered his jails. ”

Although it is not clear in any way that who – if anyone – will be sent from America to Mega -Jail of Al Salvador, it is certain that with his “unprecedented offer of friendship”, in a time, in favor of Trump at one time They have strongly descended when relations between the US and its neighbors have been shaken by the threats of the US President. Apply tariffs on their goods.

With additional reporting by BBC’s burn debutman JR at Washington, DC.