• El Salvador's President Bukele proposes a prisoner swap involving deported Venezuelans.
• Bukele claims detainees in El Salvador are part of gang operations.
• The proposal lists 252 political prisoners held in Venezuela for repatriation.
• The Venezuelan government rebuffed Bukele's proposal as "cynical."
• This exchange is part of ongoing diplomatic tensions between the two nations.

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele proposed a humanitarian prisoner exchange with Venezuela, offering to return 252 Venezuelans detained in El Salvador for what he describes as political prisoners held by Venezuelan authorities. Bukele stated his willingness to facilitate this exchange in a post on social media, addressing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro directly and asserting that the deportees were detained as part of an operation against gang violence, specifically referencing the Tren de Aragua gang, and not for political reasons, according to SCMP and India Times.

Bukele emphasized that the Venezuelans he holds were not political prisoners but instead were apprehended for serious crimes. He stated, “Many of whom have committed murder, others have committed rape,” contrasting them with Venezuelan political prisoners who he claims were imprisoned solely for opposing Maduro. He listed various individuals he expects to be released in return, including journalist Roland Carreno and human rights lawyer Rocío San Miguel, according to Channel News Asia and Al Jazeera.

The proposal comes amid critiques directed at both the Salvadoran and Venezuelan governments concerning their treatment of detainees. Venezuela's Attorney General Tarek William Saab responded negatively to Bukele's suggestion, denouncing it as "cynical" and demanding information concerning the detained Venezuelans’ legal status, including their access to counsel and family communication. Saab emphasized that many detainees have been subjected to unlawful detentions, as detailed in statements available from The Hill and AA.

Bukele’s ongoing negotiations reflect the strained relationship between El Salvador and Venezuela, which has been exacerbated by a lack of formal diplomatic ties since 2019. Bukele plans for his foreign ministry to formally communicate the proposal to the Venezuelan government, as both nations grapple with significant political and social issues surrounding their respective treatment of immigrants and detainees, according to The Hill, India Times, and Channel News Asia.