• Spanish police arrested 13 suspected members of the Tren de Aragua gang.
• Raids conducted in five cities, including Barcelona and Madrid.
• Seizures included synthetic drugs and dismantled drug laboratories.

Spanish police announced that 13 suspected members of Venezuela's notorious Tren de Aragua gang have been arrested in a major operation across five cities, including Barcelona, Madrid, Girona, A Coruña, and Valencia. The gang is known for its violent activities linked to drug trafficking, human trafficking, and extortion, originating in Venezuelan prisons over a decade ago. This operation marks the first detection of a Tren de Aragua cell in Spain, indicating the gang's attempts to expand operations into Europe, particularly where the Venezuelan immigrant community has a significant presence, according to Reuters and Los Angeles Times.

The Spanish police operation, which led to these arrests, also involved the seizure of synthetic drugs and cocaine, as well as the dismantling of two laboratories where “tusi,” a dangerous substance combining cocaine, MDMA, and ketamine, was being produced. This crackdown follows a previous arrest of the alleged gang leader’s brother in Barcelona, highlighting ongoing efforts to combat the gang's influence, according to Al Jazeera and Los Angeles Times.

This operation comes amid heightened scrutiny by the U.S. government, which designated Tren de Aragua as a global terrorist organization in 2025, intensifying the pressure on gang operations both regionally and internationally. U.S. military efforts against the gang have led to significant confrontations in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, as the Trump administration positions its actions as part of a broader war against drug trafficking. In total, recent U.S. strikes have reportedly resulted in at least 69 fatalities, illustrating the severe implications of the gang's activities, as indicated by Reuters and Los Angeles Times.