Tensions are running high between El Salvador and Venezuela after President Nayib Bukele slammed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro for rejecting a proposed prisoner swap that has sparked diplomatic outrage and renewed scrutiny of both governments’ human rights records.

At the heart of the dispute is a group of 252 Venezuelan migrants who were deported from the United States to El Salvador. These individuals, many of whom have no criminal records, were accused of being affiliated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and are now being held in El Salvador’s massive CECOT prison — a high-security facility designed to house gang members and violent offenders.

Bukele’s government offered to exchange these detainees for what he described as “political prisoners” currently jailed in Venezuela. His list included the mother of opposition leader María Corina Machado, the son-in-law of former presidential candidate Edmundo González, and 50 other individuals from various countries. Bukele argued that such a swap would be humanitarian and politically symbolic.

However, Maduro rejected the proposal outright during his weekly televised address, calling the offer “cynical” and demanding that El Salvador release the deported Venezuelans unconditionally. He accused Bukele of using migrants as political pawns and being a “serial violator of human rights,” claiming the Salvadoran president’s mega-prison system violates international norms around due process and humane treatment.

In a sharp response on social media, Bukele mocked Maduro’s earlier promises to do “whatever it takes” to secure the release of detained Venezuelans abroad. “Weren’t you the one who said you’d do whatever it takes to free your people?” Bukele wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter), citing Venezuela’s 2023 prisoner exchange with the U.S. in which Maduro secured the release of one of his close allies.

The feud highlights the deep political and ideological divide between the two presidents. While both face criticism for democratic backsliding and alleged human rights abuses, Bukele has aligned himself more closely with U.S. President Donald Trump, while Maduro remains a symbol of leftist authoritarianism in Latin America.

The situation also draws attention to a controversial U.S. immigration policy under Trump that allowed for the deportation of Venezuelans under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act — a rarely invoked law originally designed for wartime threats. Recent legal rulings have challenged this policy, with federal judges arguing that deportees must be given 21 days’ notice and an opportunity to contest their removal.

Critics say the deportations lacked due process, and human rights organizations have warned that many of those sent to El Salvador were not properly vetted and now face unsafe conditions in a foreign prison with limited legal recourse.

Meanwhile, the Venezuelan government has demanded a full accounting of the migrants held in El Salvador, including detailed health and legal status information. The escalating rhetoric between the two leaders has left the fate of the detained migrants in limbo, as international observers call for transparency and dialogue.

As diplomatic efforts stall and public accusations intensify, the crisis serves as a stark reminder of how regional politics and migration policy can intertwine — often at the expense of the vulnerable individuals caught in the middle.