Venezuela says it will start accepting repatriation flights from the U.S. again
Venezuela has announced that it will resume accepting flights of its citizens who are deported by U.S. immigration authorities.
Jorge Rodríguez, the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly, said on Saturday in a post on social media that the repatriation flights would begin again as early as Sunday. “Migration is not a crime,” he added.
Rodríguez, who has been negotiating with U.S. officials on immigration issues, said Venezuelan authorities “will not rest” until they secure the return of any citizens who require it.
The White House did not immediately reply to NPR’s request for comment on Sunday.
In his statement, Rodríguez also alluded to the deportation of some Venezuelans to El Salvador earlier in March, when President Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act in order to target alleged members of a violent Venezuelan prison gang.
A total of 238 Venezuelans were deported in that operation, which remains under scrutiny by a federal judge who had attempted to block the deportation flights and continues to seek information from the Trump administration about why they went ahead. Of the 238, the Trump administration said 137 people were deported under the Alien Enemies Act and 101 were deported under regular immigration proceedings.
Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro has called for the return of the Venezuelan migrants sent by the U.S. to El Salvador, where President Nayib Bukele said they were transferred to a mega-prison known as CECOT.
Families of some of the Venezuelans who were deported disputed the government’s claims that the men had gang connections.
Maduro has said the Venezuelan migrants were kidnapped.
Venezuela stopped accepting repatriation flights from the U.S. on March 8. It came after Trump announced that the U.S. would cancel the Biden-era permit that allowed California-based Chevron to extract and export oil from Venezuela, a major source of revenue for the country.
But last week Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that the Trump administration would impose “new, severe, and escalating sanctions” on the country unless it began accepting migrants again.
Carrie Kahn contributed reporting from Rio de Janeiro.
Trump slashes mental health agency as shutdown drags on
Sources tell NPR that more than 100 employees have been laid off at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Agency. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had some cuts reversed late Saturday.
Nobel Prize winner Machado says Venezuela is in ‘chaos’ under current regime
The far-right leader of Venezuela's opposition party said that the current president is illegitimate and called for his removal.
Trump directs Pentagon to use ‘available funds’ to pay military during shutdown
President Trump's announcement comes days before active duty members would have missed their first full paycheck as the shutdown of the federal government continues.
Smithsonian museums and National Zoo set to close as shutdown takes its toll
The shutdown is forcing the closure of a number of America's beloved cultural institutions starting Sunday. Twenty-one Smithsonian museums, its research centers and the National Zoo are all affected.
4 dead and 12 injured in a shooting after Mississippi homecoming game
The small town of Leland, Miss., was rocked by the shooting, which took place late Friday.
Africa’s oldest leader isn’t ready to retire – and he’s not the only one defying age
At 92, Cameroon's President aul Biya is running for an eighth term on Sunday — a reminder of how Africa's aging leaders continue to cling to power, even as their nations face unrest, corruption, and calls for change.
