OAN Staff Blake Wolf
2:07 PM – Monday, March 24, 2025
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem is set to visit Central America this week, making a stop at El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center — which holds a number of Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang members who were recently deported from the U.S.
Advertisement
In addition to Noem’s stop in El Salvador, she is also expected to travel to Colombia to meet with President Gustavo Petro, the first leftist to serve as the country’s president, as well as Mexico — meeting with President Claudia Sheinbaum.
Noem’s trip “underscores the importance of our partner countries to help remove violent criminal illegal aliens from the United States,” said Tricia McLaughlin, the assistant secretary for public affairs at the DHS.
Noem’s travels follow after 261 illegal aliens were deported from the U.S. to El Salvador on March 15th, with 238 of them belonging to the violent Tren de Aragua gang. The country’s president posted on X in relation to the deportations.
“President Trump and Secretary Noem have a clear message for criminal aliens considering entering America illegally: Don’t even think about it,” McLaughlin continued. “If you come to our country and break our laws, we will hunt you down, and lock you up.”
Noem’s Central America trip also aligns with President Trump’s ongoing efforts to combat illegal immigration while facilitating mass deportations — following his designation of Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization.
Recent video footage showcased Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gang members being taken into the Terrorism Confinement Center, which is a massive maximum security prison housing the most violent and unpredictable criminals.
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele, a Trump ally, agreed to house the gang members for a fee, adding that the deportation flights will assist Salvadoran authorities to “help us finalize intelligence gathering and go after the last remnants of MS-13s, including its former and new members, money, weapons, drugs, hideouts, collaborators, and sponsors.”
“As always, we continue advancing in the fight against organized crime,” Bukele stated. “But this time, we are also helping our allies, making our prison system self-sustainable, and obtaining vital intelligence to make our country an even safer place. All in a single action. May God bless El Salvador, and may God bless the United States.”
Noem’s visit to Colombia is reportedly centered around a meeting with President Petro and the Colombian National Police’s specialized group directed at countering organized crime.
Stay informed! Receive breaking news blasts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts
Advertisements below
