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‘Never return’: El Salvador locks up gang-bangers in new mega-prison with promise of no release

El Salvador continues to fill up its mega-prison, adding another 2,000 inmates as the government vows they will “never return” to the streets. 

“They are never going to return to the communities, the neighborhoods, the barrios, the cities of our beloved El Salvador,” Gustavo Villatoro, minister for justice and peace, said of the transport plans. 

The government has swept up roughly 65,000 suspected gang members since approving Salvadorian President Nayib Bukele’s emergency powers in March 2022, which also allowed it to approve and build the mega-prison. 

The country’s “Terrorism Confinement Center” has a 40,000–person capacity and has already taken in over 4,000 prisoners as the government continues to crack down on an extensive gang problem. It is already at 10% of its maximum capacity just one month after opening.

HONDURAS SEEKS DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS WITH CHINA, SWITCHING ALLEGIANCE FROM TAIWAN

Gang members wait to be taken to their cells after 2,000 were transferred to the Terrorism Confinement Center, according to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in this handout distributed to Reuters on March 15, 2023.  (Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via Reuters)

Another 3,500 of those arrested have gone free, while the remaining roughly 57,000 suspects await trial. 

The government has widely publicized the prison, posting videos of prisoner transfers and providing an impressive inside look at the facilities. The prison is one of Latin America’s largest, with 37 guard towers and eight cellblocks that will be “impossible to escape.”

UN WARNS HAITIAN GANGS TAKING OVER COUNTRY, EXTRA POLICE SUPPORT NOT ENOUGH

Gang members wait to be taken to their cells after 2,000 were transferred to the Terrorism Confinement Center, according to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in this handout distributed to Reuters on March 15, 2023.  (Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via Reuters)

Bukele has asked for an extension of the emergency powers – known as the State of Exception – that has allowed him to take such sweeping actions over the past year. He pushed through the new measure following three days of violence left 87 people dead, which he blamed on the infamous MS-13 gang. 

Congress must still approve the extension of the anti-gang measures, but legislators are expected to do that, as they have done a dozen times before.

MISSING MAN WAS LURED INTO BATHROOM FOR SEX, ENDED UP IN SHALLOW BACKYARD GRAVE: POLICE

Gang members are cuffed as 2,000 were transferred to the Terrorism Confinement Center, according to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in this handout distributed to Reuters on March 15, 2023.  (Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via Reuters)

Under the special powers, the right to association is suspended, and police don’t have to tell someone being arrested the reason, or inform them of their rights. Someone who has been arrested does not have a right to a lawyer and can be held for 15 days without seeing a judge, rather than the previous 72 hours.

Around 2% of the country’s adult population has ended up behind bars as a result of El Salvador’s operations. 

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Non-governmental organizations have tallied several thousand human rights violations and at least 80 in-custody deaths of people arrested during the state of exception. Rights activists say young men are frequently arrested just based on their age or appearance or whether they live in a gang-dominated slum.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Peter Aitken is a Fox News Digital reporter with a focus on national and global news. 

5 dead, 3 injured in attack on indigenous tribe in Nicaragua

Local authorities said Monday that at least five members of a Nicaraguan indigenous group were killed and three others wounded in an attack by suspected settlers over the weekend.

Amaru Ruiz, director of the Del Río Foundation, said some of the victims’ bodies were mutilated.

Ruiz said the attackers burned 16 houses in the community of Wilu, in northern Nicaragua, on Saturday. The victims belonged to the indigenous Mayangna group.

NICARAGUA PRESIDENT EXECUTES 40 PEOPLE, ORDERS HOSPITALS TO NOT TREAT PROTESTORS, UN SAYS

“There has been yet another massacre,” said Ruiz, who believes settlers were responsible.

The killings mark the latest chapter in a years-long string of attacks on indigenous people in the area by settlers eager to claim their land. Such killings often go unpunished in Nicaragua, where many of the settlers are former soldiers.

The local indigenous regional government of Sauni As said in a statement that “all of the houses in the Wilu community have been burned,” adding that “families have been left without shelter, food or clothing.”

The Sauni As forest rangers unit said the attack was carried out by “70 heavily armed non-indigenous settlers.”

Nicaraguan authorities reported an apparent arson attack on an indigenous tribe in Wilu.

The area where the attack occurred, known as the Bosawas nature reserve, is set aside for indigenous groups and environmental protection. But land-hungry settlers want to clear the land to ranch and raise crops. The reserve also has been hit by illegal mining and logging.

In January, Nicaraguan authorities arrested 24 settlers after they allegedly attacked an indigenous community as part of a land dispute.

That was the first large-scale arrest of non-indigenous settlers after several years of invasions and attacks in the territory belonging to the Miskito, Mayangna and other indigenous groups. However, activists said the settlers in that instance had actually been detained by residents, who turned them over to police.

NICARAGUA SENTENCES CATHOLIC PRIESTS TO 10 YEARS FOR CONSPIRACY AFTER CLOSED-DOOR TRIALS

The Mayangna and Miskito communities have been hit by a number of attacks in recent years. Ruiz has said that at least 28 indigenous leaders and community members have been killed in recent years, before the weekend killings.

Indigenous activists say the government of President Daniel Ortega has not done enough to address the problems in the jungled region, something his administration denies.

Activists say many of the settlers moving onto the lands are former soldiers linked to timber and illegal logging interests.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The Del Río Foundation says about 60% of the Mayangnas’ territory has been invaded by about 5,000 settlers since 2015, displacing some 3,000 indigenous inhabitants.

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
(AP)

He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP  

These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
(AP)

He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP  

These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
(AP)

He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP  

These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
(AP)

He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP  

These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
(AP)

He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP  

These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
(AP)

He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

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These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei: What we know

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to depart Sunday for Guatemala, with plans to meet President Alejandro Giammattei amid growing concerns about the migrant crisis at the U.S. southern border.

Harris is the point person to handle the migrant crisis, but she has not yet held a press conference or visited the border with Mexico – some 75 days after President Biden tapped her for the role. 

This week, she will visit Mexico and Guatemala, but she could face a tense meeting with Guatemala’s president.

Giammattei has had a tumultuous career in politics: He served as director of the Guatemalan Penitentiary System starting in 2006, but several conflicts and accusations that he orchestrated prisoner executions led to his own brief incarceration in 2010, Reuters reported.

Guatemala’s President-elect Alejandro Giammattei gives an interview in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Giammattei said Tuesday that Guatemala will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement with the United States by serving as a “safe third country” for asylum seekers. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
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He made three prior runs at the top office, failing in 2007, 2011 and 2015, according to The Global Americans, before finally winning in 2019. He assumed office on Jan. 14, 2020. 

Guatemala faced a political crisis in November 2020 when Giammattei set out a budget that favored privately funded infrastructure improvements over helping with pressing domestic issues, such as poverty and child care. Protests led to the burning of Congress and demands for Giammattei to resign. 

KAMALA HARRIS’ MEXICO, GAUTEMALA VISIT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Giammattei has shown support for the U.S. approach to migration in recent months, but he has made a number of critical statements as well, signaling a complicated relationship ahead between the nations.

Chief among Giammattei’s complaints has been “confusing” messaging from the Biden administration on immigration, which the Guatemalan president blames for fueling the crisis at the border.

Vice President Kamala Harris meets virtually with Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei, seen on screen at left, Monday, April 26, 2021, from her ceremonial office at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
(AP)

“I believe that in the first few weeks of the Biden administration, messages were confusing,” Giammattei told MSNBC on April 13. “They were compassionate messages that were understood by people in our country, especially the coyotes, to tell families, ‘We’ll take the children.’”

“And children can go, and once children are there, they will call their parents.”

REP. BRADY ON BORDER CRISIS: HARRIS IN DENIAL; INFLUX OF MIGRANT KIDS MAKING FOSTER CARE SYSTEM STRAINED

Giammattei said he has seen coyotes – the smugglers who ferry migrants into the U.S. for a fee – carry out “horrible acts” and criticized the U.S. for not properly responding to the surge of migrants, according to The New York Post.

In the run-up to Harris’ visit this week, Giammattei criticized Special Prosecutor against Impunity Juan Francisco Sandoval for “left-wing politicization” of the fight against corruption in his country – an approach the U.S. has supported, according to Reuters.

Protesters gather outside Congress in Guatemala City, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020. Hundreds of protesters were protesting in various parts of the country Saturday against Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and members of Congress for the approval of the 2021 budget that reduced funds for education, health and the fight for human rights. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
(AP)

“Everybody has a right to their own ideology,” Giammattei said. “The problem is when you transfer that ideology to your actions, and worse when you are in charge of justice.”

Giammattei accused Sandoval of selectively administering justice to suit his agenda. However, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp last week said Washington was working to “robustly” support Sandoval.

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION QUIETLY TASKS 6 GROUPS TO PICK ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO ALLOW INTO US

Harris has spoken to Giammattei over the phone and virtually in the past few months, with Harris pledging an additional $310 million to humanitarian relief and food insecurity in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

In response, Guatemala has agreed to increase border security, Politico reported.

Giammattei also planned to open “migrant resource centers” to provide education and assistance in following legal pathways for migration. The first center will appear in Guatemala City, and is meant to be up and running by the time Harris touches down in Guatemala.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP  

These more positive steps occur in contrast to a move by Giammattei to seemingly “pre-empt” talks with Harris after he said Thursday that Guatemala would receive a half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S., seizing on Biden’s promise to share some 80 million doses with struggling nations around the world, USA Today reported. 

California Democrat critical of Northern Triangle says she sleeps with gun next to her bed after death threats

A California Democrat who has been critical of the governments of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala said she sleeps with a gun by her bed after facing online threats.

“I never thought it would get to this point but I have to protect myself in my home,” Torres first revealed to the Los Angeles Times.

HARRIS ANNOUNCES BUSINESS INVESTMENTS IN CENTRAL AMERICA AS PART OF MIGRANT STRATEGY

Torres was born in Guatemala.

“Growing up, I experienced the same forces that are currently driving children to flee from the #NorthernTriangle. I’m ready to call out corruption like I see it — even if that upsets those who enable it,” she wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

Torres, who represents California’s 35th Congressional District, said people have staked out her house, according to FOX 11 Los Angeles.

In March, she tweeted about the corruption of the governments of the Northern Triangle countries, prompting a response from El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele.

“This is a great shame to the governments of #Guatemala#Honduras#ElSalvador your compatriots deserve governments that are truly committed to fighting corruption and drug trafficking!” Torres wrote on Twitter in March 31 along with a story about smuggles who abandoned 3-year-old and a 5-year-old after dropping them over the southern border wall.

“Look ma’am, did you read that the children are from ECUADOR and not from EL SALVADOR? In addition, this occurred on the border of Mexico with the United States. What does El Salvador have to do with this? You should use a portion of your financier’s check to buy glasses,” Bukele responded on April 1.

In April, Bukele would not meet with a visiting senior U.S. diplomat. Bukele’s decision not to meet with Ricardo Zuniga, the Biden administration’s envoy to the so-called Northern Triangle countries of Central America, followed a similar snub he allegedly received from U.S. officials during an unannounced trip to Washington in February.

MAYORKAS DEFENDS HANDLING OF MIGRANT CRISIS, CLAIMS ‘THE BORDER IS CLOSED’ AMID GOP CRITICISM

Zuniga traveled to El Salvador following talks in Guatemala focused on immigration amid a surge in child migrants on the U.S. border. Upon arrival, he immediately announced a $2 million U.S. contribution to an international commission seeking to strengthen the fight against corruption, which Biden officials see as one of the root causes of illegal immigration.

Clockwise from left, Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chair Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., and Rep. Albio Sires, D- N.J., attend a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris with the CHC, in her ceremonial office, Monday, May 17, 2021, on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

On Thursday, Vice President Harris announced commitments from businesses and other organizations to invest in Central America to support economic development in the countries from where the migrant surge – which has overwhelmed border officials in recent months – originated.

“Today, we are launching our call to action for businesses to invest in the Northern Triangle,” Harris said at a roundtable.

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Harris and the Biden administration have been emphasizing the “root causes” of the crisis at the border, such as violence, poverty and climate in Central America – and have called for $4 billion of investment in the region to combat those causes. Critics have instead pointed to the rollback of Trump-era border protections that they say have incentivized the migrant flow that saw 178,000 migrants hit the border in April alone.

Fox News’ inquiry to Torres’ office was not returned at the time of publication.

Fox News’ Adam Shaw and the Associated Press contributed to this report.