Donald Trump applies law from 1798 – despite the judge’s blockade

Regardless of a judicial order, the United States has deported more than 200 alleged members of a Venezuelan drug gang to El Salvador. “Today the first 238 members of the criminal Venezuelan organization Tren de Aragua arrived in our country,” said El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele on Sunday. US President Donald Trump had ordered the deportation to a law of 1798, but a judge had actually blocked the advance.

Trump referred to the adopted in 1798 in his arrangement on Friday Aliens Enemies Actthat was last used in the Second World War. The president said he had the right to declare the alleged gang members on “foreign enemies” based on the law. The arrangement was signed on Friday, but only published on Saturday.

The Alien Enemies Act it allows US presidents to arrest or deport citizens of an enemy nation. It was used three times in US history-in the British-American War of 1812, in the First World War and especially in World War II.

Two human rights organizations, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Democracy Forward, asked the responsible Federal Supreme Court in Washington to stop deportations and argued that the law of 1798 was not intended for the application in peace. Judge James Boasberg then ordered a 14-day stop of all deportations based on Trump’s arrangement on Saturday. At that time, however, the planes with the alleged gang members were apparently already on their way to El Salvador.

On Sunday morning, Bukele released a video on Sunday morning, in which men can be seen in handcuffs and with ankle skins that are led by an aircraft to a heavily guarded vehicle convoy. Bukele offered last month at a meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio to accommodate prisoners from the United States in his country.

The President rules El Salvador with an iron fist and enjoys increasing popularity because of his successful approach to criminal groups. There is therefore criticism of human rights groups. Bukele’s offer to accept foreign prisoners against money is controversial among compatriots.

According to Bukele, the alleged gang members were brought to a high -security prison for terrorists. The prison is created for 40,000 prisoners who are housed in windowless cells and sleep on metal beds without mattresses. Visit is not allowed.

With the campaign, “hundreds of violent criminals” were brought under the country, said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He thanked Bukele, who played “a crucial role in this transfer”. The United States had also flown to two “important leaders” of the Salvadorian gang MS-13 and 21 of the MS-13 members who were “most wanted” by El Salvador, who were to be put on trial in their homeland.

Trump has been relentlessly against migrants since taking office and has now also targeted the Tren de Aragua association. In February, the Gang was classified by the US government as a “terrorist organization” and threat to security.

Tren de Aragua was formed in 2014 in the Venezuelan prison Tocorón in the state of Aragua. The gang is blamed for murders, kidnappings, thefts, drug trafficking, prostitution, blackmail and human trafficking.

According to the White House, the cross -border criminal organization is closely linked to the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The gang leads “an irregular war” against the United States, partly acting on the direct instruction of the Maduro government, Trump explained in his deportation arrangement.

According to this, US Justice Minister Pam Bondi has 60 days to put the order into force, according to which all gang members of Tren de Aragua are “immediately arrested, detained and deported”. The arrangement applies to all members of Tren de Aragua, who are over 14 years old and are neither naturalized nor have a lawful permanent residence permit.

Bondi criticized the suspension of the deportation arrangement by Richter Boasberg. This disregarded “President Trump’s established power of power” and endangers the population and law enforcement, she said.

Note: This text has been updated.