A plane with 199 Venezuelan immigrants arrived in Maiquetía early Monday morning, according to Venezuela’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, who reported this information via state-owned Venezuelan television.
After being expelled from the United States, the team came in via an airplane from Honduras.
“199 fellow countrymen and 199 Venezuelan colleagues returning to their home nation,” were aboard according to Cabello’s statement to VTV.
This flight marks the first one since Venezuelan and U.S. officials reached an agreement to restart repatriation services on Saturday. This move comes after a two-week standoff initiated when Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro halted these flights.
Maduro declined to accept planes from the U.S. transporting deportees following President Donald Trump’s declaration that he intended to revoke Chevron’s permit for exporting Venezuelan petroleum.
The Venezuelan president stated that the move impacted flights heading to Venezuela, which led officials from the Trump administration to warn about potential additional sanctions against the nation.
On Saturday, Venezuelan authorities verified that an agreement between them had been finalized.
President Jorge Rodríguez of Venezuela’s Assembly announced via social media that they have reached an agreement with the U.S. government to restart the deportation of Venezuelan immigrants, starting with a flight scheduled for this coming Sunday, March 23rd.
In his statement, Rodríguez mentioned that under the Trump administration, approximately 250 Venezuelans were deported to a maximum-security facility in El Salvador.
Trump has accused, without providing evidence, those migrants of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang — a designated US foreign terrorist organisation.
“Migration is not an offense, and we won’t stop until we ensure the return of everyone who needs it and save our brothers held captive in El Salvador,” Rodríguez stated.
The leader of Venezuela stated that President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador bears responsibility for the welfare of the Venezuelans who were deported to his nation.
“You ensure their well-being, but before long, you must surrender and set them free, as they are being held captive,” Maduro stated.