The flight carrying 199 Venezuelans deported from the US has landed at Simón Bolívar airport near Caracas. US repatriation flights to Venezuela, which had previously halted due to the Trump administration revoking a license allowing Venezuela to export oil to the US, resumed recently as part of the Trump administration’s plan to remove undocumented migrants. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro described the flights as an opportunity to “rescue and free migrants from prisons in the US.” As the deportees disembarked from the plane, some raised their arms and waved. They had earlier been transferred from the US state of Texas to Honduras before being flown to Maiquetía, north of Caracas, by Venezuelan flag carrier Conviasa. The US Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs described them as “illegal aliens” with no basis to remain in the United States. In contrast, the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, stressed that migration is “not a crime.” Venezuela had initially agreed to take in Venezuelan deportees as part of a deal struck by Trump’s special envoy in Caracas. This move was seen as a victory for Trump, who has prioritized deporting undocumented migrants. However, Maduro mentioned that the US administration’s revocation of Chevron’s license to operate in Venezuela had created a problem. He expressed his desire to bring home all Venezuelans unjustly persecuted in the US. A week later, the Trump administration deported 238 Venezuelans to a mega-prison in El Salvador, claiming they were members of a criminal gang. This sparked an outcry in Venezuela, with relatives denying any criminal connections. The deportation was followed by a warning from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Venezuela would face “severe and escalating” sanctions if it refused to accept its citizens deported from the US. In response, Maduro ordered his government to intensify efforts to guarantee return flights for detained migrants.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgm1r0wjdyno