Why is El Salvador taking US Deportees_

How did El Salvador become central to one of the Trump administration’s most controversial immigration policies? This video investigates how the small Central American nation was transformed into a key destination for deported migrants—many of whom are sent to high-security prisons in brutal conditions. Under a renewed agreement between President Trump and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, even non-Salvadoran asylum seekers are now being transferred to El Salvador as part of an escalating crackdown on irregular migration. Human rights organisations warn this violates international refugee protections, while critics argue it’s a dangerous outsourcing of America’s asylum system.

It also traces the deeper history that made this possible—from El Salvador’s civil war and gang violence to Bukele’s rise as a strongman leader. With mass arrests, the construction of the world’s largest “mega-prison,” and skyrocketing approval ratings, Bukele’s iron-fisted approach has been praised by Trump as a model for the region. But behind the populist rhetoric lies a disturbing trend: the use of extreme incarceration as immigration policy. Featuring the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia and legal battles over deportation, this episode uncovers the uncomfortable truths behind America’s growing reliance on foreign prisons to manage migration.

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*VIDEO CHAPTERS*
00:00 Introduction and Titles
00:51 Outsourcing Immigration in International Relations
01:57 El Salvador: Location and Population
02:29 A Brief History of El Salvador
03:21 El Salvador: From Military Rule to Civil War
04:09 The Emergence of Salvadoran Gangs
05:51 El Salvador’s Escalating Gang Problem
07:14 The Rise of Nayib Bukele
08:34 Bukele’s War on the Gangs and Growing Authoritarianism
12:40 Is El Salvador becoming Trump’s Prison?

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