SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — The Salvadoran president on Tuesday criticized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro ’s rejection of a swap that would see Venezuelan deportees from the United States detained in El Salvador exchanged for what he said were “political prisoners” in Venezuela.
Maduro has demanded the immediate release of 250 Venezuelans held in an El Salvador mega-prison built by Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele to house gang members. Maduro claimed in his weekly televised address on Monday that “Bukele is a serial violator of the right to freedom, fair treatment, and human dignity.”
He urged that Bukele, instead of an exchange, sign “a decree granting unconditional freedom” to the deportees.
For his part, Bukele in a post on X on Tuesday goaded Maduro, asking wasn’t the Venezuelan leader the one who said he’d do “whatever it takes” to secure the release of the Venezuelans detained in El Salvador.
Bukele and Maduro's comments underscore the two leaders' longstanding animosity, rooted in diametrically opposed political visions. While both governments have faced fierce democratic and human rights criticisms in recent years, Bukele has increasingly cozied up to U.S. President Donald Trump while right-wing figures have long held up Maduro as a example of democratic decay.
Among those Bukele wants set free by Maduro are the son-in-law of former Venezuelan presidential candidate Edmundo González, several political leaders seeking asylum in the Argentine Embassy in Venezuela, and what he said were 50 detained citizens from a number of different countries across the world.
In his initial proposal on Sunday, Bukele also listed the mother of Venezuela's opposition leader María Corina Machado, whose house remains allegedly surrounded by Venezuelan police since January.
The proposal triggered an angry response from Venezuela's government, which demanded Bukele’s government provide a list of all Venezuelans detained in El Salvador, along with details about their health.
Bukele reiterated his proposal in the social media post on Tuesday, citing Venezuela's 2023 prisoner swap with the Biden administration for a Maduro ally.
“Weren’t you the one who said you would do “whatever it takes” to secure the release of the Venezuelans detained in El Salvador?” Bukele wrote on X, addressing Maduro.
El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele waves as he departs following a meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump, Monday, April 14, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Iran's top judge hinted at fast trials and executions for those who were detained in nationwide protests against the country's theocracy, even as activists said Wednesday that the death toll rose to levels unseen in decades with at least 2,572 people killed so far.
Iran’s judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei made the comments about trials and executions in a video Tuesday, despite a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump that he would “take very strong action” if executions take place.
The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said the number of dead climbed to at least 2,571 early Wednesday. The figure dwarfs the death toll from any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
After Trump was informed on the number of deaths, he warned Iran's leaders that he was terminating any negotiations and would “act accordingly.”
Details of the crackdown began emerging Tuesday as Iranians made phone calls abroad for the first time in days after authorities severed communications countrywide when the protests broke out.
Here is the latest:
Major Middle East governments were discouraging the Trump administration from waging a war with Iran, fearing “unprecedented consequences” in the volatile region, an Arab Gulf diplomat said Wednesday.
The Cairo-based diplomat, who was given anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media, said major governments in the region including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabai and Pakistan have been “in constant contact” with the U.S. administration over a potential American strike on Iran that could explode into a “full-blown war.”
Such a war will “certainly” have dire repercussions “not only on the Middle East but also on the global economy," he said.
Samy Magdy contributed from Cairo.
Iranian state television said Wednesday’s mass funeral in Tehran would include 300 bodies of security force members and civilians. The funeral is expected to take place at Tehran University under heavy security.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency, which is tracking the death toll, said more than 2,550 people have been killed, 2,403 protesters and 147 government-affiliated.
Twelve children were killed, along with nine civilians it said were not taking part in protests. More than 18,100 people have been detained, the group said.
Gauging the demonstrations and the death toll from abroad has grown more difficult and The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll given the communications being disrupted in the country.
Melanie Lidman contributed from Jerusalem.
Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on countries that trade with Iran could impact India, an expert said, as New Delhi already faces existing 50% U.S. trade levies due its purchases of Russian oil.
Abhijit Mukhopadhyay, a senior economist at the Chintan Research Foundation in New Delhi, said the bigger risk is not India-Iran trade, but India’s access to the U.S. market as its exports to Iran are modest.
India mainly exports rice, tea, sugar, pharmaceuticals and electrical machinery to Iran, while importing dry fruits and chemical products. Textiles and garments, gems and jewelry and engineering goods are likely to be the most vulnerable sectors, he said.
Trump’s latest move also could affect India’s investments in Iran including the strategically important Chabahar port, which gives India a trade route to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe while bypassing Pakistan, Mukhopadhyay said.
Iran’s judiciary chief signals fast trials and executions for those detained in nationwide protests.
Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei made the comment in a video shared by Iranian state television on Wednesday.
He emphasized the need for swift action, saying delays would lessen the impact.
His remarks challenge Trump, who warned Iran about executions in an interview aired Tuesday.
Trump stated the U.S. would take strong action if Iran proceeded with executions. The situation highlights escalating tensions between the two countries over the handling of the protests.
Dozens of Pakistani students studying in Iran have returned home through a remote southwestern border crossing, a Pakistani immigration official said Wednesday.
Federal Investigation Agency spokesperson in Quetta city, Samina Raisani, said about 60 students crossed into Pakistan on Tuesday through Gabd border in Balochistan province with valid travel documents.
More students were expected to return through the same crossing later Wednesday, she said.
Mudassir Tipu, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, said Tuesday that Iranian universities had rescheduled exams and permitted international students to leave the country.
The satellite internet provider Starlink now offers free service in to people Iran who have access to the company's receivers, activists said Wednesday.
Mehdi Yahyanejad, a Los Angeles-based activist who helped get the units into Iran, told The Associated Press that the free service had started. Other activists also confirmed in messages online that the service was free.
Starlink has been the only way for Iranians to communicate with the outside world since authorities shut down the internet Thursday night as nationwide protests swelled and they began a bloody crackdown against demonstrators.
Starlink did not immediately acknowledge the decision.
This frame grab from videos taken between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, 2026, and circulating on social media purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after crackdown on the outskirts of Iran's capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)
