Friend, we’re emailing with an important update on the ongoing human rights emergency at El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison:

On July 18, the Salvadoran government released 252 Venezuelans from CECOT and sent them to Venezuela. But others the U.S. sent to El Salvador may still be detained there. We don’t know who or how many, and that’s the problem.

What we do know is this: Our government brokered a backroom deal with another country to disappear hundreds of immigrants. Since their release, the men have shared harrowing stories of torture, including being denied food, brutal beatings, and sexual assault. People must be held accountable for this injustice. That’s why we’re calling on members of Congress to:

• Demand the release of the full list of individuals disappeared to CECOT

• Guarantee the U.S. government never sends someone there — or anywhere their life is in danger

• Hold elected officials accountable for sending people to a known torture site

Join us in demanding your representatives in Congress push for full transparency and accountability — and ensure no one else is sent to CECOT or any place where their life is in danger.

We will not let this atrocity — nor those who were detained and their families — be forgotten. Here are some of the stories of the people we are fighting for:

Frengel Reyes Mota is a father, husband, and pet owner. On February 4, he went to an ICE check-in and never came home again. Without presenting any evidence, ICE agents claimed that Frengel had gang ties and detained him on the spot. Just over a month later, he was forced onto a plane set for El Salvador, leaving behind his family. His young son recognized his father watching the news on television — Frengel was behind bars, making the international hand sign for ‘help’.

Jerce Egbunik Reyes Barrios is a soccer player, husband, and father. He fled Venezuela due to political violence and sought asylum in the U.S. He had an asylum hearing scheduled April 17 but was sent to CECOT just one month before. His family and lawyers are adamant that he has no gang affiliations, and still, the Trump administration sent him to El Salvador, a country that he has no connection to.

Anyelo Jose Sarabia Gonzalez, now 20 years old, was living in Texas with his two older sisters when ICE detained him without warning during an asylum check-in on January 31. The reason? While living in Arlington, TX, Anyelo got a hand tattoo that most teen boys would think was “cool”: a rose with $100 bills instead of petals. On April 4, Anyelo turned 20 inside the walls of the CECOT torture prison — alone.

Stand with Frengel, Jerce, Anyelo, and hundreds of others. Send a message to your representatives urging them to hold our elected officials accountable and demand justice for everyone sent to CECOT.

Disappearances are the tools of authoritarian regimes. Together, we must stand with our immigrant neighbors, hold those responsible accountable, and prevent the further erosion of our democracy.

Thank you standing with us,

— National Immigration Law Center