US secures release of 135 Nicaraguan political prisoners

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The White House announced Thursday the United States has secured the release of 135 political prisoners it said had been unjustly detained in Nicaragua for peacefully exercising their “fundamental rights of free expression, association and practicing their religion.”

In a statement, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the prisoners were released on humanitarian grounds and include 13 members of the Texas-based evangelical Mountain Gateway organization, along with Catholic laypeople, students and others.

Sullivan said the prisoners were jailed because they were seen by Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo as “a threat to their authoritarian rule.”

In a statement on its website, Mountain Gateway said 11 of its members were arrested last December and charged with money laundering. The statement said all of the organization’s Nicaraguan assets were seized, and its registration to operate in the country was revoked.

The New York Times reported the organization had attracted thousands of followers and received millions of dollars in donations. The report said the Nicaraguan government accused Mountain Gateway of using its nonprofit status as a cover to purchase property and luxury items.

The Times report said the group was among about 1,600 similar organizations shut down by the Nicaraguan government in the past year.

Sullivan said the government of Guatemala has “graciously” agreed to accept the prisoners — all of whom are Nicaraguan citizens — upon their release. Once in the country, he said they will be offered the opportunity to apply for lawful ways to rebuild their lives in the United States.

The statement said Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were grateful to Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo for “his continued leadership across the region in addressing humanitarian issues and championing democratic freedom.”

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