Nicaragua Releases 135 Political Prisoners in Humanitarian Gesture

Nicaragua has taken a significant step by releasing 135 political prisoners on humanitarian grounds, a move facilitated by negotiations with the U.S. government, as announced by the White House on Thursday. The individuals released were sent to Guatemala, where they will undergo processing as refugees.

This release notably included 11 pastors from Mountain Gateway, an evangelical missionary church based in Texas. The Nicaraguan government had previously accused these pastors of exploiting their nonprofit status to acquire luxury items, properties, and land.

In addition to the pastors, the group of released prisoners comprised a diverse array of individuals, including Catholic laypeople, students, and others deemed a threat to the authoritarian regime of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo, who serves as the vice president. Jake Sullivan, the National Security Adviser, emphasized the importance of this development in a public statement, saying, “The United States again calls on the government of Nicaragua to immediately cease the arbitrary arrest and detention of its citizens for merely exercising their fundamental freedoms.”

Upon their arrival in Guatemala, the former prisoners will be granted the opportunity to apply for legal pathways to rebuild their lives, whether in the United States or in other nations. Mr. Sullivan extended gratitude to Guatemalan President Bernado Arévalo for his administration’s cooperation in this humanitarian effort and for his unwavering commitment to democratic principles.

The Mountain Gateway pastors were apprehended in December following an extensive eight-city evangelical crusade that amassed an impressive $4 million in expenses and attracted nearly one million attendees. They faced severe repercussions, receiving prison sentences ranging from 12 to 15 years, in addition to being fined a staggering total of nearly $1 billion.