Trump administration to study legality of El Salvador offer to host U.S. prisoners

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio waves as he boards a plane at Juan Santamaria International Airport near San Jose, Costa Rica, Feb. 4, 2025. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS

SAN JOSE (Reuters) -The Trump administration is assessing whether it could take up El Salvador's offer to house U.S. citizens convicted of crimes in its jails, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday, despite the apparent illegality of such a move.

El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele on Monday offered the U.S. "the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system," he said on X after meeting Rubio.