Tensions are rising between Venezuela and El Salvador following a controversial prisoner swap with the United States, as Caracas now shifts focus to potential human rights violations by Salvadoran officials.

Venezuelan authorities have announced they will investigate El Salvador’s Justice Minister Gustavo Villatoro and Head of Prisons Osiris Luna Meza for alleged abuse, as confirmed by Attorney General Tarek William Saab. While President Nayib Bukele has not directly responded to the allegations, he did weigh in on social media late Monday, focusing instead on the broader political context of the swap.

“The Maduro regime was satisfied with the swap deal; that’s why they accepted it,” Bukele posted on X. “Now they scream their outrage, not because they disagree with the deal but because they just realized they ran out of hostages from the most powerful country in the world.”

The remarks came after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, speaking on his weekly TV show, accused Bukele of attempting to sabotage the deal. Maduro claimed that Bukele tried to block one of the planes carrying migrants by parking a car on the runway—a move he said was intended to provoke an accident or halt the departure altogether.

Meanwhile, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado criticized the entire process, calling it an “exchange of prisoners of war” in a televised interview. Her comments echo wider concerns about the political nature of the swap and the state of justice in both nations.

Ironically, Venezuela is under its own international spotlight, currently facing investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The probe centers on accusations of torture and legal abuses involving political prisoners—similar to the claims Venezuela now levels against El Salvador.

As both countries trade accusations, the latest developments highlight the complex web of international diplomacy, human rights concerns, and political maneuvering that often lies beneath such high-profile prisoner exchanges.