A two-year-old girl who the United States government was holding after her parents were deported has finally been returned to her family in Venezuela.
The toddler was identified as Maikelys Antonella Espinoza Bernal, who arrived at the Simon Bolivar International Airport on Wednesday on a reparation flight from the U.S. Venezuelan First Lady Cilia Flores was seen carrying the young girl as officials announced her return to the media.
Venezuelan Toddler Returned by U.S. Government
Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said to reporters that on that day, they had a "great victory." The situation comes as Venezuelan authorities have been demanding for weeks for the United States government to return the toddler, accusing American officials of kidnapping her.
Previously, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) denied the allegation, noting that the family was simply separated in an attempt to protect the toddler from her parents. The agency accused the couple of being part of the criminal group Tren de Aragua (TDA) but did not provide evidence of their supposed involvement, according to CNN.
The U.S. government deported the two-year-old girl's father, Maiker Espinoza-Escalona, in March, sending him to a notorious prison in El Salvador. On the other hand, her mother, Yorely Bernal, was deported on a flight to Venezuela without her daughter.
The young girl was finally reunited with her mother and grandmother at the presidential palace in Caracas. Media footage showed Bernal in tears while holding her two-year-old child tightly in her arms.
Other videos showed Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro greeting the two-year-old girl as she was reunited with her family. The mother noted that after she is reunited with her husband, she will be thinking about staying in her home country, ABC News reported.
America's Immigrant Situation
The family's situation comes as the government of Maduro has, for years, mostly refused the entry of immigrants deported from the U.S. However, since President Donald Trump took office again, hundreds of Venezuelan migrants have been forcefully deported to their home nation.
Maduro expressed his gratitude to Trump on Wednesday for the safe return of the two-year-old girl, noting that it was a "profoundly humane act." On the other hand, the Trump administration has argued that Venezuelans sent to Guantanamo and El Salvador are members of the Tren de Aragua.
Maduro said that despite the differences between the two nations' governments, with God's blessing, they can move forward and resolve various issues together. This was a reference to the deep divisions between his and Trump's administrations, as per CBS News.
