After multiple attempts, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) met Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal immigrant deported from the United States and sent to a mega-prison in El Salvador.

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele shared photos on Thursday evening of Van Hollen, Abrego Garcia, and one other individual meeting and having a conversation over drinks. He did so in a post on X mocking the idea that Abrego Garcia was perhaps dead or being kept in inhumane conditions.

“Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the ‘death camps’ & ‘torture’, now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” Bukele said.

Van Hollen posted another photo of himself with Abrego Garcia, albeit with no margaritas.

“I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance. I have called his wife, Jennifer, to pass along his message of love. I look forward to providing a full update upon my return,” Van Hollen said.

Van Hollen travelled to El Salvador earlier this week, calling Abrego Garcia a “constituent” who endured an “abduction and unlawful deportation.”

The senator told reporters on Wednesday that El Salvador’s government rejected his request to check on Abrego Garcia and, earlier on Thursday, was blocked by soldiers in an attempt to visit the prisoner at the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT). Van Hollen later said he intended to “keep at this” until he could make sure Abrego Garcia had his “rights to due process.”

Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old man from El Salvador who entered the United States unlawfully, but got permission from a judge to stay in 2019, had been living in Maryland when he was detained and deported last month as the Trump administration cracks down on illegal immigration.

This particular deportation has become the subject of a high-profile legal fight, which remains ongoing after the Supreme Court issued a ruling last week that said the government must “facilitate,” but not necessarily “effectuate,” Abrego Garcia’s return.

Although the government said in court the deportation was an “administrative error,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller later dismissed the claim, pinning it on a “saboteur” within the Justice Department.

The Trump administration also has accused Abrego Garcia of being a member of MS-13, which has been designated as a foreign terror organization. Abrego Garcia’s attorneys have reportedly denied that their client is part of the gang, but the government has publicly released documents to substantiate the affiliation.

In an order on Thursday refusing to stop a judge’s demand for Trump administration officials to testify on whether they are making an effort to “facilitate” getting Garcia back, a U.S. appeals court panel said, “The government asserts that Abrego Garcia is a terrorist and a member of MS-13. Perhaps, but perhaps not. Regardless, he is still entitled to due process.”

More revelations have been made concerning Abrego Garcia as his case drew national attention. A newly uncovered restraining order shows Abrego Garcia was accused of beating his wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, who now says they worked through the incident.

During a White House meeting with President Donald Trump, Bukele declared that he would not send Garcia back to the United States. “How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States?” Bukele said, adding, “I don’t have the power to return him.”

Shortly after revealing that Van Hollen and Abrego Garcia had met, Bukele posted again on X, saying, “Now that he’s been confirmed healthy, he gets the honor of staying in El Salvador’s custody.”

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After multiple attempts, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) met Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal immigrant deported from the United States and sent to a mega-prison in El Salvador.

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele shared photos on Thursday evening of Van Hollen, Abrego Garcia, and one other individual meeting and having a conversation over drinks. He did so in a post on X mocking the idea that Abrego Garcia was perhaps dead or being kept in inhumane conditions.

“Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the ‘death camps’ & ‘torture’, now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” Bukele said.

Van Hollen posted another photo of himself with Abrego Garcia, albeit with no margaritas.

“I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance. I have called his wife, Jennifer, to pass along his message of love. I look forward to providing a full update upon my return,” Van Hollen said.

Van Hollen travelled to El Salvador earlier this week, calling Abrego Garcia a “constituent” who endured an “abduction and unlawful deportation.”

The senator told reporters on Wednesday that El Salvador’s government rejected his request to check on Abrego Garcia and, earlier on Thursday, was blocked by soldiers in an attempt to visit the prisoner at the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT). Van Hollen later said he intended to “keep at this” until he could make sure Abrego Garcia had his “rights to due process.”

Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old man from El Salvador who entered the United States unlawfully, but got permission from a judge to stay in 2019, had been living in Maryland when he was detained and deported last month as the Trump administration cracks down on illegal immigration.

This particular deportation has become the subject of a high-profile legal fight, which remains ongoing after the Supreme Court issued a ruling last week that said the government must “facilitate,” but not necessarily “effectuate,” Abrego Garcia’s return.

Although the government said in court the deportation was an “administrative error,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller later dismissed the claim, pinning it on a “saboteur” within the Justice Department.

The Trump administration also has accused Abrego Garcia of being a member of MS-13, which has been designated as a foreign terror organization. Abrego Garcia’s attorneys have reportedly denied that their client is part of the gang, but the government has publicly released documents to substantiate the affiliation.

In an order on Thursday refusing to stop a judge’s demand for Trump administration officials to testify on whether they are making an effort to “facilitate” getting Garcia back, a U.S. appeals court panel said, “The government asserts that Abrego Garcia is a terrorist and a member of MS-13. Perhaps, but perhaps not. Regardless, he is still entitled to due process.”

More revelations have been made concerning Abrego Garcia as his case drew national attention. A newly uncovered restraining order shows Abrego Garcia was accused of beating his wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, who now says they worked through the incident.

During a White House meeting with President Donald Trump, Bukele declared that he would not send Garcia back to the United States. “How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States?” Bukele said, adding, “I don’t have the power to return him.”

Shortly after revealing that Van Hollen and Abrego Garcia had met, Bukele posted again on X, saying, “Now that he’s been confirmed healthy, he gets the honor of staying in El Salvador’s custody.”

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