Asylum seekers being deported to El Salvador by the U.S. government face serious abuse and possible death, according to a report released by Human Rights Watch Wednesday.
Findings from the report reveal that at least 138 people have been killed and 70 others severely abused since returning to the country between 2013 and 2019. Human Rights Watch says those numbers were identified through press accounts, court files and interviews, but that the true number of such cases is likely far greater.
The report comes as the Trump administration continues to tighten restrictions for asylum seekers and immigrants from countries like El Salvador, which have been plagued by gang violence.
According to NBC, more than 50 percent of the 1.2 million Salvadorans living in the U.S. are undocumented.
The report asks that the Trump administration "adopt new legal and policy framework" that better considers the realities of those seeking asylum.
