This upcoming Sunday, the people of Venezuela will hold an election that, if legitimate, would put an end to years of the oppressive Maduro narco-regime. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) issued a statement in support of the Venezuelan people: “The...
News
Latest News
Rubio: “La Tenacidad y Valentía del Pueblo venezolano Estarán a la Vista”
Este próximo domingo, el pueblo venezolano tendrá una elección que, de ser legítima, pondría fin a años de opresión por parte del narco-régimen de Maduro. El senador estadounidense Marco Rubio (R-FL) grabó un mensaje de video en español y emitió una declaración en...
Rubio, Scott, Colleagues to Biden Admin: No Privileges Should Be Given to 9/11 Terrorist
Twenty-three years ago, the United States was attacked by Islamic terrorists on September 11, 2001. Now, Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in a U.S. court for his role in the attack, has requested the U.S. Department of Justice to allow a prisoner transfer...
Next Week: Rubio Staff Hosts Mobile Office Hours
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) office will host virtual Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their respective local communities. These office hours offer constituents who do not live close to one of Senator Rubio’s...
Rubio, Colleagues Introduce Ensuring Continuity in Veterans’ Health Act
As the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) opens up new facilities, many veterans are losing access to the VA’s Community Care Program and, consequently, their long-term healthcare providers. Veterans throughout the country have reported a loss of care, including...
Rubio Introduces Bill to Strengthen U.S.-India Security Partnership
The U.S.-India partnership is vital to countering influences from Communist China. In order to strengthen this partnership, it is essential to enhance our strategic diplomatic, economic, and military relationship with New Delhi. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)...
Rubio, Murphy, Colleagues To Pompeo: Use Your Office To Publicly Push For Release Of Americans And Political Prisoners Detained Abroad To Protect Them From Covid-19
Miami, FL — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Chris Murphy (D-CT), members of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, led 15 senators in urging Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to strongly press foreign governments to immediately release U.S. citizens and political prisoners detained abroad in order to protect them from COVID-19. In a letter to Secretary Pompeo, the senators noted that these individuals housed in jails, prisons and other detention facilities are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, and it’s imperative that they be immediately released on humanitarian grounds to ensure their health and safety.
Joining Rubio and Murphy in signing the letter were Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), John Cornyn (R-TX), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Bob Casey (D-PA), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR).
“Detention facilities are a fertile breeding ground for COVID-19, with rampant overcrowding, lack of basic hygiene, ill-equipped medical facilities, and poor health conditions. In many authoritarian countries, these conditions are further exacerbated by inhumane conditions including malnutrition, medical neglect, and torture,” the senators wrote.
The senators wrote about specific Americans being held, saying: “These appalling conditions put many internationally detained Americans’ health at immediate risk. We welcome the recent releases of Michael White from Iran and Amer Fakoury from Lebanon, and urge that those examples become the norm, not the exception. At the same time as we mourn the loss of Mustafa Kassem and Robert Levinson, Americans who remain in detention include Austin Tice in Syria; Salah al-Haidar and Bader al-Ibrahim in Saudi Arabia; Morad Tahbaz and Siamak Namazi in Iran; Reem Mohamed Desouky, Khaled Hassan, and Mohamed Amashah in Egypt; Paul Whelan in Russia; the Citgo 6 in Venezuela; and many others. These Americans should have never been jailed in the first place, and must be immediately released.”
The senators continued, “More broadly, authoritarian regimes around the world continue to detain tens of thousands of political prisoners in the middle of this pandemic, even while some of those same governments have demonstrated the willingness and ability to release hundreds of thousands of other people from prison. For example, Iran recently released hundreds of thousands of prisoners due to COVID-19, but continues to hold high-profile dissidents in jail. Syria, Egypt, Turkey, China, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, Bahrain, and many other countries also continue to jail those independent voices in an effort to silence them.”
“In the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting the health and safety of unjustly detained Americans and political prisoners is critical. We urge you to publicly call for the release of Americans and political prisoners locked up abroad on baseless charges and raise their cases with your counterparts,” the senators concluded.
The full text of the letter is below.
Dear Mr. Secretary:
We write to convey our concern regarding the plight of political prisoners, including American citizens, detained by authoritarian regimes around the world. These individuals housed in jails, prisons and other detention facilities are particularly vulnerable to the spread of COVID-19. To ensure the health and safety of those individuals, we urge you to strongly press foreign governments to immediately release American citizens unjustly detained abroad, as well as political prisoners, on humanitarian grounds.
Detention facilities are a fertile breeding ground for COVID-19, with rampant overcrowding, lack of basic hygiene, ill-equipped medical facilities, and poor health conditions. In many authoritarian countries, these conditions are further exacerbated by inhumane conditions including malnutrition, medical neglect, and torture.
These appalling conditions put many internationally detained Americans’ health at immediate risk. We welcome the recent releases of Michael White from Iran and Amer Fakoury from Lebanon, and urge that those examples become the norm, not the exception. At the same time as we mourn the loss of Mustafa Kassem and Robert Levinson, Americans who remain in detention include Austin Tice in Syria; Salah al-Haidar and Bader al-Ibrahim in Saudi Arabia; Morad Tahbaz and Siamak Namazi in Iran; Reem Mohamed Desouky, Khaled Hassan, and Mohamed Amashah in Egypt; Paul Whelan in Russia; the Citgo 6 in Venezuela; and many others. These Americans should have never been jailed in the first place, and must be immediately released.
More broadly, authoritarian regimes around the world continue to detain tens of thousands of political prisoners in the middle of this pandemic, even while some of those same governments have demonstrated the willingness and ability to release hundreds of thousands of other people from prison. For example, Iran recently released hundreds of thousands of prisoners due to COVID-19, but continues to hold high-profile dissidents in jail. Syria, Egypt, Turkey, China, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, Bahrain, and many other countries also continue to jail those independent voices in an effort to silence them. These prisoners of conscience should be immediately released on humanitarian grounds.
In the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting the health and safety of unjustly detained Americans and political prisoners is critical. We urge you to publicly call for the release of Americans and political prisoners locked up abroad on baseless charges and raise their cases with your counterparts. This is not the time for these regimes to use people’s lives as bargaining chips; it is a time to provide humanitarian relief as we face the global threat of COVID-19.
Thank you for your consideration. We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,