By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
WASHINGTON/MANAGUA (Worthy News) - More than a dozen Nicaraguans with the U.S.-based evangelical group Mountain Gateway are among some 135 prisoners released by Nicaragua’s government after months of negotiations with the United States, several sources confirmed.
About 13 Nicaraguan pastors and attorneys affiliated with Mountain Gateway, which has its headquarters in Texas, were released this week from jail after what the White House described as "their wrongful imprisonment."
They had been detained last December and were convicted in March of “money laundering” and sentenced to up to 15 years in prison, Worthy News learned. They were also fined nearly $1 billion, said sources familiar with the case.
“This is the day we have prayed and believed God for,” Jon Britton Hancock, founder of Mountain Gateway, said in a statement confirming their release.
“These pastors and attorneys have suffered greatly for the sake of the Gospel, but it has not been in vain. The Kingdom of God is advancing because of their persecution. Today, we cry tears of joy because our brothers and sisters are free!”
The White House said the United States secured their freedom and that of
dozens of political prisoners following talks with the government of autocratic President Daniel Ortega, who has often expelled individuals he sees as hostile to his rule in recent years.
Since 2018, Ortega's government has intensified a crackdown on his domestic political opponents, detaining and jailing critics on charges including “conspiracy and treason” and stripping many of their citizenship.
Those targeted also include Catholic church leaders, who had sought to mediate between the government and opponents during deadly anti-government protests.
Eric Jacobstein, a senior U.S. diplomat for Western Hemisphere Affairs who was involved in the negotiations, was in Guatemala City to greet some of the released prisoners. He said Washington would continue to push Managua to respect human rights. “One personal reaction I had in having conversations with some of these individuals is the true pettiness and cruelty of the regime," he added.
The prisoner release follows a larger one last year when more than 200 individuals were flown to the U.S., including former opposition presidential candidates who had sought to challenge Ortega in his 2021 reelection bid.
Ortega labeled those prisoners as “mercenaries" seeking to overthrow him.
In January, Nicaragua also expelled 19 Catholic clergy to the Vatican, including Ortega's most prominent critic, Bishop Rolando Alvarez. He had previously been convicted of “treason” and sentenced to a 26-year prison term.
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo's office confirmed that the plane carrying the 135 Nicaraguans landed in Guatemala early Thursday morning.
In Guatemala, they can request to go on to another country, which, for many, will likely be the United States.
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement that “No one should be put in jail for peacefully exercising their fundamental rights of free expression, association, and practicing their religion.”