Venezuela denounces the U.S. for the forced separation and alleged kidnapping of Maikelys Espinoza Bernal, a two-year-old girl, launching a global campaign for her return. The case is spotlighted as a violation of migrant and child rights under international law.

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U.S. Homeland Security Kidnapped a Two-Year-Old Girl, Venezuela Denounces

Venezuela has ignited an international campaign, under the hashtag #freemaikelyespinoza and the slogan “SOS USA free Maikelys,” to demand the immediate return of Maikelys Espinoza Bernal, a two-year-old Venezuelan girl kidnapped by U.S. authorities and separated from her mother, Yorelis Bernal, during a repatriation process. The campaign, backed by the Venezuelan government and social movements, frames the incident as a blatant violation of international law and a continuation of the United States’ policy of forced family separation.

The Venezuelan government denounced the forced removal of Maikelys from her mother’s arms as she boarded a repatriation flight, calling it a “grave violation of human rights, international norms, and specifically the Universal Declaration of the Rights of the Child”. Officials highlighted that this is not an isolated case but part of a broader, systematic policy by the U.S. to separate migrant families, particularly targeting vulnerable groups from Latin America.

Yorelis Bernal, the mother of Maikelys, reported to Venezuelan authorities that she was detained in U.S. migrant centers and forcibly separated from her daughter, who has since been placed in multiple foster homes over the past year. Bernal’s husband, Maikel Alejandro Espinoza, was also detained and sent without due process to a detention facility in El Salvador, a move the Venezuelan government denounced as historical atrocities against humanity.

,#MaikelysEspinoza

Maikelys Espinoza Bernal Niña venezolana de 2 añitos separada de sus padres y retenida en Territorio Estadounidense.

.*#FreeMaikelysEspinoza pic.twitter.com/O1OcRRAyrg

— VENCEREMOS 💪🇻🇪 (@ChavezYMaduro25) April 29, 2025

The text reads: Maikelys Espinoza Bernal: 2-year-old Venezuelan girl separated from her parents and detained in U.S. territory.

The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry issued a public statement condemning the U.S. actions as a violation of the rights of migrants and children, demanding the immediate return of Maikelys to her family. The government has pledged to utilize all legal, political, and diplomatic avenues, including multilateral forums, to secure the child’s safe return and to hold the U.S. accountable for what it calls “inhumane practices”.

President Maduro: “A Crime Against Humanity”

President Nicolás Maduro, in a televised address, labeled the separation of Maikelys from her mother as a crime under international law and criticized the lack of action from global institutions such as the International Criminal Court. “Taking a child from her mother simply because she is a migrant is a crime under any international law,” Maduro stated, calling for national mobilization and international solidarity to demand justice for the family.

The Venezuelan government and allied social movements have called for mass participation in the upcoming May 1st marches, transforming International Workers’ Day into a demonstration for the return of Maikelys and the defense of migrant rights. The campaign seeks to unite Venezuelans and the international community in demanding an end to forced family separations and the protection of children’s rights

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