BREAKING: Senator meets with Kilmar Abrego Garcia in El Salvador amid court fight over his return to U.S. after mistaken deportation.

BREAKING: Senator meets with Kilmar Abrego Garcia in El Salvador amid court fight over his return to U.S. after mistaken deportation.

SAN SALVADOR (AP) — Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen met Thursday in El Salvador with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man who was sent there by the Trump administration in March despite an immigration court order preventing his deportation.

Van Hollen posted a photo of the meeting on X, saying he also called Abrego Garcia’s wife “to pass along his message of love.” The lawmaker did not provide an update on the status of Abrego Garcia, whose attorneys are fighting to force the Trump administration to facilitate his return to the U.S., saying he would have more details Friday.

El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele posted images of the meeting minutes before Van Hollen shared his post, saying, “Now that he’s been confirmed healthy, he gets the honor of staying in El Salvador’s custody.” The tweet ended with emojis of the U.S. and El Salvador flags, with a handshake emoji between them.

spokeswoman for El Salvador’s presidency said she had no further information.

The meeting came hours after Van Hollen said he was denied entry into an high-security El Salvador prison Thursday while he was trying to check on Abrego Garcia’s well-being and push for his release.