The Ecuadorian government is exploring new prison infrastructure projects inspired by models in El Salvador and other countries, as it nears completion of the first of two prisons initiated under the administration of President Daniel Noboa, according to Interior Minister John Reimberg in an interview with EFE.

“We are already looking at additional prison projects,” said Reimberg, who visited El Salvador in late April alongside Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo to learn about that country’s security and prison policies under President Nayib Bukele.

The two ministers toured multiple correctional facilities, including Bukele’s “mega-prison” for gang members, officially known as the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), which, according to the Salvadoran government, has a capacity of around 40,000 inmates.

“We were well received there. They shared all the necessary information with us, and we were able to observe not only CECOT but several other prisons and their processes. It was very helpful,” Reimberg explained. “When we move forward with new prison projects, we’ll be incorporating those ideas, among others, here in Ecuador.”

The minister added that the first of Ecuador’s two new prison facilities is expected to be completed within the next two months.

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Recent immigration raids in Los Angeles, led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), have raised alarm among immigrant rights activists, who claim that U.S. citizens of Latino descent are being detained based solely on their appearance, a practice they describe as racial profiling.

Over the course of two weeks, hundreds of individuals have been arrested. Among them are U.S.-born citizens, such as Cary López Alvarado, a nine-months pregnant 23-year-old woman who was detained on June 8 in Hawthorne by masked federal agents.

López was arrested alongside her partner, Brayan Nájera, and her cousin Alberto Sandoval—also a U.S. citizen—and taken to a processing center despite presenting her identification. “You’re from Mexico, right?” one of the agents reportedly asked, according to her account to KTLA. “I said, ‘No, I’m from here, from Los Angeles,’” she recalled.

With chains around her ankles and wrists, she struggled to protect her pregnant belly. After complaining of pain, she was released and taken to a hospital, where she gave birth to a healthy baby girl four days later. Her daughter has yet to meet her father, who was transferred to a detention center in Texas.

“This kind of arrest is outrageous and heartbreaking,” said Luis Carrillo, López’s attorney, who warned the incident could have caused a miscarriage due to extreme stress.

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Protests erupted soon after. On Tuesday, nearly 1,000 people gathered in Pico Rivera demanding justice for Adrián Andrew Martínez, a 20-year-old Walmart employee who was physically assaulted by federal agents. Videos show an officer grabbing him by the neck and slamming him to the ground, despite bystanders shouting that Martínez was a U.S. citizen and an employee of the store.

In another incident on Thursday in Montebello, vendor Javier Ramírez shouted, “I have my passport!” as he was handcuffed outside his business along with an employee. The scene, captured on video, quickly went viral.

Federal authorities have defended the arrests by claiming that individuals were obstructing ICE operations. However, community members and organizations such as CHIRLA, led by director Angélica Salas, condemned the actions, stating that “U.S. citizens are being disappeared because of the color of their skin.”

The operation, announced by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, is expected to continue for up to 60 days, leaving the Latino community in Los Angeles on edge.

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U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that it is “possible” his administration may announce an agreement with Harvard University, following weeks of tension over the university’s academic autonomy and ideological stance.

“We have been working closely with Harvard, and it is very possible that an agreement will be announced sometime next week,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

He added that Harvard has behaved in an “extremely appropriate” manner during the alleged negotiations, but did not provide further details about the potential deal.

“If we reach an agreement with the institution, it will be incredibly historic and highly beneficial for our country,” Trump stated.

The announcement came almost simultaneously with a decision by a Boston judge, who on Friday indefinitely blocked Trump’s attempt to bar Harvard from hosting international students and scholars while the university’s lawsuit against the federal government proceeds.

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Trump has been clashing with Harvard since April, after the university rejected demands from his administration to dismantle its diversity programs and monitor the ideological views of foreign students, following allegations that it tolerated antisemitism on campus.

“Harvard has been hiring nearly every ‘woke,’ far-left radical, idiot, and birdbrain who only knows how to teach FAILURE to students,” Trump wrote on April 15 on Truth Social. “It can no longer be considered a decent place to learn and should not receive federal funding.”

Since then, Trump has threatened to revoke Harvard’s tax-exempt status and froze federal funding, accusing the institution of promoting antisemitic behavior.