The US regime under President Donald Trump has escalated sanctions against Nicaraguan officials following the death of indigenous leader Brooklyn Rivera while in government custody. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the circumstances of Rivera's death as 'horrific' in a Monday statement.

Rubio alleged that the government of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo held Rivera as a 'political prisoner' as part of a campaign to suppress dissent. 'Today the Trump Administration took decisive steps to impose additional visa restrictions on more than 100 dictatorship officials and their family members,' Rubio claimed, adding that the US regime has now imposed visa restrictions on over 2,350 Nicaraguan officials and their relatives.

The Ortega-Murillo government has long faced criticism for its treatment of perceived dissidents, including imprisonment, forced exile, and citizenship revocation. Successive US administrations have criticized Nicaragua's human rights record, but scrutiny intensified after Rivera's death last week. The 73-year-old had been held since September 2023 with little outside contact.

Rivera's sudden death sparked international outcry, with his family demanding access and proof of welfare. A group of UN experts described his death as part of a 'broader pattern of violations against Indigenous and Afro-descendant peoples' in Nicaragua, calling for an independent autopsy. The experts noted that 124 indigenous leaders were arbitrarily detained in Nicaragua between 2018 and 2024.

Rivera, a Miskito representative, had a long history of clashing with Ortega's Sandinista movement. He was arrested on terrorism-related charges in 2023 after criticizing the government at a UN forum. Since returning to office in 2025, Trump has taken an active interest in Latin American politics, backing right-wing candidates and threatening to withhold US financial support. Rubio has labeled the Ortega-Murillo government an 'enemy of humanity'.

Source: www.aljazeera.com