Crime

El Salvador authorizes ‘lethal force’ against gangs as murders spike during coronavirus pandemic

By Zach Halaschak
Published April 27, 2020 10:26pm ET
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El Salvador authorizes ‘lethal force’ against gangs as murders spike during coronavirus pandemic
Migrants traveling in a group begin their journey toward the U.S. border as they walk along a highway in San Salvador, El Salvador, early Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2019. Migrants fleeing Central America's Northern Triangle region comprising Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala routinely cite poverty and rampant gang violence as their motivation for leaving. | (Salvador Melendez/AP)

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has authorized “lethal force” against gang members after dozens of murders during the coronavirus pandemic.

The country, which has tens of thousands of Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, members, saw two dozen homicides on Friday, prompting it to lock down its gang-filled prisons, from where authorities said most of the murders are ordered.

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Tag:

Central America COVID-19 El Salvador MS-13 Police and Law Enforcement Prisons