El Salvador sends 10,000 police, army to seal off town

[Judi Lynn]

1. El Salvador: The people caught up in the gang crackdown

1 hour ago

By Will Grant
BBC Central America correspondent

When El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele attended a graduation ceremony for military officers last week, he brought more than just warm words for their future careers in law enforcement.

He also delivered the latest escalation in his ruthless crackdown on the country's street gangs which has seen a staggering 57,000 people arrested on suspicion of gang affiliation since March.

Yet Mr Bukele's self-proclaimed "war on gangs" has also given rise to some disturbing cases of wrongful arrest.

"Thanks to God and thanks to you, Salvadoreans have true peace", President Bukele told thousands of soldiers and police officers in a slickly produced night-time event to launch the fifth phase of his controversial "Territorial Control Plan".

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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-63793652