Ex-El Salvador president sentenced to 14 years for negotiating with gangs
NBCJun 02, 2023
El Salvador Rings Off Entire Region to Battle Gangs
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Image copyright: La Prensa Gráfica/YouTube [via Wikimedia Commons]
The Facts
El Salvador's security forces have surrounded the rural Cabañas department, adjacent to Honduras, to block gangs from leaving the region and to disrupt their supply chains following an attack over the weekend that injured two police officers.
The military siege, reported on Tuesday by President Nayib Bukele, is part of a new operation in his war against criminal organizations. 7K military personnel and 1K heavily armed police officers have been sent to the central province.
The Spin
Right narrative
The once gang-ridden El Salvador has seen a significant plunge in gang-related violence, including homicides, since Bukele ordered emergency powers be used to repress organized crime over a year ago. Therefore, it's no surprise that lawmakers keep renewing the special powers each month, or that eight out of every ten Salvadorans approve the anti-gang measures.
Left narrative
Homicide rates and extortions have indeed fallen, meaning Bukele's hardline crackdown on gangs has won supporters at home and abroad despite ignoring basic rights and involving the arrest of lots of innocent people. History, however, has shown that this plunge is unsustainable, as "iron fist" drives in Latin America too often end poorly as they fail to tackle the root causes of violence and fuel resentment.
