El Salvador Locks Up Hundreds After Gangs Unleash Terror
- President Bukele urged congress to grant him emergency powers
- U.S. Treasury alleged secret pact between government and gangs
Soldiers patrol the streets following the government's declaration of state of emergency, in San Salvador, on March 27.
Photographer: Marvin Recinos/AFP/Getty Images
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Police in El Salvador used emergency powers to round up nearly 600 suspected gang members after criminals unleashed a killing spree over the weekend that spread terror across the Central American nation.
In the early hours of Sunday morning, the National Assembly approved a state of emergency request made by President Nayib Bukele, which grants the police extra powers. The move came after at least 62 people were slaughtered on Saturday in some of the worst bloodshed since the nation’s civil war ended three decades ago.