El Salvador's Bukele claims 365 days without murders
Issued on: 11/05/2023 - 22:58
Modified: 11/05/2023 - 22:56
Soldiers patrol against gang violence in San Salvador, on December 24, 2022 © Marvin RECINOS / AFP
2 min
San Salvador (AFP) – Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on Thursday claimed the Central American country known for its sky high levels of violence has accumulated 365 days without murders since he took office in 2019.
Just over a year ago, Bukele declared a "war" on organized criminal gangs and declared a state of emergency that allowed police to round up more than 68,000 suspected gang members without a warrant.
"We ended May 10, 2023 with zero murders at a national level. With that, it has been 365 (days) without a murder, an entire year," Bukele said on Twitter.
A source from the presidency's communications team explained to AFP that this was "the total number of days without murders since 2019" rather than consecutive days.
There are no independent sources to back up Bukele's figures.
His claim comes just weeks before he completes the fourth of his five-year term, in a country that once had one of the highest murder rates in the world.
More:
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230511-el-salvador-s-bukele-claims-365-days-without-murders
Bukele
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