Man leaving prison area while lowering his head due to nearby gunfire in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. AFP file photo.
Port-au-Prince: El Salvador has deployed special forces to Haiti execute a high-priority rescue mission for four missing Salvadoran troops who went missing following a gang while serving in a UN-backed security mission, government officials confirmed.
A contingent from El Salvador arrived on Thursday "to support ongoing search and security operations" in the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac area outside the capital Port-au-Prince, the Gang Suppression Force (GFS) said in a statement on X.
"The Force continues its operations in the area in close coordination with the Haitian National Police and relevant operational partners," GFS said, urging local residents to stay away.
The four Salvadoran soldiers went missing after their armored vehicle was ambushed by gangs on Sunday as they were returning to base from a market outside Port-au-Prince, according to US envoy to the United Nations Mike Waltz.
The attackers fired hundreds of bullets and used explosives against the vehicle, Waltz said, adding that officials believed the four soldiers had survived.
In a statement on X on Wednesday, El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele insisted the soldiers were not combatants, but aviation technicians "whose primary job is to carry out medical evacuations and save lives, not to wage war."
He issued a stern warning, demanding their release.
"I want you, the gang leaders, to understand one thing very clearly: today's attack is nothing compared to what is coming if we do not get all four hostages back alive," wrote Bukele, who has pursued a sweeping crackdown on gangs in his home country.
"Do not take our word for empty threats. We have already finished with the gangs in El Salvador, and we can finish with you too."
