More than 40 women killed in Honduran prison riot
1 year, 6 months ago

More than 40 women killed in Honduran prison riot

Al Jazeera  

A grisly riot at a women’s prison in Honduras on Tuesday has left at least 41 women dead in an outburst of violence that the country’s president blamed on “mara” street gangs that often wield broad power inside penitentiaries. — Xiomara Castro de Zelaya June 20, 2023 Local media interviewed one injured inmate outside the hospital who said prisoners belonging to the feared Barrio 18 gang burst into a cell block and shot other inmates or set them on fire. “We don’t have any information.” Julissa Villanueva, head of the country’s prison system, suggested the riot started because of recent attempts to crack down on illicit activity inside the prisons and called Tuesday’s violence a reaction to moves “we are taking against organised crime”. Tuesday’s riot may increase the pressure on Honduras to emulate the drastic zero-tolerance, no-privilege prisons set in up in neighbouring El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele.

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History of this topic

Attempted prison escape in Honduras leaves 2 inmates dead and 3 injured
3 months ago

Attempted prison escape in Honduras leaves 2 inmates dead and 3 injured

Associated Press  

MEXICO CITY — An attempted prison break early Thursday in Honduras left two inmates dead and three injured, authorities said. According to officials, a total of 72 prisoners took part in the attempted escape from the men’s prison in the town of Tamara, about 19 miles from the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa. The carnage led to calls for change to …

At least 261 people have died in El Salvador's prisons under anti-gang crackdown, rights group says
5 months, 1 week ago

At least 261 people have died in El Salvador's prisons under anti-gang crackdown, rights group says

Hindustan Times  

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador — The human rights organization Cristosal said Wednesday that at least 261 people have died in prisons in El Salvador during President Nayib Bukele's 2 1/2-year-old crackdown on street gangs. At least 261 people have died in El Salvador's prisons under anti-gang crackdown, rights group says Under a state of emergency originally declared in 2022 and …

At least 261 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons under anti-gang crackdown, rights group says
5 months, 1 week ago

At least 261 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons under anti-gang crackdown, rights group says

Associated Press  

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador — The human rights organization Cristosal said Wednesday that at least 261 people have died in prisons in El Salvador during President Nayib Bukele’s 2 1/2-year-old crackdown on street gangs. “People have died in El Salvador’s prisons and jails because of torture, a lack of food, unhealthy conditions, an inhuman lack of attention and cruel, inhuman …

Honduras plans to build a 20,000-capacity ‘megaprison’ for gang members as part of a crackdown
6 months, 1 week ago

Honduras plans to build a 20,000-capacity ‘megaprison’ for gang members as part of a crackdown

Associated Press  

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — The president of Honduras has announced the creation of a new 20,000-capacity “megaprison,” part of the government’s larger crackdown on gang violence and efforts to overhaul its long-troubled prison system. President Xiomara Castro unveiled a series of emergency measures in a nationally televised address early Saturday, including plans to strengthen the military’s role in fighting organized crime, …

Honduras to build 20,000-inmate ‘megaprison’ as part of gang crackdown
6 months, 1 week ago

Honduras to build 20,000-inmate ‘megaprison’ as part of gang crackdown

Al Jazeera  

President Xiomara Castro says new measures including ‘terrorist’ designations for gang members are in response to public complaints about rising violence. In a late-night televised address to the nation, President Xiomara Castro said on Friday the “plan of solutions against crime” was in response to a “security emergency” and public complaints about increasing violence. Flanked by members of Honduras’s National …

At least 241 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons during the ‘war on gangs,’ rights group says
8 months, 2 weeks ago

At least 241 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons during the ‘war on gangs,’ rights group says

New Indian Express  

SAN SALVADOR: At least 241 people have died in El Salvador prisons since the start of President Nayib Bukele’s “war on gangs” two years ago, according to the organization Humanitarian Legal Relief. In March 2022, Bukele announced a “state of exception,” waiving many constitutional rights to combat the gangs that have terrorized the Central American nation. Since then, El Salvador …

At least 241 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons during the ‘war on gangs,’ rights group says
8 months, 2 weeks ago

At least 241 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons during the ‘war on gangs,’ rights group says

Associated Press  

SAN SALVADOR — At least 241 people have died in El Salvador prisons since the start of President Nayib Bukele’s “war on gangs” two years ago, according to the organization Humanitarian Legal Relief. According to the NGO report, “of these deaths, 44% died of violent death, serious torture, 29% due to lack of medical attention.” While the government is accused …

El Salvador’s president jailed 1% of the population. Their children are paying the price
10 months ago

El Salvador’s president jailed 1% of the population. Their children are paying the price

LA Times  

A family member shows a phone photo of Juana Guadalupe Recinos Ventura, who was detained in June 2022 during El Salvador’s crackdown on drugs. “I’m scared, feeling like they could come and they could take away someone else in my family.” Forty thousand children have seen one parent or both detained in President Nayib Bukele’s nearly two-year war on El …

The president jailed 1 per cent of El Salvador''s population. Their children are paying the consequences
10 months, 1 week ago

The president jailed 1 per cent of El Salvador''s population. Their children are paying the consequences

Hindustan Times  

Santa Ana, Feb 10 Tears welled in Alex's eyes and he pressed his head into his hands as he thought about more than a year of birthdays and holidays without his mother, who was swept up by El Salvador's police as she walked to work in a clothing factory. “I'm scared, feeling like they could come and they could take …

The president seized 1% of El Salvador's population. Their children pay the consequences
10 months, 2 weeks ago

The president seized 1% of El Salvador's population. Their children pay the consequences

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “I’m scared, feeling like they …

Ecuador’s narco gang violence: A timeline of the recent crisis
11 months, 2 weeks ago

Ecuador’s narco gang violence: A timeline of the recent crisis

Al Jazeera  

Long seen as stable in a region wracked with drug-related crime, Ecuador is now seeing brazen attacks that have shocked many. Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa has declared a state of emergency after at least 10 people were killed in a series of bold attacks in the past several days, as the South American country grapples with record gang-related violence. Before …

Could El Salvador’s gang crackdown spread across Latin America?
1 year, 4 months ago

Could El Salvador’s gang crackdown spread across Latin America?

Al Jazeera  

A harsh crackdown on gangs has brought Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele popularity, but experts say the cost is steep. “When massive rights violations become commonplace, it’s very rare for this to result in lasting peace,” said Noah Bullock, executive director of the Salvadoran rights group Cristosal, which has monitored rights violations under the state of exception. “The magnitude of the …

El Salvador’s Congress votes to allow mass trials in gang crackdown
1 year, 4 months ago

El Salvador’s Congress votes to allow mass trials in gang crackdown

Al Jazeera  

El Salvador’s justice minister says up to 900 alleged gang members could be prosecuted at once under the new law. El Salvador’s Congress has approved group trials for the tens of thousands of people arrested during President Nayib Bukele’s crackdown on criminal gangs, which has given the country one of the world’s highest incarceration rates. Wednesday’s legislation will allow prosecutors …

Honduras wants to build West’s only island prison colony and lock gangsters inside
1 year, 5 months ago

Honduras wants to build West’s only island prison colony and lock gangsters inside

Associated Press  

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Honduras plans to build the only island prison colony in the Western Hemisphere and send its most-feared gangsters there, tearing a page from neighboring El Salvador’s unforgiving approach to murder, robbery, rape and extortion. “A new prison is quite useless if you don’t first regain control of the others you already have,” said Tiziano Breda, a Latin …

Honduras to build island colony to imprison gang members
1 year, 5 months ago

Honduras to build island colony to imprison gang members

Al Jazeera  

Officials hope the isolated facility will cut gang members off from criminal networks on the mainland. “A new prison is quite useless if you don’t first regain control of the others you already have,” said Tiziano Breda, a Latin America expert at Italy’s Istituto Affari Internazionali. “It’s the farthest away they can possibly be, so these gang leaders feel the …

Honduras copies El Salvador’s playbook in anti-gang crackdown
1 year, 5 months ago

Honduras copies El Salvador’s playbook in anti-gang crackdown

Associated Press  

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — A crackdown in Honduras on gangs in the nation’s prisons is eerily similar to one carried out last year in neighboring El Salvador by President Nayib Bukele, observers said Tuesday. “It’s the same phenomenon,” said retired police commissioner Henry Osorto, but added that the crackdowns should be scrutinized to see whether “standards and international treaties are being …

Honduran armed forces seize control of prisons to stamp out gangs
1 year, 5 months ago

Honduran armed forces seize control of prisons to stamp out gangs

Al Jazeera  

Crackdown comes in the wake of a gang-related attack at a women’s penal centre that left 46 people dead. The government of Honduras has announced a crackdown on organised crime within the Central American country’s prison system after an attack in a women’s penal centre left 46 people dead last week. Castro also said in her announcement that her administration …

Honduras adopts Salvadoran-style tactics in gang crackdown on prison inmates
1 year, 5 months ago

Honduras adopts Salvadoran-style tactics in gang crackdown on prison inmates

LA Times  

Authorities in Honduras forced half-naked inmates to sit in tight rows while they searched for contraband in a sweep of prisons Monday, similar to the harsh tactics of neighboring El Salvador. The prison sweep demonstrated the Honduran government’s resolve to crack down on gangs following last week’s gang-related massacre of 46 female inmates, the worst atrocity at a women’s prison …

Guns, grenades and deadly riots: The struggle for control of some of Central America’s most notorious prisons
1 year, 6 months ago

Guns, grenades and deadly riots: The struggle for control of some of Central America’s most notorious prisons

The Independent  

It is one of the deadliest outbreaks of violence Honduras has faced within its long-troubled prison system. Such violence is an issue that has plagued the Honduras prison system for two decades and beyond – with the National Commissioner for Human Rights in Honduras calling on authorities to step up their efforts to try and contain gangs, who control many …

Death toll rises to 46 in Honduran women’s prison gang violence
1 year, 6 months ago

Death toll rises to 46 in Honduran women’s prison gang violence

Al Jazeera  

Authorities say they are working to identify bodies burned during rioting on Tuesday. The number of people killed during a spate of rioting and fires at a Honduran women’s prison this week has risen to 46 with dozens of families waiting for the bodies of their loved ones to be released. The shooting and burning of dozens of people, one …

El Salvador's congress extends anti-gang crackdown
1 year, 9 months ago

El Salvador's congress extends anti-gang crackdown

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy El Salvador’s congress has voted …

Photos: Inside El Salvador’s new ‘mega prison’ for gang members
1 year, 9 months ago

Photos: Inside El Salvador’s new ‘mega prison’ for gang members

Al Jazeera  

The first 2,000 inmates of a new prison built in El Salvador to accommodate more than 40,000 suspected gang members targeted in President Nayib Bukele’s “war” on crime have arrived at the facility. Bukele tweeted on Friday: “At dawn, in a single operation, we transferred the first 2,000 members to the Center for the Confinement of Terrorism,” which he said …

El Salvador extends special powers in fight against gangs
1 year, 10 months ago

El Salvador extends special powers in fight against gangs

Associated Press  

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador — El Salvador’s congress has approved President Nayib Bukele’s request to extend the period of special powers for another month, meaning the country will go at least a full year with some fundamental rights suspended in fight against gangs. After a surge in gang violence in March 2022, in which 62 people were killed in a …

In El Salvador, a tough anti-gang crackdown proves popular
1 year, 11 months ago

In El Salvador, a tough anti-gang crackdown proves popular

Associated Press  

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador — Nine months into a state of emergency declared by President Nayib Bukele to fight street gangs, El Salvador has seen more than 1,000 documented human rights abuses and about 90 deaths of prisoners in custody. For decades, El Salvador’s main street gangs, Barrio 18 and the MS-13, have extorted money from nearly everyone and taken …

Ten killed as gang bosses’ transfer sparks prison riot in Ecuador
2 years, 1 month ago

Ten killed as gang bosses’ transfer sparks prison riot in Ecuador

Al Jazeera  

Ecuador has experienced eight prison riots which have left about 400 inmates dead since February 2021. Ten inmates have been killed in a riot at a prison in Ecuador’s capital Quito, which authorities said took place as a result of the government’s decision to relocate three crime bosses to a high-security facility. The prison riot and killings are the latest …

At least 15 killed in latest Ecuador prison riot
2 years, 2 months ago

At least 15 killed in latest Ecuador prison riot

Al Jazeera  

South American nation’s prison agency says 14 people were taken to hospital and work is under way to identify the dead. At least 15 prisoners have been killed and many wounded in the latest riot to hit Ecuador’s troubled prison system. Monday’s rioting at the Cotopaxi No 1 jail in Latacunga left “15 people dead and 20 injured,” said a …

Ecuador says 12 killed in latest deadly prison riot
2 years, 5 months ago

Ecuador says 12 killed in latest deadly prison riot

Al Jazeera  

Authorities lower death toll from 13 after riot at Bellavista prison as work continues to identify dismembered bodies. “Crime scene investigation teams have collected 45 human parts in the Santo Domingo penitentiary, which are 12 bodies and not 13,” Interior Minister Patricio Carrillo said on Twitter on Tuesday. The incident is the latest bout of deadly violence to grip Ecuador’s …

El Salvador committing ‘massive’ rights violations, Amnesty says
2 years, 6 months ago

El Salvador committing ‘massive’ rights violations, Amnesty says

Al Jazeera  

At least 18 people have died in state custody during sweeping gang crackdown, Amnesty International says in new report. Authorities in El Salvador have committed “massive human rights violations” in a sweeping gang crackdown, Amnesty International has said, including arbitrary arrests, violations of due process, torture and ill-treatment. In a new investigation released on Thursday, the UK-based rights group said …

El Salvador extends state of emergency amid gang crackdown
2 years, 6 months ago

El Salvador extends state of emergency amid gang crackdown

Al Jazeera  

Rights groups have accused the government of arbitrary arrests and violations of due process amid two month crackdown. The measure has since been accompanied by a raft of new anti-gang laws rights groups say infringe on the rights of the country’s 6.5 million citizens. On Wednesday, Bukele’s security minister, Gustavo Villatoro, said the government’s “war” on gangs will continue, even …

Ecuador imprisonment ‘almost a death sentence’: Amnesty
2 years, 7 months ago

Ecuador imprisonment ‘almost a death sentence’: Amnesty

Al Jazeera  

Rights group calls on government to address structural problems as prison riot left at least 44 inmates dead this week. Imprisonment is nearly “a death sentence” in Ecuador, Amnesty International has warned, a day after the latest prison riot in the South American nation left dozens of inmates dead. In a statement on Tuesday, the human rights group’s Americas director …

Dozens dead in latest Ecuador prison riot
2 years, 7 months ago

Dozens dead in latest Ecuador prison riot

Al Jazeera  

Authorities say at least 43 people killed after a fight broke out between rival gangs at prison 80km from Quito. Dozens of people have been killed in a fight between rival gangs inside a prison in Ecuador, the public prosecutor’s office said, in the latest instance of deadly prison violence in the South American nation. Authorities said a fight broke …

As El Salvador’s arrest wave continues, families live in worry
2 years, 7 months ago

As El Salvador’s arrest wave continues, families live in worry

Al Jazeera  

Relatives of people arrested in government’s crackdown on gangs say they have little to no information about loved ones. “I’m worried that they aren’t giving him medical attention and that something could happen to him,” his relative, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation from authorities, told Al Jazeera. “This situation causes despair, anguish and everything that …

El Salvador rights groups cite 338 violations amid gang crackdown
2 years, 7 months ago

El Salvador rights groups cite 338 violations amid gang crackdown

Al Jazeera  

Amid a spike in homicides, President Nayib Bukele declared a state of emergency in March aimed at stemming gang violence. Five human rights groups in El Salvador have reported that there have been complaints of at least 338 violations of human rights during El Salvador’s crackdown on gang members. At least 24,000 presumed gang members have been arrested since the …

El Salvador: A state of emergency indeed
2 years, 8 months ago

El Salvador: A state of emergency indeed

Al Jazeera  

On Saturday, March 26, El Salvador registered 62 homicides, the most recorded on any single day since the end of the country’s bloody civil war in 1992. Anyway, the pandemic response was a whopping success in El Salvador, as noted by a Bloomberg opinion article in May: “Police were given broad powers to enter homes without warrants and arrest those …

El Salvador’s Bukele warns gangs lead to ‘prison or death’
2 years, 8 months ago

El Salvador’s Bukele warns gangs lead to ‘prison or death’

Al Jazeera  

President’s comments come as country cracks down on gang membership after wave of murders last weekend. President Nayib Bukele has warned parents in El Salvador to keep their children away from gangs to avoid “prison or death”, as the country cracks down on gang membership after dozens of people were killed last weekend in a surge in violence. It is …

Ecuador pardons some inmates after deadly prison riots
3 years, 1 month ago

Ecuador pardons some inmates after deadly prison riots

Al Jazeera  

Ecuador is seeking to ease overcrowding in its prisons after gang-linked riots killed more than 300 people this year. Ecuador’s president has pardoned some prisoners in an effort to ease overcrowding in the country’s prisons following a string of riots that left more than 300 people dead this year. In a statement late on Monday, Guillermo Lasso’s press office said …

Ecuador deploys 100s of police to prison hit by deadly riot
3 years, 2 months ago

Ecuador deploys 100s of police to prison hit by deadly riot

Al Jazeera  

At least 116 inmates were killed this week in a prison riot that Ecuadorian officials say is linked to rival drug gangs. Ecuador’s national police force has said it sent hundreds of officers to a prison where a riot between rival gangs this week left at least 116 inmates dead and injured dozens more, in the deadliest outbreak of prison …

At least 24 killed in Ecuador prison gang riot: Police
3 years, 2 months ago

At least 24 killed in Ecuador prison gang riot: Police

Al Jazeera  

An Ecuador official said order restored in a prison after 24 killed and 42 wounded in one of the deadliest riots. At least 24 prisoners have been killed in a battle between inmates equipped with firearms and grenades at a prison in Guayaquil, according to Ecuador’s national bureau of prisons, which added that at least 42 others were wounded in …

Death toll in Ecuador prison riot tops 100: Officials
3 years, 2 months ago

Death toll in Ecuador prison riot tops 100: Officials

Al Jazeera  

Officials say deadly violence that involved gunfire, knives and explosions broke out after a dispute between two gangs. Officials in Ecuador say more than 100 inmates have been killed and 52 others injured in a riot between rival gangs inside a prison, the latest in a series of deadly clashes in the Andean nation’s overpopulated and understaffed prison system. Ecuador’s …

Ecuador: At least 18 inmates die in two prison riots
3 years, 5 months ago

Ecuador: At least 18 inmates die in two prison riots

Al Jazeera  

The latest violence comes months after at least 79 inmates died in the country’s worst prison riots. At least 18 inmates died and several police officers were injured during riots at two of Ecuador’s largest penitentiaries, the Andean country’s SNAI prison authority said late on Wednesday, marking the second major deadly wave of prison violence this year. On Thursday, Ecuador’s …

Guatemala prison: Several inmates beheaded in gang violence
3 years, 7 months ago

Guatemala prison: Several inmates beheaded in gang violence

Al Jazeera  

Hundreds of police have been deployed to restore order at the Cantel Prison, where at least seven inmates were killed. At least seven inmates have been killed, most of them beheaded, in clashes between rival gangs at a prison in western Guatemala, according to officials. Hundreds of police have been deployed to restore order at the Cantel Prison, which houses …

In Pictures: Ecuador prison riots leave dozens dead
3 years, 9 months ago

In Pictures: Ecuador prison riots leave dozens dead

Al Jazeera  

Ecuador on Wednesday raised the death toll from riots in four jails to 79, including 18 prisoners who were found dismembered at one site, one of the bloodiest outbreaks of prison violence in the country’s history. But even as authorities said they had regained control following the initial riots, the head of Ecuador’s national police wrote on Twitter on Wednesday …

At least 75 dead in Ecuador prison riots, dozens injured
3 years, 10 months ago

At least 75 dead in Ecuador prison riots, dozens injured

Al Jazeera  

Officials said gun and knife battles between rival gangs erupted on Monday night in three separate prisons. At least 75 people have been killed and dozens more injured in three separate prison riots in Ecuador, authorities said on Tuesday. “These were two groups vying for criminal leadership within the detention centres,” said Edmundo Moncayo, the director of Ecuador’s prison agency. …

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