El Salvador Says Its Military Destroyed Gang Headquarters in Haiti
El Salvador's military has destroyed the headquarters of the 400 Mawozo gang in Haiti, according to President Nayib Bukele. He announced the claim on X on Tuesday, writing: "We destroyed the house of [gang leader] Lanmò San Jou and the 400 Mawozo gang's headquarters."
The target was reportedly a large complex in Croix-des-Bouquets, a town on the outskirts of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince. Local reporting described it as the gang's stronghold. The BBC reported that helicopters fired on the complex and that video showed dozens of people running from the property.
The BBC said it had not been able to verify Bukele's video or confirm that the property was in fact the gang's headquarters.
The operation was El Salvador's first military action against a Haitian target since it sent more than 2,000 soldiers to Haiti last month. Those troops were deployed as part of a mission to rescue four missing Salvadoran technicians.
400 Mawozo is one of the armed gangs that control large parts of Port-au-Prince and its surroundings. Its leader, Lanmò San Jou, is named in Bukele's post.
Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé thanked the Salvadoran military after the strikes. He said Haiti would keep working with El Salvador and with the Gang Suppression Force, a multinational security force backed by the United Nations, to confront armed groups.
