El Salvador’s Parliament Extends State of Crime Emergency for Another Month
A handcuffed Mara Salvatrucha gang member waits for the start of a court trial at the Isidro Menendez Judicial Center in San Salvador, El Salvador, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2019. El Salvador on Tuesday began a mass trial of over 400 alleged gang members, including purported leaders of the feared transnational crime group Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13. 
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Legislative Assembly of El Salvador announced on Wednesday that it has extended for another 30 days the state of emergency introduced in March to fight organized crime and extended monthly since then.”We will not step back in the war against bandits until all terrorists are in jail. We are extending the state of emergency for another 30 days to end the violence inherited from previous administrations,” the parliament said on Twitter.The parliament imposed a month-long state of emergency on March 27 at President Nayib Bukele’s request after over 60 people were killed in a shootout with armed gangs in one day. Bukele referred to local criminals as terrorists and pledged to impose 30-year jail sentences just for belonging in an organized criminal gang.The state of emergency and associated law enforcement operations sought to curb a spike in murders both inside and outside prisons, which have been attributed to the largest Central American gang, Mara Salvatrucha. According Bukele, since the emergency was declared, crime rate in the country has declined markedly, with homicides dropping to zero.The latest figures from the Salvadoran police indicate that over 46,000 criminals have been detained in the country since the state of emergency was introduced.
