El Salvador sends over 2,000 troops to Haiti to rescue four missing soldiers

El Salvador has deployed more than 2,000 soldiers to Haiti to rescue four of its military personnel who went missing ten days ago. The soldiers disappeared after armed gangs attacked their armored vehicle near the capital, Port-au-Prince.

The four soldiers are members of the UN-backed Gang Suppression Force (GSF). Their armored vehicle was hit by explosives while they were traveling back to their base from a market on the outskirts of the capital. It remains unknown whether they are being held by a gang.

“Gangs are testing the Gang Suppression Force.”

President Nayib Bukele announced the deployment earlier this week and spoke by telephone with Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé about the rescue operation. Bukele emphasized the strength of the operation and reaffirmed El Salvador's willingness to continue supporting security efforts against gangs in Haiti.

The Gang Suppression Force, whose mandate was extended by the UN Security Council until March 2027, has achieved little since arriving in Haiti in April. Only about 2,000 troops from countries including Chad, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Guatemala, Jamaica, and El Salvador are currently participating, far below the originally planned 5,500.

Gangs control at least 80 percent of Haiti and are increasing their resistance to the mission. A GSF representative told the UN Security Council on Monday that gangs are testing the force. Bukele previously issued an ultimatum in Haitian Creole on X, threatening to eliminate Haitian gangs if the Salvadorans are not released.