VIDEO. In El Salvador, President Nayib Bukele’s all-out war to eradicate gangs from the country

A scene that could be taken out of an action movie, but it is very real in El Salvador. 2,000 of the most dangerous prisoners in the country are transferred at a run to a new prison. The detainees transported by bus are part of the Maras, extremely violent criminal gangs that operate throughout the country. The transfer is also so sensitive that it is monitored by several helicopters.

A ruthless repression

Once in the new prison, the detainees are chained then grouped together one behind the other before being distributed in high security cells, devoid of windows and mattresses. This new prison is the pride of El Salvador’s new president, Nayib Bukele, elected at 41, making him the country’s youngest president. Today, El Salvador is ready to experience a new reality that has been denied to us for decades: to have a gang-free country. This war against the gang sometimes gives rise to excesses such as arrests without proof or the obligation to lift your t-shirt to prove that you do not have a tattoo, synonymous with a sign of belonging to a gang.