PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Four Salvadoran soldiers serving with the U.N.-authorized Gang Suppression Force remained unaccounted for Monday after suspected gang members ambushed their armored vehicle and set it ablaze just east of Haiti’s capital, El Salvador’s armed forces said, the Miami Herald reported.
“The armored vehicle was struck by explosives and caught fire. However, all four military personnel managed to escape from the vehicle,” the armed forces said in a statement. Salvadoran military helicopters sent to support them also came under fire, and “multiple attempts have been made to reach the area by land and air, but these efforts have been hampered by the intensity of the fighting and security conditions in the area.”
The soldiers, aviation technicians with El Salvador’s Liberty Task Force II, were reportedly returning to their camp from a market when they were ambushed at about 1:30 p.m. Sunday in Santo, in the Croix-des-Bouquets area, an area controlled by the 400 Mawozo and Chen Mechan gangs. Earlier reports, including by The New York Times citing people familiar with the situation, had put the number missing at five.
The Gang Suppression Force said its personnel returned fire and deployed helicopters to search for the soldiers, and it urged residents of Santo and surrounding communities to stay indoors until further notice.
It is the first major attack on the force, which has more than 1,500 troops on the ground from Chad, El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Mongolia and Sri Lanka, with 4,000 more expected in the coming months, according to the Miami Herald. The U.N. Security Council extended its authorization for another six months last month.
Haiti’s gang crisis has claimed more than 22,000 lives since 2021, The New York Times reported.
Sources: Miami Herald, The New York Times
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