Salvadoran special forces working with Haitian police and soldiers have taken control of the Sylvio Cator stadium in Port-au-Prince, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele said on Friday, in the latest escalation of his country’s military offensive against Haiti’s gangs. Several human skulls were found inside the sports venue, which will now be used as an operational base. The Haiti stadium seizure marks a new phase in an intervention that is drawing support and alarm in equal measure.
“Under a bilateral agreement between the governments of Haiti and El Salvador, a joint operation in which the Haitian National Police, the Armed Forces of Haiti, the working group and the Salvadoran Special Forces participated has taken control and successfully secured the Sylvio Cator stadium,” Bukele said. “During the operation, we discovered several human skulls inside it.” The Salvadoran leader said the allied forces now have a starting point to “continue moving toward the interior of the territory controlled by the gangs”, and urged gang members to leave the area before the offensive begins.
A Rescue Mission Turned Offensive
The deployment in Port-au-Prince is part of a contingent of more than 2,000 Salvadoran personnel that San Salvador maintains in Haiti, with the priority of locating and rescuing four Salvadoran military personnel, technical air assistants, who have been missing since an ambush by armed gangs in the Haitian capital on October 18. El Salvador’s military offensive began in mid-October, and the government has since sent 2,500 soldiers to the Caribbean country. In recent days, Salvadoran forces have increased their activity, with air strikes that Bukele claims destroyed the headquarters of the 400 Mawozo gang, and air support for Chadian personnel of the Gang Suppression Force, a structure backed by the United Nations to combat criminal groups.
On November 10, Bukele posted footage of attack helicopters firing on a compound near Port-au-Prince after requesting, via social media in Haitian Creole, the address of Wilson Joseph, leader of the 400 Mawozo gang. Bukele subsequently claimed the operation had demolished Joseph’s residence and gang headquarters, with as many as 20 people killed, although Joseph was reportedly absent. On November 6, Mathias Saintil, head of the “Boston” gang in Cité Soleil, was killed in a drone strike by a Haitian special task force. The Gang Suppression Force was authorised by the UN Security Council to deploy up to 5,550 personnel and currently has roughly 2,000 on the ground. Dozens of armed gangs control large parts of Port-au-Prince, and Haiti has not held elections in more than a decade. Experts say the offensive is a high-stakes gamble for Bukele, who is seeking a third term in February 2027 after constitutional changes removed presidential term limits, and who could both isolate allies like the Trump administration and dent popular support at home if Salvadoran casualties mount. Read more on our home page: https://reportrig.com/
