SAN SALVADOR: Salvadoran authorities arrested 6,312 suspected gang members in the past 10 days, as part of an offensive to curb a rise in homicides, reported Xinhua, quoting the National Civil Police on Tuesday.
Some 4,000 of the suspects were being held in prisons, including maximum security prisons, as of Monday, according to Director of Penal Centers Osiris Luna Meza.
Due to the high rate of daily arrests, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele ordered the construction of a new maximum security prison with a capacity of 20,000 inmates.
In addition, he chaired a ceremony on Monday to incorporate 1,450 new military personnel into a government strategy, focusing on mitigating the causes of crime and the spread of gangs.-Bernama
