El Salvador has launched a military operation to rescue four Salvadoran men abducted by gangs in Haiti, President Nayib Bukele announced on Wednesday in a post on X, warning that a more forceful response would follow if they were not released alive and well.1,2,3,4
The four men are aviation technicians who were part of the Gang Suppression Force, a United Nations-backed international mission, according to Bukele and the Daily Wire. Al Jazeera described them as soldiers in its report. The men were taken after gangs fired on their armoured vehicle in Croix-des-Bouquets, a neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital, in what was described as the first major attack since the force began operating in the Caribbean country last year.1,4
Salvadoran officials initially said the men had escaped the ambush on foot, according to the Daily Wire, and Al Jazeera reported that the men fled the burning vehicle in the Santo area of Croix-des-Bouquets and have been missing since. Bukele later confirmed that they were being held hostage. The ambush took place on Sunday, three days before Bukele’s announcement.1,4
In a message posted to X in Haitian Creole, Bukele addressed the gang leaders and members holding the men. “Our kidnapped men are not combatants,” he wrote. “They are aviation technicians who are part of our mission in Haiti, within the framework of an international mission.” He added that their work was limited to medical evacuations, saying, “Our mission consists only of pilots and technical personnel, whose primary job is to carry out medical evacuations and save lives, not to wage war.”4,1
Bukele said the men were seized “in a cowardly manner while returning after buying food at a market in the area.” He wrote that the military had already begun the operation, stating, “We have a single objective: to bring our four compatriots back home alive, without any harm.”4
“I want you, the gang leaders, to understand one thing very clearly: today’s attack is nothing compared to what is coming if we do not get all four hostages back alive,” Bukele wrote. He went on: “Do not take our word for empty threats. We have already finished with the gangs in El Salvador, and we can finish with you too.” He concluded, “The decision is in your hands.”1,2,4
Haiti’s government issued a news release on Wednesday evening saying the release of the abducted men was an “absolute priority.” The statement said a meeting had been held at the prime minister’s office “to assess the ongoing interventions and determine the necessary measures to strengthen operations, in close collaboration with the Gang Repression Force,” the name used in the release. It was not immediately clear whether Haitian authorities had received any confirmation that the Salvadoran men were alive. A spokesperson for the force did not immediately respond to a request for details.1
The United States also weighed in. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz pledged to help secure the technicians’ rescue. “To the gangs and gang leaders who carried out this cowardly attack, if you think you’re going to intimidate this coalition into retreat, you have made a terrible mistake,” he said.4
TheBlaze summarized Bukele’s message as saying the operation would not escalate if the hostages were returned safely, while the Daily Wire described the same message as a warning that something worse was coming if all four were not returned alive. The reports did not say what military steps the operation involves, where the men are being held, or whether the gangs had responded to Bukele’s message.2,4
For now, the fate of the four men remains unclear, and the reports did not say when the operation might conclude.1,4
