At least 261 people have died in El Salvador’s prisons under anti-gang crackdown, rights group says

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — The human rights organization Cristosal says at least 261 people have died in prisons in El Salvador during President Nayib Bukele’s 2 1/2-year-old crackdown on street gangs. Since 2022, Bukele’s government has rounded up 81,110 people and accused them of being gang members, often based on a person’s appearance or where they live. The rights group said in a report that, as of April 15, 88 of the 261 deaths “may have been the result of a criminal act.” It said 87 of the deaths were due to illnesses, 14 were apparently “acts of violence” and no cause could be immediately identified for the other 72.