Key facts
- Bukele said the ground and air attack hit a complex on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince.
- Bukele said most gang members fled without trying to fight.
- The Miami Herald reported that gang leader Wilson "Lanmò San Jou" Joseph was not at the site during the attack.
- Several media outlets reported as many as 20 people were killed, a figure authorities have not confirmed.
- Haitians have questioned whether the property was destroyed or only damaged, with no official confirmation of the extent.
- Amnesty International urged both countries to ensure Salvadoran operations in Haiti comply with international human rights law.
El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele said on November 10 that Salvadoran military forces destroyed the headquarters of Haiti's 400 Mawozo gang in a ground and air attack on a complex on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince. Bukele announced the operation on X and posted video of helicopters firing on the site, which he said was in the gang's stronghold. He wrote that the strikes destroyed "the house of [gang leader] Lanmò San Jou and the 400 Mawozo gang's headquarters" and said most gang members fled without trying to fight.
The BBC said it could not verify the video or whether the property is the gang's headquarters. Several media outlets reported that as many as 20 people were killed, a figure authorities have not confirmed. There has also been no official confirmation of the extent of the damage, and Haitians have questioned whether the complex was destroyed or only damaged. The Miami Herald reported that the gang's leader, Wilson "Lanmò San Jou" Joseph, was not there at the time.
Haiti's National Police drone task force was involved in the attack, supported by Salvadoran soldiers, the Miami Herald reported, citing several sources. Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé thanked the Salvadoran military's commitment "in the fight against gangs" and said the two nations would keep working with the UN-backed Gang Suppression Force to "regain control of the territory and restore state authority."
The operation was El Salvador's first military action on a Haitian target since it deployed more than 2,000 soldiers to Haiti in October 2026 as part of a mission to rescue four missing Salvadoran technicians. Bukele has vowed to bring the men home alive and warned the gang to release them. Critics have said not all the Salvadoran troops work within the Gang Suppression Force's command structure, raising questions about the legality of their actions. Amnesty International urged both countries to ensure Salvadoran operations comply with international human rights law.