El Salvador sends 2,000 troops to Haiti after technicians go missing

El Salvador has sent roughly 2,000 troops to Haiti, with the contingent reportedly approaching a cap of 2,500, after four Salvadoran aviation technicians serving with the U.N.-backed Gang Suppression Force went missing in a gang ambush on Oct. 18. President Nayib Bukele has described the deployment as a mission to find the technicians and confront the gangs, while their fate remains disputed: a nongovernmental organization said it turned over four burned bodies it believed were theirs, a claim Bukele rejected. The scale and speed of the deployment have raised questions about whether it will extend beyond a rescue operation; authorities have not clearly set out its command structure or rules of engagement, and a former Haitian defense minister questioned its legal basis without a formal agreement. Analysts and critics also warn that applying Bukele’s tough-on-gangs approach in Haiti could carry risks for civilians and differs from El Salvador’s security environment. A report also said President Donald Trump encouraged Bukele’s action and that U.S. military transport helped move Salvadoran troops, although Washington reportedly denied some requested support.