Haiti PM visits El Salvador on troop mission

Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé will travel to El Salvador next week to meet with the Central American government. The visit aims to define the future role of Salvadoran military forces currently deployed in Haiti. A Salvadoran government official confirmed the itinerary to The Associated Press on Monday, speaking under the condition of anonymity.

It remains unclear if Fils-Aimé will hold a direct meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele. The diplomatic trip coincides with an expanded Salvadoran offensive against gangs in Haiti. At least 2,500 Salvadoran troops are now operating in the Caribbean nation. The military campaign began in October following an attack in which four Salvadoran aviation technicians went missing.

President Bukele has used the mission to project a strong stance against crime in the region. Haitian gangs control large sections of territory and maintain deep ties with parts of the local political elite. On Sunday, Haitian police and Salvadoran soldiers destroyed the home of Wilson Joseph, a leader of the 400 Mawozo gang. Joseph is better known by the alias Lanmò San Jou.

The operation was first reported by Haitian media and later confirmed by Damian Merlo, a lobbyist working for the El Salvador government. Joseph survived the attack, a common occurrence as gang leaders rotate between multiple safe houses. Two days before the strike, Bukele posted on the social media platform X asking followers for the location of Joseph's residence in Haitian Creole. He wrote, "Give us the exact address, and we'll destroy it."

Multiple accounts responded with what appeared to be direct coordinates for the property. Joseph previously told the Associated Press that the four missing Salvadoran technicians are dead. He stated they were attacked in territory controlled by a different gang, Chen Mechan. The Salvadoran government continues to maintain that the technicians are alive.

Merlo stated that Salvadoran troops operate in Haiti under a bilateral agreement signed by both governments. He declined to specify the exact legal rights granted to the foreign forces. He indicated the troops are operating under either a status of forces agreement or a broader memorandum of understanding. The Haitian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the visit.

Fils-Aimé addressed growing scrutiny of the mission last week. He said the Salvadoran forces are present to support the Haitian government in its fight against gangs. Bukele gained international attention for his own domestic war on gangs, which lowered homicide rates but drew allegations of human rights abuses.