El Salvador prisons: President authorises use of lethal force

Despite coronavirus fears due to overcrowding, prisoners are placed under 24-hour lockdown.

El Salvador security officials have been authorised to use “lethal force” against gang members following a surge in violence during the pandemic.

A state of emergency has been imposed in prisons, with inmates now locked in their overcrowded cells all day.

Al Jazeera’s Laura Burdon-Manley reports.