On January 7, no one was killed in El Salvador, according to the National Civil Police (PNC) in its daily report on crimes committed to raise the number of victimless days to four and 522 days since Nayib Bukele took office as the country’s president.

According to authorities, 2023 was the safest year in El Salvador’s history with a homicide rate of 2.4 murders per every 100,000 people, the lowest in the Latin American region.

Minister of Security Gustavo Villatoro informed that last year’s daily average of homicides was 0.4 and 94.8 percent of the crimes perpetrated in 2023 have already been solved; that is, 146 cases in which the perpetrators were arrested and prosecuted.

On the other hand, the mayor’s office of San Salvador proactively joined the security work implemented by the Central Government during 2023, with increased operations, inspections, patrolling and other actions covered by municipal regulations, the results of which are evidenced by the fact that in 2023 no homicides were reported in the capital’s historic center.

Until 2019, El Salvador had reported a death wave that was similar to that of the civil war, with 70,948 people killed.

The most violent year in the country’s history was 2015, when more than 6,600 homicides were committed.

Homicides reached a record of 105 violent deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest worldwide in 2015.

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