Harrowing photos show prisoners stacked together as punishment for a spate of violence in El Salvador

• The office of Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, released photos this week showing the brutal conditions hundreds of prisoners have been put in — stripped and stacked together — after several days of violence leading to more than 20 deaths.
• The photos were released to try and intimidate or humiliate the captives after intelligence warned the deaths outside of prisons had been ordered by imprisoned gang leaders. But human rights groups fear for the prisoners.
• Erika Guevara, Amnesty International's director for the Americas, told Reuters: "We view these photos taken of people deprived of their liberty in the prisons with great concern, they are scenes where people are brought together in prison yards in a humiliating, demeaning manner."
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Hundreds of prisoners were stripped and stacked together in El Salvador after several days of violence that led to more than 20 deaths, as the president tried to prevent further violence.

El Salvador's president Nayib Bukele released the photos this week to try to intimidate or humiliate the captives, analysts told The Washington Post. This was after intelligence warned the government that the killings had been ordered by imprisoned gang leaders.

But the photos were so brutal and contrary to current social distancing guidelines, human rights activists worried measures had been taken too far.

Erika Guevara, Amnesty International's director for the Americas, told Reuters: "We view these photos taken of people deprived of their liberty in the prisons with great concern, they are scenes where people are brought together in prison yards in a humiliating, demeaning manner."

Here are photos showing what it's like in El Salvador's prisons.

While Bukele added: "From now on, all the gang cells in our country will remain sealed. They will no longer be able to see outside the cell. This will prevent them from using signs to communicate with the hallway. They will be inside, in the dark, with their friends from the other gangs."

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Sources: Newshub, Reuters

While Bukele added: "From now on, all the gang cells in our country will remain sealed. They will no longer be able to see outside the cell. This will prevent them from using signs to communicate with the hallway. They will be inside, in the dark, with their friends from the other gangs."

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Sources: Newshub, Reuters

El Salvador's prisons director Osiris Luna Meza wrote on Twitter earlier in the week: "Not a single ray of sunlight is going to enter any cell."

Gang members sit inside a cell at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown after a high number of homicides on April 27.      Jose Cabezas / Reuters

Sources: Washington Post, Newshub

After the initial release, Reuters journalists were given a tour of the facility. They saw people soldering metal sheets onto prisoners' cell doors.

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Source: Reuters

Bukele also ordered members of rival gangs into shared cells as he tried to stop gang members from communicating with each other.

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Source: Reuters

But Bukele's office released these photos on Twitter for a reason. He was sending a very public message meant to humiliate and intimidate, according to The Washington Post, and he was harnessing social media to do so.

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Sources: Washington Post, Newshub

Erika Guevara, Amnesty International's director for the Americas, told Reuters: "We view these photos taken of people deprived of their liberty in the prisons with great concern, they are scenes where people are brought together in prison yards in a humiliating, demeaning manner."

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

What was so stark about the photos is how close the prisoners were put together, while the rest of the world practices social distancing.

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Source: Reuters

Prisoners were secured in rows and stacked closely together.

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Prisoners were stripped of their clothes and dragged from their cells in Izalco jail so they could be checked for contraband.

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

On Monday, Bukele told his security cabinet: "We are going to make sure the gang members who committed these killings regret having made this decision for the rest of their lives."

Gang members are secured during a police operation at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown in Izalco, El Salvador.      El Salvador Presidency/Handout / Reuters

Source: Reuters

Last week, things escalated after a spate of about 20 murders outside of prisons. Intelligence reports suggested the orders to kill came from imprisoned gang leaders. In response, Bukele ordered a crackdown on prisoners.

Gang members sit inside a cell at Izalco jail during a 24-hour lockdown ordered by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele after a high number of homicides in Izalco, El Salvador on April 27.      Jose Cabezas / Reuters

Source: Al Jazeera

On March 22, Bukele announced El Salvador would enter a nation-wide lockdown, and anyone breaking the rules could be imprisoned without going through a court.

El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele delivers his speech to the newly inducted members of the armed forces at Gerardo Barrios square in front of the National Palace in San Salvador, El Salvador, in February.      Salvador Melendez / AP

Source: Al Jazeera

President Nayib Bukele has become popular for cracking down on crime while ignoring human rights critics. About 12,862 gang members are currently in prisons across the country, according to local authorities.

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele in February.      Jose Cabezas / Reuters

Sources: Reuters, Newshub

El Salvador, a country of 6.5 million, has been dealing with rampant street gangs since the early 1990s, after its civil war.

Police officers stand by a suspect outside a seized MS-13 gang usurped house during an operation in El Salvador, in 2019.      Jose Cabezas / Reuters

Source: Reuters