SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) – El Salvador’s bus drivers ended a four-day work stoppage yesterday, resuming their routes with security beefed up following deadly gang violence that forced them off the roads.
Bus transport in the violent Central American country ground to a halt on Monday after gang threats and shootings that killed nine people, nearly all of them bus drivers.
Officials said that beginning last week, gangs targeted the buses to pressure authorities into negotiating to ease a government crackdown on their operations and secure less harsh conditions for imprisoned members.
The stoppage, which mostly affected the private bus companies that operate in the capital of San Salvador, was ended as 600 soldiers and additional police officers were dispatched, many of whom were assigned to guard individual routes.
“We can say at this time that practically the entire passenger transport service is operating normally,” said Mauricio Ramirez, a national police official.
The police said some 30 gang members had been arrested over the past few days.
