Murder rate increases sharply in El Salvador

Relatives retrieve the body of Alberto Hernández near Caserío el Chumpe, El Salvador. Police believe that the 42-year-old driver was killed by gang members.

(Manu Brabo / Associated Press)

Nov. 6, 2015 4:11 PM PT

During the first 10 months of 2015, El Salvador — a country with a population of 6.5 million — reported nearly 5,500 homicides, making it the murder capital of the world, according to Elizabeth Kennedy, a San Diego State University social scientist.

Suspected gang members are detained at a police station in Ilopango, El Salvador, in August. It was reportedly the deadliest month in the civil-war-scarred country’s history.

(Salvador Melendez / Associated Press)

Relatives wait for information outside the prison in Quezaltepeque, El Salvador, in August after several inmates were killed in violence involving the 18th Street gang.

(Salvador Melendez / Associated Press)

Investigators inspect the scene after four suspected members of the Mara Salvatrucha gang were killed in October in Cojutepeque, El Salvador, reportedly by someone disguised as a policeman.