The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, responded this Friday with a religiously toned message to those who warn that his military mission in Haiti is doomed to failure, stating that “God will grant us victory” against the gangs that have kidnapped four of his soldiers.
The president posted the message on his X account in direct response to an analysis by the user Humberto Salazar (@drhsalazar), who titled his post "BUKELE AND HIS WATERLOO?" and warned that the chances of the kidnapped Salvadoran soldiers remaining alive are "minimal," comparing the situation to Napoleon's failure in Haiti in 1802.
Bukele acknowledged the arguments of his critics but dismissed them outright: "Many messages, analyses, and comments like this one claim that the gangs in Haiti are not like those in El Salvador; that they are bloodthirsty, heavily armed, that no one has been able to defeat them, that all missions have failed, that we are falling into a trap."
Many messages, analyses, and comments like this assure that the gangs in Haiti are not like those in El Salvador; that they are ruthless, that they are heavily armed, that no one has been able to defeat them, that all missions have failed, that we are falling into a trap, that we do not know what we are up against, that it will be our ruin, that we are heading toward our Waterloo.
The president also referred to Haitian gangs as "satanic" and claimed that "it is public knowledge that they commit human sacrifices," in contrast to his own troops: "All those who have enlisted are believers, and we have entrusted this mission to God."
As a spiritual backing, Bukele quoted Deuteronomy 28:7: "The Lord will defeat your enemies who rise against you; they will come at you from one direction but will flee from you in seven."
The crisis erupted on Sunday, October 18, when four Salvadoran military aviation technicians —members of Task Force Liberty II, which is part of the multinational Gang Suppression Force supported by the UN— were ambushed in Croix-des-Bouquets, northeast of Port-au-Prince, while they were returning from buying food.
His armored vehicle was attacked with gunfire and explosives, caught fire, and since then, all contact with the four men has been lost.
The gangs identified as responsible are Chen Mechan, led by Claudy Célestin, and 400 Mawozo, whose leader Wilson Joseph —known as "Lanmò San Jou"— publicly challenged Bukele in a social media video, displaying weapons and ammunition, and warning that he will not leave the country.
On October 21, Bukele announced a rescue operation and issued an ultimatum to the gang leaders: "Return our four compatriots to us alive, unharmed, and everything will go back to how it was before the kidnapping. The decision is in your hands."
This Friday, approximately 100 El Salvador special forces arrived in Haiti, although Haitian media reported the possibility of up to 300 additional personnel. The figure of 3,000 military personnel mentioned in the analysis cited by Bukele has not received official confirmation.
The Salvadoran president arrives at this confrontation backed by the results of his domestic security policy: El Salvador went from 6,656 homicides in 2015 to just 82 in 2025, with a rate of less than one per 100,000 inhabitants in 2026.
However, critics point out that Haiti—where gangs control between 80% and 90% of the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince—is a radically different scenario, with its own language, culture, and history, and where previous international missions, including the U.S. intervention in 1994 with 20,000 troops, failed to stabilize the country.
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