El Salvador to apply life sentences to minors for serious crimes [View all]

Source: Reuters

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has enacted legal reforms allowing ​life imprisonment for minors as young ‌as 12 convicted of homicide, terrorism, or rape, according to the country's official gazette.

The measures, published ​on Tuesday and scheduled to take ​effect April 26, follow a constitutional amendment ⁠approved in March by the government-controlled Congress.

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The constitutional amendment came days after an ​international legal panel reported "reasonable grounds" to suggest El Salvador ‌has ⁠committed crimes against humanity during a years-long state of emergency.

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The ​44-year-old president's ongoing state of emergency, ​which ⁠suspends various constitutional guarantees, has led to the detention of more than 90,000 people. ⁠Humanitarian ​organizations estimate at least 500 ​of those detainees have died in state custody.

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/el-salvador-apply-life-sentences-minors-serious-crimes-2026-04-15/