Santa Cruz massacre (El Salvador)
Santa Cruz massacre | |
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Part of Victoria, in the Cabañas department of El Salvador. It took place during the Salvadoran Civil War .
During the massacre, the armed forced of El Salvador killed civilians as they deployed scorched earth tactics during an anti-guerilla military action. BackgroundPeople living in the Fuerzas Populares de Liberación guerrilla groups.[1]
March 1981To combat the guerrilla movements, the government armed forces deployed scorched earth tactics, starting on March 15, 1981, allegedly killing civilians, destruction of housing, animals and crops. To escape the violence, communities hid in the forest or in caves, and some attempted to flee to Honduras by crossing the Lempa River. Many were shot by both Salvadoran and Honduran forces from aircraft as the swam across the river.[1] The United Nations Truth Commission for El Salvador attributed between 20 and 30 deaths to the river crossing, attributing some deaths to gunfire and some to drowning. A further 189 people disappeared.[2] MassacreOn October 15, 1981 the Puente de Oro bridge over the Lempa River was destroyed with explosives by guerrillas and the military received intelligence that they planned to destroy a dam on the river. AftermathIn March 2015, online magazine Joel Simon Executive Director of the Columbia Journalism Review "did not substantively challenge the facts".[8]
On October 2, 2015, the University of Washington's Center for Human Rights launched litigation against the Central Intelligence Agency, accusing the agency of withholding information about the massacre. The centre had previously submitted a request for information, citing the United States Freedom of Information Act.[6] A few days after the litigation filing, the offices of the centre were robbed and hard drives containing testimonies about the massacre were stolen.[9] See alsoReferences
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