Chanting "Long live Bukele!", hundreds of Haitian students thank the Salvadoran military deployment against gangs

Dozens of high school students march peacefully from Bois-Verna to the Champ-de-Mars in Port-au-Prince to support the operations against gangs. Throughout this week, hundreds of high school students and citizens in Haiti have carried out various peaceful mobilizations and public displays of support for the president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, and the Salvadoran military contingent deployed in the Caribbean country. The demonstrations respond to the perception of greater security in different areas of the capital, Port-au-Prince, following the start of joint operations against the gangs that have kept several communities under siege. Yesterday, November 13, 2026, dozens of students took to the streets of Port-au-Prince in a peaceful march that went from the Bois-Verna sector to the emblematic Champ-de-Mars, according to reports from the local outlet Amerique.info7. Carrying national flags and exchanging handshakes, the young people chanted slogans such as "Long live Bukele! Haiti shall not perish!", expressing their support for the armed offensive and calling for the strengthening of actions to restore calm to their neighborhoods and schools. These mobilizations add to previous student protests recorded in localities such as Belladère. The youth support has not been limited to the streets. During the same day on Friday, a video recorded inside a school in the West Department went viral on social media, showing groups of children enthusiastically chanting the name of the Salvadoran leader. These scenes reflect the student population's longing to resume their academic activities normally amid a prolonged insecurity crisis. Schoolchildren from the West Department chant the name of the Salvadoran leader in a video shared on social media. According to the official calendar of Haiti's Ministry of National Education, the week of November 9 to 13 corresponded to the first evaluation period of the 2026-2027 school year. However, the armed violence and the situation in the metropolitan area caused temporary closures and interruptions at several schools. Faced with this situation, students expressed feeling somewhat safer thanks to the presence of the Salvadoran troops, which has motivated them to take to the streets to thank them for the intervention and to ask for the continuation of the operations. Support for the security forces has also become evident among the adult civilian population. Various Haitian citizens have publicly expressed their gratitude to President Bukele and the Salvadoran soldiers for the work carried out on the ground. This support coincides with a strategic advance recorded this week: the joint forces of Haiti and El Salvador took control of the Sylvio Cator stadium, located in Port-au-Prince, with the aim of establishing an operational base against criminal groups. The sports venue had been occupied by gangs since 2024, which prevented free movement and activities in the area. As a result of the recent military deployment and the securing of the perimeter, residents of the areas surrounding the Sylvio Cator stadium have begun to move through the zone more frequently. A man kisses a flag of El Salvador displayed on an armored vehicle patrolling a street in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrice Noel) While these displays of solidarity are taking place, the Salvadoran mission continues to carry out search and rescue operations in Haiti to locate the four aeronautical technicians who were ambushed in the line of duty. The tactical actions remain active at key points in the capital to dismantle the centers of violence. Meanwhile, international organizations such as Amnesty International issued statements this week addressed to the governments of Haiti and El Salvador. In their declarations, they called for guaranteeing the application of strict security protocols to protect the civilian population and avoid risks in sensitive environments, such as the vicinity of schools, homes, and hospitals, as the joint operations to stabilize the country move forward.