El Salvador Gangs

Francisco Valladares, known as "Demonio," a member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang, hangs his hands through the bars of a jail cell in San Salvador, El Salvador, Nov. 29, 1995. He drove a friend's car into food stand in downtown San Salvador while driving dunk. Virtually unknown before the end of the civil war four years ago, gangs are an explosive phenomenon sweeping El Salvador, conveniently filling the niche of violence left when the war ended.(AustralFoto/Douglas Engle)

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Francisco Valladares, known as "Demonio," a member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang, hangs his hands through the bars of a jail cell in San Salvador, El Salvador, Nov. 29, 1995. He drove a friend's car into food stand in downtown San Salvador while driving dunk. Virtually unknown before the end of the civil war four years ago, gangs are an explosive phenomenon sweeping El Salvador, conveniently filling the niche of violence left when the war ended.(AustralFoto/Douglas Engle)

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