Cristosal says decision to relocate employees was because of organisation being targeted by President Nayib Bukele

El Salvador’s top human rights organisation, Cristosal, announced on Thursday it is leaving the country because of mounting harassment and legal threats by the government of President Nayib Bukele.

The organisation has been one of the most visible critics of Bukele, documenting abuses in the strongman’s war on the country’s gangs and the detention of hundreds of Venezuelan deportees in an agreement with the US president Donald Trump.

Bukele’s government has long targeted opponents, but Cristosal’s executive director, Noah Bullock, said things reached a tipping point in recent months as Bukele has grown empowered by his alliance with Trump.