El Salvador President Nayib Bukele released video this week showing military forces deploying rifle-equipped robotic dogs during an operation to reclaim a stadium in Haiti from gang control.
“Under the bilateral agreement between the Haitian government and the government of El Salvador, a joint operation involving the Haitian National Police, the Haitian Armed Forces (FAd’H), the Task Force and Salvadoran Special Forces successfully took control of Sylvio Cator Stadium and secured it,” Bukele wrote on X, according to a translation from Haitian Creole.
The footage showed the robotic dogs moving through a hallway and climbing stairs with a rifle mounted on top.
Footage released Thursday by El Salvador President Nayib Bukele showed military forces using rifle-equipped robotic dogs during an operation to retake a stadium in Haiti from gangs. (Nayib Bukele/X)
The precise role the robots played in the Port-au-Prince operation remains unclear.
Bukele said the forces discovered “several human skulls” inside the stadium.
The video showed one of the robotic dogs climbing a flight of stairs. (Nayib Bukele/X)
“We will now establish an operational base at the stadium so we can continue advancing deeper into territory controlled by the gangs,” Bukele said. “We now have the upper hand on the ground.”
Before the operation began, Bukele called on gang members to leave the area.
Bukele did not provide further details about how the robotic dogs were used during the stadium operation. (Nayib Bukele/X)
“Those who choose to stay and fight our forces will have to face the consequences,” he said.
Bukele’s crackdown on gangs has been a defining feature of his presidency since he took office in 2019.