Gangs in Soyapango township have a lot of power over local people and businesses (Photo: Reuters)

The government of El Salvador has sent 10,000 soldiers and police officers to seal off a city in search of gang members.

Troops have blocked the entrances and exits of Soyapango, preventing people from checking their documents.

Meanwhile, teams of specialists have headed straight into the city to look for gang suspects.

El Salvador’s gangs, estimated to number some 70,000 strong, have long controlled parts of the area and extorted and killed with impunity.

Today’s operation is one of the largest ever mobilizations in the crackdown on President Nayib Bukele.

“Currently, Soyapango’s community is completely surrounded,” Bukele wrote on his Twitter account.

He then posted videos showing rows of armed soldiers.

More than 58,000 people have been detained since a state of emergency was declared at the end of March following a string of killings.

A resident watches from her doorstep as a soldier takes part in an operation looking for gang members, in Soyapango, El Salvador, on Saturday, December 3, 2022. The government of El Salvador sent 10,000 soldiers and police to seal off Soyapango. on the outskirts of the capital Saturday. (AP Photo/Salvador Melendez)

A resident looks out her door as a soldier stands guard (Photo: AP)

Soldiers arrive in Soyapango, El Salvador on Saturday, December 3, 2022. El Salvador's government sent 10,000 soldiers and police to Soyapango, on the outskirts of the capital, on Saturday to search for gang members. (AP Photo/Salvador Melendez)

Today’s operation is one of the largest mobilizations under President Nayib Bukele (Photo: AP)

epa10346905 Salvadoran police officers patrol a street in Soyapango, El Salvador, December 3, 2022. About 10,000 members of the military and the National Civil Police (PNC) have been sent to the densely populated municipality of Soyapango to apprehend gang members who have failed to do so. done anyway, released and continued the war against gangs. EPA/Rodrigo Sure

Thousands used in search for gang members (Photo: EPA)

Rights groups have criticized the mass crackdown, saying young men are often arrested for their appearance or where they live.

It was part of what Bukele called “phase five” of the late November crackdown.

His governing party claimed such tactics worked in the city of Comasagua two months ago.

In October, more than 2,000 soldiers and police surrounded and cordoned off Comasagua in search of members of street gangs accused of murder.

This image released by the Press Office of the Presidency of El Salvador shows a soldier examining a man’s body for tattoos (Photo: Getty Images)

epa10346906 Salvadoran police officers patrol a street in Soyapango, El Salvador, December 3, 2022. About 10,000 members of the Armed Forces and the National Civil Police (PNC) have been dispatched to the densely populated community of Soyapango to hunt down gang members who have not yet been apprehended and the

Government wants to “pick up” gang members who have not yet been arrested (Photo: EPA)

Soldiers arrive in Soyapango, El Salvador on Saturday, December 3, 2022. El Salvador's government sent 10,000 soldiers and police to Soyapango, on the outskirts of the capital, on Saturday to search for gang members. (AP Photo/Salvador Melendez)

Human rights groups have expressed concern over the government’s tactics (Photo: AP)

Drones flew over the city and anyone entering or leaving the city was interrogated or searched. About 50 suspects were arrested in two days.

The government estimates that the number of homicides in the first 10 months of the year fell by 38% compared to the same period in 2021.

Human rights activists say young men are often arrested because of their age, appearance or because they live in a gang-dominated slum.

But Bukele’s crackdown reached another level earlier this month when the government sent prisoners to cemeteries to destroy the graves of gang members at a time of year when families usually visit the graves of loved ones.

NGOs have counted thousands of human rights violations and at least 80 deaths in custody from people arrested during the crackdown.

.