10 shot dead in early hours of new year in El Salvador, including 11-year-old

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador – Salvadoran authorities say 10 people have been shot dead in the early hours of the new year, including an 11-year-old killed by men dressed as police.

Police officials say five people were killed in a rural eastern area of the country and five gang members died in a confrontation with police.

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READ MORE: El Salvador’s 677 murders in June most since end of civil war

Two men, two women and an 11-year-old child were slain early Friday by men dressed like police who stormed into two humble dwellings and sprayed them with gunfire in the Los Cerritos community about 160 kilometres east of the capital, San Salvador.

In the second incident, National Police Commissioner Veronica Uriarte says agents on patrol encountered five alleged gang members in Valle Nuevo just south of San Salvador and exchanged gunfire.