Crisis brewing as El Salvador’s Congress votes out top judges

Rights advocates and political opposition decry the move as an attempt by President Nayib Bukele to cement his power.

Human rights and judicial experts have slammed lawmakers aligned with El Salvador’s populist President Nayib Bukele for voting to dismiss top Supreme Court judges, a move they say aims to remove any opposition to Bukele’s firm grip on power. On Saturday, the legislative assembly voted to dismiss all the justices in the Supreme Court’s constitutional chamber for issuing “arbitrary” decisions. The lawmakers also voted to dismiss Attorney General Raul Melara, considered close to an opposition party.