SAN SALVADOR (AP) — El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele on Saturday denied that human remains handed over to his military teams at Haiti ’s airport were the bodies of the four Salvadorans reported missing after coming under attack by gangs on Oct. 18.
An official with El Salvador ’s government, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the matter, confirmed that the bodies found were not those of the missing aviation technicians.
The four missing Salvadorans are members of a gang suppression force established by the U.N. Security Council to combat organized crime in the Caribbean nation. Bukele has clarified that the Salvadorans are aviation technicians, not troops trained for combat.
On X, Bukele wrote that a nongovernmental organization handed over the remains of a child, a man “of considerably greater height than that of our air technicians," and another person wearing a uniform different from those worn by Salvadoran personnel.
He did not directly mention a fourth body, but wrote that “among the remains, identification cards and military uniforms from other countries were also found.”
“They are not our men,” Bukele wrote, adding that the organization that handed over the bodies claimed they belonged to the four aviation technicians.
Another official with knowledge of the investigation, who also spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the matter, told The Associated Press on Saturday night that four bodies were recovered but that there was no confirmation they were the Salvadoran aviation technicians.
The New York Times, citing a humanitarian aid organization, reported that the four bodies found could be those of the Salvadorans, but noted they were “severely burned” and that autopsies were needed to identify them.
El Salvador deployed more than 100 special forces troops to Haiti on Oct. 22 to help rescue the Salvadorans, a day after announcing a military operation and warning the criminals of a more forceful response if the Salvadorans are not released alive and unharmed.
Haiti’s government described the incident as a kidnapping and said the search for the technicians was its top priority.
El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele, gives a news conference at the presidential palace in San Salvador, El Salvador, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Salvador Melendez)
DALLAS (AP) — Victor Wembanyama had 23 points, seven rebounds and four blocks, Dylan Harper scored 22 points and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks 122-106 on Saturday night for their first victory of the season.
De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle added 19 points apiece as the Spurs avoided their first 0-3 start since 2008-09. They lost to Oklahoma City on Tuesday and to Houston in Austin on Friday.
Rookie Sergio de Larrea led the Mavericks (1-2) with 21 points off the bench, going 3 of 4 behind the arc. Dallas’ five starters combined for 50 points, topped by P.J. Washington with 12 points.
The Mavericks played without their two marquee players, Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving. Flagg, last season’s Rookie of the Year, is out with a shoulder injury that occurred during Dallas’ win at Indiana on Friday night and will be reevaluated next week. Irving, the nine-time All-Star, didn’t play the second night of the back-to-back. He returned this season after being sidelined for 19 months with a torn ACL.
The Spurs squandered a 14-point lead in the third quarter but opened the final period on a 17-5 run in the first six minutes. They outscored Dallas 30-17 in the quarter as Spurs fans took over American Airlines Center in the closing minutes.
Wembanyama started slow, scoring only one point until midway through the second period. He then scored on two alley-oop dunks within two minutes and finished the half with 12 points.
The Spurs grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and outscored the Mavericks 25-10 in second-chance points.
Dallas scored 46 points in the paint in the first half, a franchise high during the play-by-play era (since 1997-98), according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Spurs: Host Sacramento on Tuesday.
Mavericks: At Miami on Monday.
See AP’s full NBA coverage here
Dallas Mavericks head coach Dusty May reacts during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs , Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Dallas Mavericks forward Sergio de Larrea works the floor against the San Antonio Spurs during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson works the floor against the Dallas Mavericks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Dallas Mavericks forward Sergio de Larrea drives against San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama, right, tries to control the ball after a rebound as Dallas Mavericks center Moussa Cisse tries to disrupt him during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
