Authorities in El Salvador have moved prisoners from two of the country's hyper-violent gangs into the same prison for the first time, in a bid to stop them running operations from behind bars
Members of the Barrio 18 gang wait to be admitted on their arrival to San Francisco Gotera penitentiary, their loyalty made patently clear by the huge tattoos on their backs
A member of the Barrio 18 gang waits to be admitted upon arrival to the San Francisco Gotera penitentiary
Incredible images show handcuffed members from the notorious Barrio 18 gang being marched onto buses taking them from Izalco jail to San Francisco Gotera in an effort to curb gang violence
In a potentially incendiary move, Barrio 18 members at the jail will mix with their rivals from the hyper-violent Mara Salvatrucha gang, or M13
And they will all be classified not by their gang affiliation, but by how dangerous they are.
The policy of mixing the gangs together came about when officials realised that gangs were directing criminal activity from within prison walls.
Prisons director Rodil Hernandez said last week in San Salvador that the gang members were moved from regular prisons to the maximum security lockup where they will be completely isolated from the outside world.
Bryan's story emphasises El Salvador's gang violence problem, So far this year, gang members have been blamed for killing 20 police officers, two soldiers, six prison guards and a prosecutor
A Salvadoran policeman guards members of the Barrio 18 gang upon their arrival to the San Francisco Gotera penitentiary
Just last week eight gang members were killed in a confrontation with police on a coffee farm in El Salvador
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