As El Salvador’s state of emergency turns four years old, families warn of the toll of the mass arrests on children.
![Rubidia Hernández and her 6-year-old granddaughter pictured in their home, where her son also used to live, in the outskirts of Nahuizalco, El Salvador. [Euan Wallace/ Al Jazeera]](https://aljazeeranews-3fuh52rgrl.edgeone.app/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/DSC00428-1774484123.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)

Martina Mariano is a freelance journalist based in Bogotà, Colombia.
As El Salvador’s state of emergency turns four years old, families warn of the toll of the mass arrests on children.
![Rubidia Hernández and her 6-year-old granddaughter pictured in their home, where her son also used to live, in the outskirts of Nahuizalco, El Salvador. [Euan Wallace/ Al Jazeera]](https://aljazeeranews-3fuh52rgrl.edgeone.app/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/DSC00428-1774484123.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)