4th June 2025
The Nuhanovic Foundation welcomes yesterday’s historic verdict delivered by the court in Chalatenango, El Salvador, which found three former Salvadoran military officers – General José Guillermo García, Francisco Antonio Morán, and Colonel Mario Reyes Mena – guilty of the 1982 murders of four Dutch reporters: Koos Koster, Jan Kuiper, Joop Willemsen, and Hans ter Laag. A five-member jury sentenced the defendants to 15 years in prison.
This ruling represents a major breakthrough in the decades-long struggle for truth and accountability, not only for the families of the victims, but also for the broader effort to address impunity for war crimes committed during El Salvador’s brutal civil war.
On 17th March 1982, the four reporters, who were working for Dutch public broadcaster IKON, were ambushed and killed in Santa Rita, Chalatenango while investigating alleged human rights violations committed by the Salvadoran military. Extensive investigations and evidence later indicated that the reporters were deliberately targeted and killed in a premeditated ambush.
After decades of impunity and multiple legal obstacles, the trial against the former officers involved in the killings reopened in 2016 when the Supreme Court declared an amnesty law unconstitutional. Two of the accused, General José Guillermo García and Francisco Antonio Morán, were arrested in 2022. The third accused, Colonel Mario Reyes Mena, currently resides in the United States. Despite a Salvadoran indictment against him, an INTERPOL Red Notice for his provisional arrest, and the Supreme Court of El Salvador authorising his extradition, Colonel Reyes Mena has not yet been extradited to El Salvador.
Originally scheduled to resume on 23rd April 2025, the final phase of the trial was postponed due to a medical absence of the defence lawyer and was rescheduled for 3rd June 2025. Yesterday’s verdict holds the three accused accountable for the targeted killings of the reporters, and is a powerful affirmation of the rule of law and a meaningful step in the struggle against impunity for crimes committed during El Salvador’s civil war.
The Nuhanovic Foundation and REDRESS have jointly supported some of the victims’ families throughout the public trial phase in El Salvador. Our collaboration has included facilitating the families’ access to court proceedings, liaising with their legal teams, and ensuring that their voices were heard. Working alongside our Salvadoran partners Fundación Comunicándonos and ASDEHU, we have also contributed to increasing the visibility of the case, both within El Salvador and internationally.
Today’s convictions are not only a measure of justice for the four reporters and their families, but also a milestone in the global effort to defend press freedom, human rights, and accountability for international crimes. The Nuhanovic Foundation will continue to support the victims’ families as they process this important outcome, and we remain committed to promoting justice and reparation for victims of international crimes and grave human rights violations worldwide.
To know more about the IKON case, click here.
