El Salvador goes a whole day with no murders

El Salvador has gone a whole day with no murders for the first time in two years.

The nation, which is one of the world's deadliest and has a population of about six million people, averaged 14.4 murders a day last year.

The country's Civil Police commissioner Howard Cotto said on Thursday that no murders were reported the previous day in the Central American nation.

Warring gangs known as "maras" are involved in drug trafficking, organised crime and extortion rackets in the country.

The last time the country went a full day without any killings was 22 January 2015, according to records kept by the Associated Press. It also happened once in 2013 and on two days the year before that.

Killings peaked at 104 per 100,000 residents in 2015, the highest rate for any nation not in war that year.

Homicides fell by about 20% in 2016, but it was still one of the most violent countries with 81.2 murders per 100,000 residents.