U.S. sanctions officials close to El Salvador's Bukele for alleged corruption

FILE PHOTO: El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele speaks during a decoration ceremony to the Apostolic Nuncio to El Salvador Santo Gandemi, in San Salvador, El Salvador, October 26, 2022. REUTERS/Jose Cabezas

SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) - The United States sanctioned several Central American officials it accused of possible corruption in their respective countries on Friday, including two politicians close to El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele.

U.S. authorities sanctioned over 40 people under the Magnitsky Act, which authorizes the government to sanction foreign officials for human rights offences, freeze their assets and ban them from entering the United States.