death squad

American  

noun

1. any of various groups of assassins, especially in Central America, whose members murder political dissidents, petty criminals, etc., usually with the tacit approval of the government.

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Etymology

Origin of death squad

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials came close to sending to Haiti five individuals who had tested positive for the novel coronavirus, as well as a notorious Haitian death squad leader.

From Washington Post • May 21, 2020

Hereward meets a fierce swordsman on the road and the skilled fighter protects him from a Viking death squad tasked with capturing the book.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 18, 2019

It has also strived to silence its most outspoken critics, including jailing Senator Leila de Lima, who, as chair as the Commission on Human Rights, spearheaded an investigation into the Davao death squad in 2009.

From The Guardian • Nov. 11, 2017

Mr. Duterte and his supporters have long denied the existence of a death squad in Davao City.

From New York Times • Mar. 21, 2017

That group is effectively a death squad for songbirds, killing an estimated 4 billion US avifauna a year; globally, island cats drive 14% of vertebrate extinctions.

From Nature • Oct. 11, 2016