Authorities in Guatemala accused gangs of killing eight police on Sunday in retaliation for the federal government’s refusal to switch gang leaders to a lower-security jail.
The killings occurred within the Guatemalan capital and surrounding areas a day after gang-affiliated inmates took 46 folks hostage in three prisons throughout the nation. Police regained management of one of many prisons on Sunday.
In an announcement growing an earlier toll by one, Guatemala’s police stated it “regrets the demise of eight of its officers within the line of responsibility by the hands of criminals.”
Inside Minister Marco Antonio Villeda earlier informed a press convention he was deeply saddened by the “cowardly” killing of cops “by these terrorists, in response to the actions the Guatemalan state is taking towards them.”
Ten different cops had been wounded within the retaliatory assaults, and one suspected gang member was killed, he stated.
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo introduced on X he had convened an emergency cupboard assembly on Sunday to make “decisive selections to take care of safety.”
The U.S. Embassy in Guatemala issued a safety alert on Sunday, advising its personnel to shelter in place and keep away from crowds, whereas the federal government suspended colleges on Monday.
Hostages rescued
At daybreak on Sunday, police supported by the military entered the Renovacion I maximum-security jail in Escuintla, about 45 miles south of Guatemala Metropolis, utilizing armored automobiles and tear gasoline.
After quarter-hour, they managed to regain management of the jail and freed guards being held hostage, an AFP photographer witnessed.
“It was an operation that unfolded with out casualties on both aspect, and we managed to rescue the 9 hostages that these terrorists had of their energy,” Villeda stated.
The inside ministry revealed a video on X displaying officers handcuffing and main away the alleged chief in Guatemala of the Barrio 18 gang, whom authorities recognized as Aldo Dupie, alias “El Lobo” (The Wolf). He had bloodstained clothes.
NATIONAL CIVIL POLICE through Reuters
Barrio 18 and its rival gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) are blamed for a lot of the drug trafficking and prison violence that plague the Central American nation.
Washington has declared each teams to be terrorist organizations. Barrio 18 is likely one of the largest gangs within the Northern Hemisphere, the U.S. State Division stated in a information launch, including that the international terrorist group designation “additional demonstrates the Trump Administration’s unwavering dedication to dismantling cartels and gangs and making certain the security of the American folks.”
Felony violence
Since Saturday morning, inmates had been holding 45 guards and a psychiatrist hostage to protest the switch of gang leaders to a maximum-security jail.
The gang members are nonetheless holding hostages on the two different prisons: 28 at Fraijanes II situated east of the Guatemalan capital, and 9 on the Preventivo jail on the outskirts of metropolis.
Villeda acknowledged that the federal government was “negotiating” to safe the discharge of hostages, however insisted that the state “is not going to bow down to those criminals.”
Protection Minister Henry Saenz stated the military “will stay on the streets” to proceed “dismantling” prison teams.
Since mid-2025, gang members have staged uprisings at prisons to demand their leaders be held in much less restrictive situations.
In October, Guatemalan authorities reported that 20 leaders of the Barrio 18 gang had escaped from jail. Solely six have been recaptured, whereas one other was shot and killed.
Guatemala’s murder fee in 2025 was 16.1 per 100,000 inhabitants, greater than double the worldwide common.
Final month, no less than 12 our bodies had been discovered in a wooded space on the outskirts of Guatemala Metropolis, and authorities linked the invention to gang violence.
Final summer season, authorities stated no less than seven folks had been killed when armed gang members stormed into the funeral of a Barrio 18 member.
