Seven police officers killed in attacks in Guatemala after prison repression against gangs

Guatemala’s Interior Minister accused gangs of killing seven police officers on Sunday in retaliation for the government’s refusal to transfer gang leaders to a lower security prison.

The killings occurred a day after gang inmates took 46 people hostage in three prisons across the country. Police regained control of one of them on Sunday.

“I am deeply saddened by the death of seven agents of the National Civil Police who were cowardly attacked by these terrorists in response to the actions that the Guatemalan State is taking against them,” Interior Minister Marco Antonio Villeda said at a press conference.

Since mid-2025, gang members have staged prison uprisings to demand that their leaders be held in less restrictive conditions.

Villeda said Saturday that the government will not restore prisoners’ “privileges.”

Guatemala is plagued by criminal violence, perpetrated primarily by Neighborhood 18 and Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gangs, which are considered terrorist organizations by the Central American country and the United States.

Barrio 18 and MS-13 are rivals and fight for territorial control in Guatemala by extorting merchants, transport workers and civilians.

In October, Guatemalan authorities reported that 20 leaders of the Barrio 18 gang had escaped from a prison. Only six have been recaptured, while another was shot dead.

Guatemala ended last year with a homicide rate of 16.1 per 100,000 inhabitants, more than double the world average.

Last month at least 12 bodies were found in a wooded area on the outskirts of Guatemala City, and authorities linked the discovery to gang violence.

Last summer, authorities said at least seven people died when armed gang members broke into the funeral of a Barrio 18 member.