Gunmen kill at least 16 in attacks on Honduras coast

Gunmen carried out two separate attacks on the Honduran coast Thursday, killing at least 16 people, including six police officers, according to authorities. The violence underscores the persistent security challenges in a region marked by long-standing land disputes and gang activity.

The first attack occurred at a plantation in the municipality of Trujillo in northern Honduras. National Police spokesman Edgardo Barahona said at least 10 workers were shot and killed there. The Trujillo region is resource-rich and has been the site of a decades-long agrarian conflict. Barahona noted the overall death toll from this incident remains unclear, partly because relatives of the victims have removed some bodies from the scene.

In a second, apparently unrelated attack, assailants opened fire on police in the municipality of Omoa in the Cortes department near the Guatemalan border. Authorities said six officers, including a senior officer, were killed. The officers were assigned to an anti-gang mission and were attacked while traveling to Omoa from the capital, Tegucigalpa.

In response to the attacks, the Security Ministry stated that the National Police and armed forces will deploy to...