Seven Guatemalan Police Killed in Gang Retaliation

Violence erupted in Guatemala City and surrounding areas on Sunday, leaving at least seven police officers dead and ten injured, following a government operation that recaptured a prison from rioting inmates and led to the arrest of a prominent gang leader. The attacks came in apparent retaliation for authorities' refusal to grant privileges to imprisoned members of the Barrio 18 gang, which orchestrated coordinated uprisings across three facilities the previous day.

The unrest began on Saturday when inmates at three prisons seized 46 hostages, primarily guards but also including a psychologist and other staff. Officials attributed the riots to Barrio 18 members demanding better conditions and a transfer for their leader, Aldo Duppie, known as El Lobo, who has been serving sentences totaling around 2,000 years for various crimes. The hostages were taken in response to recent decisions by prison administrators to revoke special privileges previously afforded to gang leaders, such as less restrictive housing.

By Sunday morning, Guatemalan security forces, including police and military personnel, had regained full control of one facility, the Renovacion 1 maximum-security prison...